At the conference (Source: VNA)Nghe
An (VNA) – The rate of blindness among people 50 years old and
older has dropped strongly in the past decade, standing at 1.3 percent in 2015
from 3.1 percent in 2008, according to the latest survey conducted in 14 cities
and provinces in 2015.
The
information was released by Director of the Vietnam National Institute
of Ophthalmology (VNIO) Nguyen Xuan Hiep at the 2019 national ophthalmological conference
in Vinh city, the central province of on October 24.
Also
according to the survey, the estimated number of blind people in Vietnam
decreased from 443,700 in 2000 to 370,640 in 2007 and 269,380 in 2018.
Hiep said the number of people with corneal
scars is decreasing while those with cataracts, refractive errors, and diabetic
retinopathy are on the rise.
Jointly organized by the Vietnam Ophthalmological Society (VOS) and the VNIO, the
event saw the participation of over 2,000 local delegates, 80 experts from
France, Italy, Japan, Thailand, Australia, Singapore, and the Republic of
Korea, and representatives from over 50 .
Addressing the conference, Huynh Phuong Ly, chief representative
of Brien Holden Vision Institute in Vietnam
proposed measures to fight , saying that it is necessary to developsatellite hospital networks, promote training
and technology transfer, and improve the quality of human resources serving in
the sector.
Attention should be paid to strengthening and consolidating the network of eye
care service providers to ensure easy access to services for children, the
elderly, and the disabled, she said.
Meanwhile, Ava Hossain, a representative from the Asia-Pacific Academy of Ophthalmology (APAO) said that Vietnam needs to take the initiative in cooperating with other
countries, organizations and individuals in and outside the country in
research, training and technical and financial assistance to better the quality
of services in the field.
Short-term training courses will be arranged in the framework of the
conference, aiming to help eye doctors learn about new knowledge and
technologies.
Ophthalmology-related
pharmaceutical and medical equipment companies are exhibiting their products in
52 booths at the event.
The conference is held every year to evaluate
the prevention of blindness in the country and serve as a forum for experts to
share outcomes of latest research.
Vietnam aims to reduce the rate of blindness
among over-50 people to 1.6 percent by 2020.-VNA
Source: VietnamPlus
