Eye Care: Association wants more students to study optometry

The Nigerian Optometric Association (NOA), has urged more students to study Optometry to beef up manpower capacity in the eye care subsector and achieve the Universal Eye Health target in Nigeria.

The Anambra Chapter of NOA said this at a career sensitisation workshop for secondary school students in Awka on Thursday.

The event which held at Igwebuike Grammar School, Awka was part of events marking the 2018 edition of World Sight Day (WSD) in the state.

Dr Chigozie Umeh, Chairman of the association in Anambra said the state eye health in the country demanded better attention.

Umeh decried the dearth of statistical data on eye health and called on government at all levels and the media to support the efforts of the association to help achieve clear vision for all.

He said WSD was an annual event meant to create public awareness about vision impairment and blindness as major public health concerns.

He said that when more students studied optometry and took up career in the field, more professionals would adequately attend to increasing eye problems in the country.

Umeh said the theme ‘Eye care everywhere” was to highlight the need for establishment of eye care departments in all the tiers of healthcare centres and major institutions.

Also addressing students, Dr Ifeanyi Obi, Head of Optometry Unit, General hospital, Ekwulobia said it was natural that people who attained 45 years required glasses.

Obi said there were a lot of opportunities in optometry as it was not only to ensure sound national eye health, but also make professionals self reliant.

On her part, Dr Ijeoma Alozie, called on students to work hard in their studies to enable them pass their examinations with flying colours to gain admission to read optometry at the higher institutions.

Alozie defined the optometry as the science and art of vision care, a noble profession and a purely independent field of practice.

One of the students, Mr Okonkwo Charles, said he was leaning about the profession for the first time adding that the talk had really enlightened him on optometry as a career option.

Okoknwo thanked the association and management of the school for exposing them to such career talk and called for more as he prepared for his ordinary level certificate examination.

Our correspondent reports that the association paid advocacy visit to some government establishments and held road shows as part of the awareness campaign on eye issues.