'720,000 Ghanaians Have Unchecked Eye Conditions'

By Abigail Annoh And Alberta Broni

About 720,000 Ghanaians have unchecked eye conditions which may lead to eventual sight loss, a 2018 World Health Organisation (WHO) report on the prevalence of visual impairment in the country has said.

The report, among others, also cited causes of visual impairment in the country including uncorrected refractive errors, glaucoma, macular degeneration and retinal scarring calling for urgent attention in the area.

Mr Franklin Atta, Managing Director of Robert and Sons Optical Limited, made this known at the opening of the company's new branch at East Legon, in Accra yesterday.

The East Legon branch brings to seven the number of outlets the company has across the country in bringing eye care services closer to the Ghanaian populace.

Making reference to a 2016 "Ghana National Blindness and Visual Impairment Study", the MD noted that Cataract, a medical condition which affects the eye remains the leading cause of blindness in about 111,000 Ghanaians annually.

He thus, called for serious attention to be paid to eye care as a critical aspect of the entire healthcare system stating that, "vision is such an important thing to take care of because visual impairment presents a significant impediment to task performance among any working population."

Mr Atta lauded clients and other stakeholders for keeping faith with the Company over the years assuring that Robert and Sons would not renege on its resolve in providing "comprehensive eye testing using state of the art equipment, wide variety of frames and lenses, optical accessories and lens solutions and most of all great customer care to all our cherished clients."

On her part, Member of Parliament (MP) for Ayawaso West Wuogon, Lydia Alhassan, charged workers to be dedicated, hardworking and build a cordial relationship with customers.

She urged stakeholders to work closely with the centre to promote the general well being of Ghanaians in line with realizing goal three of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Mrs Alhassan, in commending the organisation for their work in the last 29 years, observed the pivotal role optical services played in the health delivery system.

"By hardwork, dedication and devotion, we can help push Robert and Sons Limited to the highest heights by making the organisation the biggest referral optical centre on the sub region," she stated.

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