On 9 October, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and its partners from within the eye health sector, launched their first World Report on Vision.
“It is unacceptable that more than a billion people are affected by treatable or avoidable sight loss,” declared Peter Holland, CEO of the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB). “I congratulate the WHO and partners for launching this crucial document on the eve of World Sight Day.”
The document, built on efforts of the past thirty years, presents key findings such as the global magnitude of vision impairment, currently estimated to reach at least 2.2 billion people worldwide. The report argues that at least 1 billion of those people have a vision impairment that could have been prevented or has yet to be treated.
The report points out that the burden of most of these eye conditions weighs more heavily on low- and middle-income countries, on rural communities, on older people, women, people with disabilities, ethnic minorities and indigenous populations. It also warns that global demand for eye care is set to triple by 2050 because of population growth, ageing and changes in lifestyle.
Recommendations as to the solutions to these problems include the integration of eye care within national health services, the creation of more ‘people-centred’ eye care, and the protection against financial hardship.
Read the full report here
Topic: Optical News
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