ICEE sets precedent by launching Vision Centre online resource globally

Vision Centres are quickly becoming a sustainable and economic answer to the need for provision of eye care. Since the inception of the Vision Centre model, forged initially by the LV Prasad Eye Institute in India, hundreds are now servicing the escalating need in underserved communities worldwide. In an important new step, to help others involved in the cause meet the growing demand, this week ICEE is releasing a free online resource - Vision Centres: An Introduction.

Vision Centres: An Introduction is a guide which is easy to download from the ICEE website. It aims to provide eye care personnel with both the theory and practical direction to develop a sustainable Vision Centre. ICEE will also engage those using the resource to provide them with further tools for the effective and efficient on-going development of Vision Centres.

Since inception in 1998, ICEE has advocated the development and use of the Vision Centre model as an important way to reduce the escalating global number of people suffering from avoidable blindness or uncorrected vision impairment. By releasing Vision Centres: An Introduction ICEE hopes to encourage the approach of developing long term solutions by investing in local eye care education and appropriate service delivery systems to ensure sustainable eye care in underserved communities.

ICEE has been delivering sustainable eye care programmes for over 12 years on a global scale. Current figures show ICEE has been integral to providing more than 450 sites for eye care, many of which can be described as full Vision Centres. The evolution of the Vision Centre model by ICEE has been fuelled by the ICEE approach of collaborating with governments, communities and international non-government organisations to develop long term sustainable solutions.

The ICEE plan is simple but historically effective. From local eye health worker education to professional development, ICEE delivers eye care education to local health care personnel at all levels to increase access to eye care and vision health in underserved communities worldwide.

Luigi Bilotto, ICEE Director for Global Resource Development, is excited about the initiative, "We hope the Vision Centres: An Introduction resource will act as a readily available tool to help educate eye care workers on the Vision Centre concept in the field. In many parts of the developing world, eye care services are only available in urban centres which creates accessibility barriers for many people."

Uncorrected refractive errors are the simplest of all eye conditions to diagnose and are fortunately correctable with an eye examination and a pair of glasses in most cases. Today, at least 670 million people, mostly in the developing world, are blind or vision impaired simply because they don’t have access to a basic eye examination and a pair of glasses.

Professor Kovin Naidoo, Global Programmes Director for ICEE, commented, "We have advocated for this model for many years - it is tried and tested. This system, if continued to be implemented by us and now joined by other eye care agencies, would see an immeasurable reduction in the spiralling numbers of those suffering from avoidable blindness or vision impairment."

Professor Kovin continued, "This in time would have the direct and needed impact on the levels of poverty and general health for hundreds of millions of people. Those in most need are entitled to quality care, and the sharing of the resources via our online publication, Vision Centres: An Introduction - the release represents our commitment to achieving this goal."

Read more about the ICEE Vision Centres: An Introduction and how to download it for free from our website. Visit our ICEE Vision Centre photo gallery and browse images from Vision Centres around the world.