World Sight Day… GPHC screens over 500 patients

Oct 11, 2019 News

In celebration of World Sight Day, the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GHPC) treated over 500 patients at the Eye Clinic.

The hard working team at the Diabetic Eye Centre

Just a small fraction of the patients at the centre, yesterday

The Eye Clinic opened their doors to patients from 10:00-14:00hrs yesterday and those who visited the country’s primary healthcare centre were screened for preventative eye issues, low vision and diabetic retinopathy.
Diabetic retinopathy, also known as diabetic eye disease, is a medical condition in which damage occurs to the retina due to diabetes mellitus. It is said to be a leading cause of blindness and can affect up to 80 percent of those who have had diabetes for the better part of 20 years.
Speaking to the issue of diabetic retinopathy recently on Kaieteur Radio’s health programme, Your Health Matters, Optometrist, Ms. Fionna Todd, said that it was because of the growing number of patients suffering from diabetic retinopathy that the hospital had to put tactical measures in place to reverse the trend.
This, she explained, saw the GPHC and the Ministry of Public Health collaborating with the World Diabetic Foundation and Orbis International to put in place a Diabetic Retinopathy Centre at the GPHC.
The Centre came into being in July 2016 with the aim of allowing persons with diabetes to undergo free screening tests to detect early diabetic eye disease [diabetic retinopathy] before it proceeds to cause permanent blindness. Todd is one of the key players in the Centre.
Consultant Ophthalmologist, Damonie Lanny-Badette, who has been a team member of the GHPC for nine years, related that there has been an increase in the number of diabetic retinopathy cases in Guyana.
However, she revealed that the Ministry of Public Health is continuously working to bring awareness to the Guyanese public to alleviate the issue.
Furthermore, considering that there is only one diabetic centre in Georgetown, the doctor added they are currently looking to expand to across the different health centres regions of the country.
World Sight Day is celebrated on the second week in October of every year and was observed under the theme, “Vision first” this year.