JIS

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Some 1,250 persons with specific eye conditions, benefitted from 1,410 procedures conducted under the Jamaica/Cuba Eye Care programme during 2012.

Coordinator of the programme, Gregory Thomas, in an interview with JIS News also informed that over 16,000 consultations took place last year.

The programme, which seeks to help reduce preventable blindness in adults, evolved from the five-year Jamaica/Cuba Eye Care Project, which previously saw persons being screened for eye conditions in Jamaica and sent to Cuba for treatment.

Launched in January 2010, the programme offers surgical treatment for people suffering from three specific conditions: Cataracts, Diabetic Retinopathy (damage to the retina caused by complications of diabetes mellitus) and Pterygium (a non-cancerous fleshy growth, usually on the surface of the eye) free of cost.

Thomas further noted that since the programme’s inception, over 46,000 consultations have been done; over 4, 200 surgeries have been performed; and over 3,790 patients have received surgical treatment.