We train local community health workers who conduct door-to-door eye health screenings, refer patients to a vision centre or hospital for treatment, and provide health education. They’re able to reach families in remote and underserved areas.
Raising awareness and empowering people and communities about eye health is one of five recommendations of the World Health Organization’s 2019 World Report on Vision.
By establishing vision centres in communities, we ensure patients have local access to comprehensive eye exams, prescription eyeglasses and referrals to hospital if needed.
Our goal is to declare all of our partner communities as Avoidable Blindness-Free!
Learn more about our approach here
- Avoidable Blindness-Free villages/communities
The declaration of a community as Avoidable Blindness-Free is the culmination of the work done through our five programming areas: community eye health, disease control, integrated eye health, hospital strengthening, and research and advocacy. We work with our partner hospitals to ensure every last person in our communities of work has an opportunity to get screened for eye conditions and can access free or subsidized treatment.
After months, or even years, of working closely with a community, and when all the treatable cases have been treated successfully and there is no more risk of anyone losing their sight needlessly, the community is declared as Avoidable Blindness-Free on a sustainable basis. We plan a public event to mark the occasion, inviting partners, dignitaries and patients to come together in celebration.
- How do we know that all treatable cases of vision loss have been treated?
We (re)survey the community to find out! At the start of a project, trained community health workers go door to door, screening every person in every household within their catchment area for vision problems and making referrals to a vision centre or other facility as needed. They will visit a household repeatedly until they have screened every child, woman and man. Toward the end of the project, they resurvey the community to ensure everyone in need of treatment has been helped.
- Sustainability
We know that, even if we can confirm that all treatable cases of vision loss have been treated as of today, people can of course develop eye health issues tomorrow. But the goal is for the community to be Avoidable Blindness-Free on a sustainable basis. This is why we work with partner facilities to help them become financially self-sustaining, and community health workers to conduct extensive health education sessions in the community to increase people’s knowledge and awareness of eye health. So, if someone starts experiencing eye health issues tomorrow, they will have the knowledge and resources needed to take charge of their eye health.
Entire communities in Karnataka, India are now Avoidable Blindness-Free. See the video.
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Putting community at the heart of our work
Twelve-year-old Premi, in Rajasthan, India, loves reading and going to school, but in recent years, her enthusiasm for learning came under threat when her eyesight started to fade, making it difficult for her to read the blackboard and keep up with her studies. Premi is one of three children. Her parents and older brother work… Continue reading Putting community at the heart of our work
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Communities | Community Health Worker | Partnerships | School Eye Health | Sustainable Development Goals | Trachoma | Vision Centres
The role of eye care in preventing poverty
For most of his adult life, Abraham made a living as a cobbler, supporting his wife and raising six children on his earnings. But several years ago, he started having trouble threading needles. Initially, he pricked himself repeatedly, and eventually, he couldn’t get the needles threaded at all. Due to his poor eyesight, Abraham had… Continue reading The role of eye care in preventing poverty
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Keeping community at the heart of our approach
As we work to eliminate avoidable blindness and attain the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, including gender equality and good health and well-being, our focus on communities remains key to our success. Our worldwide team of locally-recruited health workers and volunteers gives us ‘insider knowledge’ of a community’s needs and helps us deliver care that… Continue reading Keeping community at the heart of our approach
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Health volunteer says hard work pays off with gratitude from the community
Salina, a community health volunteer in Kenya, is proud to be making a difference in her community. The mother of six, who also has several grandkids, lost her husband several years ago, leaving her to support her burgeoning family on her own. She continued farming corn for income, but low grain prices meant she was… Continue reading Health volunteer says hard work pays off with gratitude from the community
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A big heart for the people – this community health volunteer is changing lives.
Catherine was overjoyed when she heard about the opportunity to become a community health volunteer with Operation Eyesight. However, Catherine’s family was not so thrilled. “Why would you want to work for free?” They would ask her. “I volunteer because I’m helping people. It’s my dream come true!” Catherine says. She always wanted to help… Continue reading A big heart for the people – this community health volunteer is changing lives.
