UKZN Commemorates World Sight Day

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Third- and fourth-year Optometry students at UKZN commemorated World Sight Day at the Umlazi Community Centre in partnership with the Active Citizens Movement - Pietermaritzburg; the Phumlani Dube Foundation, Al Imdaad Foundation and Vision 4 Life.

Co-ordinated by Ms Zamadonda Xulu-Kasaba, a lecturer in the Discipline of Optometry, the 30 students worked tirelessly to screen almost 700 community members.

More than 100 referral letters were issued, mainly for mature (Grades 4 and 5) cataracts, with many of the referred patients reporting limited access to eye health services or being placed on indefinite cataract removal waiting lists.

‘The organising team sang the students’ praises and are confident that they will make a positive contribution to their communities in the future,’ said Xulu-Kasaba. She thanked all the stakeholders involved for their dedication and commitment to making eye health accessible, and their on-going work to avoid blindness in the province.

Ms Haseena Majid, an optometrist and founding member of the public-private health forum established to address the cataract surgery backlog in the uMgungundlovu district commended the students for their involvement, noting that they played a critical role in the event’s success.

Xulu-Kasaba and Majid thanked eThekwini District’s Co-ordinator of Eye-Health for his support.

‘The support from government stakeholders in the eThekwini District and the province is a positive indicator of the willingness to embrace collaborative strategies to address the challenges in public health eye service delivery,’ said Xulu-Kasaba.

‘It is our hope that universal access to eye health becomes a reality in our province so that the high prevalence of avoidable blindness can be significantly reduced,’ commented Majid.

Xulu-Kasaba thanked the organisers for the invitation, and encouraged them to remember that UKZN’s doors are always open to ventures involving community outreach as the Institution values Ubuntu in all that it does. She holds the distinction of being the only academic in the country with an Ocular Therapeutics qualification.

Words: Nombuso Dlamini

Photograph: Supplied