MMUST OPTOMETRY DEPARTMENT PROVIDES FREE EYE CARE AT BUKURA HEALTH CENTRE IN COMMEMORATION OF THE WORLD SIGHT DAY

15 Oct,2021

MMUST OPTOMETRY DEPARTMENT PROVIDES FREE EYE CARE AT BUKURA HEALTH CENTRE IN COMMEMORATION OF THE WORLD SIGHT DAY

“This exercise is not only to celebrate World Sight Day; it is also in line with MMUST’s core mandate of Research. We hope to profile the visual problems diagnosed here to the County and National government to guide future policies,” stated Mr. Sowayi.

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Outreach Officer, Mr. Andrew Wekesa attending to one of the patients

According to the Outreach Officer in the Department, Mr. Andrew Wekesa, they managed to attend to two hundred and sixty-three patients (263). One hundred and six (106) were members of the community while one hundred and fifty-seven (157) were students from nearby schools. Out of the total population attended to, they dispensed eighty-four (84) spectacles, referred twelve (12) cases for cataract surgery and fifteen (15) patients were advised to seek further attention from the MMUST Academic Vision Centre (AVC).

Notably, the Officer in charge of Eye Care Clinic at MMUST, Mr. Alfred Ragot noted that through such initiatives, MMUST contributes to the Universal Health Care agenda. He stressed that the exercise offered the students an opportunity to learn a wide range of eye conditions as well as enhancing their clinical experiences.

One of the Optometry students who attended to patients, Mr. Solomon Alwenge commended the organizers of the event for enabling them to take in the exercise. He further attested to the practical skills they have learnt while attending to the patients. “This has been an opportunity for us to practice the skills we have learnt in class. We have been exposed to unique cases that are important aspects in our career and our skills have been well sharpened,” added Mr. Alwenge.

The outreach was sponsored by the Optometry Association of Kenya (OAK), Essilor Optics Company, International Prevention of Avoidable Blindness (IPAB) and the Masinde Muliro University Optometry Student Association (MMUOSA). This year’s World Sight Day was themed ‘love your eyes’.

MMUST is among the few universities in East and Central Africa offering a Bachelor of Optometry and is known for producing competent Eye Care professionals to the job market.