Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc has approved the national strategy for blindness prevention until 2020, with a vision to 2030.

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National blindness prevention strategy approved

January 11, 2017 - 17:00

Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc has approved the national strategy for blindness prevention until 2020, with a vision to 2030.

A health worker examines a patient’s eyes. — VNA/VNS Photo
Viet Nam News

HÀ NỘI  Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc has approved the national strategy for blindness prevention until 2020, with a vision to 2030.

The strategy aims to help more people access blindness prevention services, improve early eye disease detection and treatment, and help people with eye diseases access eye rehabilitation services to prevent the diseases from developing into blindness.

It aims to reduce the number of diseases that can cause blindness and eliminate the main causes of blindness.

The objectives of the strategy include reducing the blindness rate to 4.5 per 1,000 people by 2020 and to less than 4.0 by 2030; increasing the rate of people receiving cataract surgeries to more than 2.5 per 1,000 people by 2020 and 3.5 by 2030.

The percentage of diabetes patients that have access to eye disease treatment and monitoring will be increased to over 45 per cent by 2020 and over 75 per cent by 2030.

The strategy also aims to increase the percentage of students with refractive errors that are detected early, have access to treatment, and receive refractive services and refractive correction glasses.

To reach the objectives, the strategy will raise awareness and responsibility of authorities at all levels, of organisations and individuals on blindness prevention and on the effects of blindness on health.  

The strategy hopes to develop and complete blindness prevention policies, control the main causes of blindness, strengthen and consolidate the eye care service network as well as ensure equal access to eye care services for children, women, the elderly and the disabled.  VNS

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