A PROGRAM for saving the gift of sight is proposed.
On the move of Baguio City Councilor Art Allad-iw, the month of August is seen as blindness prevention month annually.
Through the resolution, the city government will now integrate and institutionalize health programs the information and education campaign for the prevention of blindness including the support to the program of the Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center’s First Eye bank.
The BGHMC opened its first eye bank in May 2019 with facilities of cornea donation to beneficiaries.
Restoring sight to patients suffering from corneal blindness is only made possible through cornea donation as provided by Republic Act 7885 which provides the mechanism for a donor and beneficiaries of those entitled to the program.
The Department of Health has institutionalized the campaign for the prevention of blindness and among which are the health education capability building, developing an information management system for purposes of reporting and recording, networking and partnership building to ensure that services are available at the local level.
DOH reports the Philippines is a signatory in the Global Elimination of Avoidable Blindness: Vision 2020 – The Right to Sight. The Vision 2020 was initiated by the International Agency for Prevention of Blindness (IAPB), World Health Organization (WHO), and the Christian Blind Mission (CBM), Vision 2020 aims to develop sustainable comprehensive health care system to ensure the nest possible vision for all people and thereby improve the quality of life.
In the country, prevalence of blindness in a 2002 saw the Cordillera with a 0.2 percent while prevalence of low vision on the same year was seen at 0.87 percent while prevalence of visual impairment was at 1.07 percent.