Preserve your sights

Preserve your sights-Ghanaians urged

A call has gone to Ghanaians to take good care of their eyes to preserve their sights and help in early detection and treatment of eye diseases.

Dr.Oscar Debrah, of the Eye Care Unit of the Ghana Health Service, entreated Ghanaians to go for regular eye checks ones a year or ones in two years, adding that though Glaucoma cannot be prevented early detection could help manage the situation.

He made the appeal at the 10^th Anniversary Celebration of the Rübsam Eye Clinic at the St. Dominic Hospital at Akwatia in the Koforidua Diocese, on the theme: Sight; Is A Gift to Preserve.

Dr.Dabrah who commended the Clinic for its feet, charged it to embark upon outreach programmes to screen and sensitise the public on eye, adding that 80 per cent of blindness was preventable.

Most Rev. Joseph Afrifah-Agyekum, Bishop of Koforidua Diocese and Chairman for the occasion underscored the need for people to protect their sights because the eyes are important organs of the human beings.  

He commended the Dominican Sisters of Speyer; the German Rotary Voluntary Doctors, the management and Staff of the Clinic for their efforts and achievement over the years.

Dr. Mercy Dawson, Medical Superintendent of the Hospital and head of the Eye Clinic in an overview said the Clinic was established as a result of over 25 per cent of clients at the Out Patient Department (OPD) presented eye problems.

She said through the efforts of the Dominican Sisters of Speyer, the Rotarians of Germany including Prof.Schuette, Prof.Sprandel, with Mr. and Mrs. Erhard Ruebsam offering financial support to construct the Eye Clinic, which was commissioned on August 16, 2003 by Most Rev. Charles Palmer-Buckle, then Bishop of Koforidua Diocese.

Since its inception, Dr. Dawson noted the Hospital recorded 172, 522 OPD attendance of which 21,760 reporting for Glaucoma; 17,938, Refractive Error; 16,055 Cataract; 9,965 spectacles dispensed and 106,804 accounting for other conditions.

She said 221 outreach programmes were undertaken during which 23,151 patients were screened but noted that lack of diagnostic tools and well-equipped outreach van were hampering their outreach programmes.

In a welcome address, Mr. Daniel Augustine Bempong, said the celebration was the outcome of the collaboration among the stakeholders including their benefactors, the management and staff, and government working together to create the enabling environment for health delivery.

He said the need for optometric and ophthalmic services would increase since Ghana’s population was ageing with their attendant visual challenges.

He said the nation could do better by fulfilling its obligation to help treat the illness associated with the eyes, in order to give hope to those afflicted and help children from losing their sights.

Mr. Baba Jamal, Member of Parliament for Akwatia, thanked the Catholic Church for its role in healthcare delivery and thanked the Dominican Sisters of Speyer for their tremendous efforts at health delivery at the hospital, as well as the Hospital for establishing the Eye Clinic.

He said plans were advance to establish a Medical School at Akwatia to train more medical professional in the country. 

Dr. Juliette M. Tuakli, President of the Accra Rotary Club described the collaboration between the hospital and the Rotary Club as a fruitful one that will be further strengthen.

She commended the Hospital and the staff for the good work and they were doing and said the partnership will continue to grow.

The Chiefs and Elders of Akwatia and Boadua in congratulated the Hospital for the service to humanity and thanked the Dominican Sisters for the role in raising the hospital to its enviable status.

There were solidarity message from the German Rotary Club, who annually send Volunteer Doctors to the Eye Clinic, the Dominican Sisters in Speyer, the National Catholic Health Service.

A fund raising activity to purchase a new buss for the Eye Clinic’s outreach activity yielded 11, 000.

As part of the ceremony a bouquet and a plaque were each presented to Mr. and Mrs.Ruebsam, the Dominican Sisters, the German Rotary Club and the German Embassy in Ghana for the various contribution to establishment and running of the Clinic.

The pioneer staff of the Eye Clinic including Dr. Dawson were also honoured at the function graced by dignitaries comprising representative of the German Ambassador to Ghana, Minister for Health, Civil Authority, Clergy, Religious, Friends and well-wishers.

Earlier Bishop Afrifah-Agyekum, assisted by Most Rev. Gabriel EdoeKumordji, Bishop of Donkorkrom Vicariate blessed a fully equipped Ambulance the Dominican Sisters of Speyer Donated to the Hospital.   

*Mr. and Mrs.Ruebsam receiving the bouquet,

*Dignitaries and staff at the function

*BishopsAfrifah-Agyekum and Kumordji blessing the new Ambulance.

From KwesiYirenkyiBoateng