Vision for All: Promoting Gender Equality and Empowering Women in Eye Health
Globally, of the 1.1 billion people with vision loss, 609 million (55%) are females compared...
Since our first in-country partnership in 2008, together with partners:
eye screenings and basic treatment
sight-restoring surgeries
About 230,000 people are currently blind in Ghana according to the Ghana Health Service.
With only 100 ophthalmologists to treat the more than 30 million people who live in Ghana, Cure Blindness Project is working to expand access to care by training frontline healthcare workers to diagnose and treat eye diseases.
Cataracts continue to be the leading cause of low-vision and blindness with hundreds of thousands waiting for care. Care in rural communities lags behind that available in cities. Cure Blindness Project strives to provide necessary equipment and training so doctors can care for those in the most remote areas.
First partnership with the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) Eye Center in Jumaal to support training and cataract outreach.
Inaugurate KATH’s standalone Eye Center funded by USAID ASHA as a center of excellence in care and training serving West Africa. The completed facility saw a 26.5% increase in surgical eye care during the year following its opening.
First Country Representative, Dr. Oscar Debrah is hired to advise Cure Blindness Project program activity and partner expansion.
The number of Cure Blindness Project partnerships reaches 13 and includes Ghanian service providers from both the public and private sectors.
In partnership with Ghana Health Service (GHS), the National Cataract Outreach Program (NCOP) is established with the goal of eliminating needless blindness in Ghana while building a financially sustainable program.
Cure Blindness Project receives USAID grant to construct a stand-alone eye center and teaching facility (modeled after KATH) at Cape Coast Teaching Hospital.
GHS assigns four staff members (optometrists, ophthalmic nurse, biomedical engineer and program manager) to train eye care personnel in NCOP’s standard operating procedures for cataract surgeries.
Ashanti (Southern) Region
Brong Ahafo Region (Seth Wanye - Zonal Leader)
Central Region
Eastern Region (Mercy Dawson - Zonal Region)
Greater Accra Region
Northern Region
Upper Eastern Region
Western Region
National