Over 260 benefited from a joint eye care mission hosted by optometry students from both UG and UWI’s St Augustine Campus, in regions two and ten.
According to a Government Information Agency (GINA) press release, the exercise brought students enrolled in the Bachelor’s Degree programme in Optometry at the Universities of the Guyana and the West Indies together to share their experiences. Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago are the only two countries in the Caribbean that offer Optometry at the tertiary level. The programme started three years ago at both institutions.
President of the Guyana Association of Optometrists, Dr Michele Ming who played a pivotal role in the mission, said she hoped the exercise would be held annually. In Essequibo, Region Two, the team was assisted by NGO Youth with a Mission who helped to identify persons residing in the Amerindian community Nameless that needed eye care. On the second mission, at Wismar, One Mile, the team was assisted by the Youth Core and the Regional Health Officer in Region 10.
Dr Sandra Wong- Harris, an American trained optometrist and a member of the Trinidadian team, explained that the students are a part of an American based organisation called the Student Volunteer Optometrists Services to Humanity (VOSH) which aims to provide eye care to those who need it across the globe, and to promote sustainable eye care.
She said that this is the first international mission originating from Trinidad, and Guyana was at the top of the list. In addition to providing eye care, “another objective for coming to Guyana was to provide sustainable knowledge for the Guyanese students,” she said. GINA noted that Guyana’s optometry programme is very young and it is expected that the mission will aid in its strengthening.
GINA also said four Cuba trained Guyanese doctors are overseas receiving specialized training in ophthalmology. Currently, optometrists from China, India and Cuba are predominantly providing eye care.