By Philip Tengzu, GNA
Bussie, (UW/R), June 24, GNA – The Daffiama-Bussie-Issa (DBI) District Education Directorate has lauded the Blissful Sight for Kids (BS4Ks) programme for its potential to address vision-related problems that affect children’s effective participation in academic activities.
It said many pupils, especially in rural communities, were struggling with vision-related problems, but that the BS4Ks programme could help address the problem.
Mr. Pascal Boyuo, the Head of Supervision at the DBI District Office of the Ghana Education Service (GES), said this in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) at Bussie in the DBI District during a free eye screening outreach under the BS4Ks programme.
The intervention, implemented by Bliss Eye Care in partnership with Ghana Vision, a Swiss-based Charity group, screened a total of 582 pupils in the Bussie Circuit over the weekend.
The screening exercise revealed widespread eye health challenges among children in the area, as only 45 out of the 582 people screened had normal eyesight.
While 512 had pathological eye conditions requiring medication, 13 were diagnosed with refractive errors requiring eyeglasses, and 12 had cataract and glaucoma.
Mr. Bayuo explained that some pupils complained of itchy and painful eyes, making it difficult for them to concentrate during lessons.
He added that in some cases, some pupils could not see from afar, forcing the teachers to move them to the front seats of the classroom to enable them to see the writing on the board.
“With this intervention from Bliss Eye Care, I believe the treatment the children are receiving will help improve their eyesight and enhance their learning in the classroom,” he said.
Madam Alice, a parent whose child benefited from the screening, said she had battled her child’s recurring eye condition for more than a year.
She said whenever the condition surfaced, the child experienced severe pain and was unable to attend school, adversely affecting her academic progress.
She, therefore, expressed hope that the diagnosis and treatment during the screening outreach would resolve the problem.
Mr. Mohammed Yakubu, a teacher at Bussie who also benefited from the screening, said he used to struggle to read his lesson notes and even messages on his mobile phone.
“Now I can read clearly, even on my phone, without any difficulty. I can confidently stand in the classroom and teach without struggling to read”, he said after the screening.
Speaking to the GNA after the exercise, Dr. Zakarea Al-Hassan Balure, the Superintendent of Bliss Eye Care, reaffirmed the facility’s commitment to sustaining the BS4Ks initiative to protect children in rural communities from preventable blindness.
Despite the importance of good eyesight in children’s education, confidence and holistic development, access to quality eye care remained a challenge to many children living in deprived communities.
Dr. Balure explained that the Blissful Sight for Kids, therefore, sought to bridge the eye care access gap and ensure children, particularly those in rural communities, receive early diagnosis and treatment.
The BS4Ks project had, over the past decade, reached thousands of children in the Upper West Region and beyond.
GNA
Edited by Benjamin Mensah
Reporter: Philip Tengzu, GNA
Email: [email protected]