In a recent virtual meeting orchestrated by KnowTheGlow’s Co-Founder, Megan Webber, and Helene Dameris, Director of Global Outreach, a passionate group of eye health professionals in Uganda unveiled their groundbreaking efforts to revolutionize eye care services and awareness across their homeland. We also discussed their enthusiasm for the planned awareness effort combining KnowTheGlow’s messaging with the innovative ArcLight Scopes, generously provided by We C Hope, which can help provide vision screening more efficiently and cost-effectively throughout the region.
Dr. Innocent Ayesiga (Miller), a distinguished medical doctor and the in-country director of Eye Health Africa is at the forefront of this transformative movement. Dr. Innocent, who envisions delivering high-quality ophthalmologic care across Africa, is a key driving force in the initiative. Founded by Miss Primrose Magala, a British Senior Ophthalmic Nurse Practitioner at Moorfields Eye Hospital in London and the author of ‘The Eye Opener,’ Eye Health Africa aspires to establish long-term and sustainable ophthalmic institutions throughout the continent. Dr. Innocent’s approach involves advocating for aid, fostering partnerships with local and international organizations, and facilitating the exchange of knowledge and practical skills to build the capacity for eye care services in Africa.
Collaborating with Dr. Innocent are two remarkable individuals: Sam Mbayo, an ophthalmic clinical officer and a health service management student at Islamic University International Uganda, and Molemisi Kono, a driving force behind advocacy for early habilitation and rehabilitation intervention efforts in Africa. Sam is actively involved in community health education with Eye Health Africa. Molemisi, a TEDX speaker, born in Botswana and living in London (UK), focuses on Habilitation and Rehabilitation training of the vision impaired to attain competence, autonomy and relatedness, aiding their day-to-day wellbeing, wellness and quality of life. He explained to Megan and Helene that when working with school-age children, one needs to understand the whole child, that includes their background and life circumstances in order to be able to provide the child with person-centred habilitation and rehabilitation interventions. Molemisi advised a child will always have the best chance to reach their educational attainment if habilitation and rehabilitation interventions are introduced at the earliest. To that regard, Molemisi, through ‘Visual Eyes Afrika-international’, and working with consortium’s including with Eye Health Africa endeavours to continue building partnerships and networks around eye health, habilitation and rehabilitation in Uganda and elsewhere in Africa including the world at large.
In his role as Director of Eye Health Africa in Uganda, Dr. Innocent emphasized the critical role of partnerships in executing projects that require on-the-ground involvement. Beginning in 2017, the team has collaborated with Moorfields and multiple hospitals to conduct eye health camps, develop local healthcare skills and knowledge, and provide equipment donated by UK organizations. They look to have volunteer professionals from the UK continue these partnerships as Dr. Innocent’s team of professionals continues directing the training within the country. The collaboration extends to partnerships, such as with Ubora Foundation Africa to address Uganda’s healthcare challenges. Eye Health Africa, under Dr. Innocent’s leadership, aims to establish partnerships with other Eye Health Africa branches in other countries such as Ghana and Burundi. Through support from different stakeholders, they have sponsored various professionals as they pursue further studies and have successfully trained 9 individuals– 7 ophthalmologists, 1 obstetrician /gynecologist, and 1 health service management specialist.
Despite these efforts, Uganda’s eye health sector continues to face significant challenges, as Dr. Innocent highlighted the scarcity of ophthalmologists, the absence of government support, and widespread ignorance about eye diseases. The installment of an Eye Health Commissioner offers a ray of hope, but budget constraints and the need for widespread awareness persist. The challenges in diagnosing Retinoblastoma (RB) were underscored by the revelation of 100-130 recorded annual cases, with many unrecorded instances, particularly prevalent in rural areas. A survey conducted by Eye Health Africa in partnership with World Eye Cancer Hope on 40 ophthalmic clinical officers revealed alarming statistics, as 95% admitted to never having used the Arclight device, and 97% reported its unavailability in their working facilities. In response, there is a call for those trained on the Arclight to become ambassadors, spreading awareness about KnowTheGlow (KTG) and dispelling the myth that the glow observed in a child’s eye is a cultural phenomenon rather than a medical condition. Emphasizing the urgency of immediate action upon detecting something in the eye, these ophthalmic clinic officers are urged to maximize their impact, envisioning success starting from the Central Business District, Kampala and gradually extending services out to the rural areas.
Dr. Innocent provided a sobering overview of the current state of eye health in Uganda, revealing that the nation has only 35-40 licensed ophthalmologists serving a staggering 40 million people. The year 2020 witnessed Uganda’s growth, but the distribution of doctors remains disproportionately concentrated, with 50% or more located in a specific area rather than reaching the far corners of the country. Dr. Innocent highlighted his engagement with the Ministry of Health (MOH), particularly with the Eye Health Commissioner. He emphasized the historical oversight of the eye health department, initially placed under the disability department. A significant development occurred in the fall of 2023 when an Eye Health Commissioner was appointed to oversee activities in the sector. Despite this positive step, the challenge persists with the absence of a dedicated budget for eye health services. Previously, funds were channeled to disabilities without specific allocation for eye health. Dr. Innocent remains hopeful that with the establishment of the office and commissioner, there could be a targeted budget to address the unique needs of the eye health sector. As the team continues to navigate challenges and create impactful change, KnowTheGlow extends its gratitude to these dedicated professionals working tirelessly to illuminate a brighter future for eye care in Africa.
Finally, Sam Mbayo, on the ground in Uganda, shared a poignant story highlighting the challenges of diagnosing Retinoblastoma (RB), stressing the importance of campaigns to educate communities about the disease’s presentation in photos. He shared with the team a scenario where he had a parent bring in a child for examination, and Sam discovered the child had RB. Sam then referred them to the RB treatment center in South Western Uganda, which is over 600 Km away from his workplace. The parents became frightened at what they saw at the clinic and ran back to their village in the east instead of heading west to the only hospital in Uganda that could treat RB. The parents were so overwhelmed seeing the condition of the children being treated with RB that they refused treatment. Sam stresses that it is very important to have a campaign focused on showing people how the disease can present in photos. Education and awareness are key on so many levels. Undeterred, the team is actively involved in initiatives such as deploying the Arclight Scope with the aid of WE C Hope.
