Sant Hirdaram Nagar based Sewa Sadan Eye Hospital have performed free eye diagnosis of 4,79,480 students of 8,772 Government primary and middle schools of Bhopal, Vidisha and Raisen districts, under vidyajyoti school eye health screening programme.
This campaign was under taken with the co-operation of Health services and education departments of State Govt, International NGOs ORBIS and Sight Savers from the year 2015 to 2017. In a view to implement the programme, firstly elementary vision testing training was imparted to 7,320 school teachers. Then the senior optometrists of SSEH tested the refraction of 28,964 students of weak vision.
Optometrists found 6,828 students of weak vision. later SSEH provided them free speces. During this school screening 28 students were found ailing with cataract disease and two cases of Squint. All they underwent for surgical procedures in SSEH. Expenditure on these surgeries was made available under Rashtriya Baal swasthya Karyakram of State Health department.
Teachers were told that the children who feel trouble to read written text on blackboard from the distance of 20 feet or less should be identified as a weak vision. Trained teachers and optometrist of SSEH are continuously keeping eye on those students who have been given specs and are regularly using it or not.
It was told that the students of weak vision should use specs regularly otherwise irregular use of specs will effect their studies and can become a case of early age cataract disease. Often, policy makers of NGO’s and Governmental organisations plan and think on the possibilities of private-public partnership model in rendering health services. On the same line Sewa Sadan have achieved and presented a successful model of PPP in the field of rendering health services. This is a good example of this model.
In Bhopal district this programme was launched in the year 2015. Elementary eye testing trainings to 2,226 of 1,297 schools were imparted. They examined 1,65,567 children and found 14,575 students for their refraction examination. Of them 3,450 students were given specs by the SSEH.