Eye care and COVID-19:
what we’ve learned during the pandemic

Syeda Asma Rashida
Project manager, Bangladesh

“COVID-19 has brought many challenges to our eye health programmes. There was a country-wide lockdown from March 2020, and all restrictions were withdrawn in August, so our programmes have struggled to meet targets and start new projects in the field. However, we’ve worked hard to evolve our way of working.

“We’ve been following guidance from the World Health Organization and the Bangladesh government on eye care protocols and have shared this with our partners. Using additional budget from Sightsavers, we’ve provided face masks, gloves, PPE and alcohol-based sanitisers. Our new policies take place at every stage, from the waiting room to the examination room and beyond.

“COVID-19 has also led to us working virtually. Many people in Bangladesh were not experienced working with computers, so we arranged IT training, which has improved everyone’s skills. This is something people will have long after the pandemic.

“It’s important that our work reaches the most isolated and vulnerable people. Our partner hospitals have relied on community volunteers to identify cataract patients in their area: we used to hold eye camps near people’s homes, but the government restricted mass gatherings, so these were not possible. The Civil Surgeon has now given verbal approval for these to continue: we’re committed to doing this as safely as possible, so we’ve also had written approval for our camps to begin.

“Our work has become more visible to the Civil Surgeon during the pandemic. Civil Surgeons are appointed by the government for every district in Bangladesh. They act as the health manager for their district and are responsible health service administration. In two districts, they visited our partner hospitals to monitor cleanliness and precautionary measures. We received positive feedback, which is a boost to us and our partners.” More from Bangladesh

Tiangay Gondoe
Programme manager, Sierra Leone

“Since August, Sierra Leone has experienced a drastic reduction in the number of new COVID-19 cases and the government has relaxed several restrictions, including the nationwide curfew (from 11am to 5am) and the ban on public gatherings. Preventative and precautionary COVID-19 measures, such as social distancing and using face masks, are still being enforced across the country.

“But our programme activities have adapted to complement the government’s response to COVID-19. Our partners have supported and integrated COVID-19 awareness activities into their work. For example, messages on preventing avoidable blindness were adapted to also share information about the COVID-19 response. Our outreach activities and eye screenings have been an opportunity to raise awareness and share hygiene information. We’ve also provided guidance and resources about disability-inclusive emergency responses to our partners to ensure that their work leaves no one behind.

“Incorporating eye health into COVID-19 messaging means it has benefitted from extra social marketing and sensitisation. COVID-19 has increased the awareness of following infection prevention and control measures, and one result have been a greater emphasis on hygiene and hand washing. This has limited the spread of eye infections from touch and contact.” More from Sierra Leone

Nana Ama Tiwaa-Boateng
Project officer, Ghana

“Despite the Delta variant, the situation in Ghana has improved immensely in the past two months and the country has now received nearly five million doses of COVID-19 vaccines. So far, more than a million people have had their first dose, and more than 700,000 have been fully vaccinated.

“However, we’re still working to stop the spread of the virus and ensure our activities are safe. Standard operating procedures have been developed and personal protective equipment (PPE) such as face masks, hand sanitiser, gloves and tissue rolls have been supplied in health care settings. We’re also strictly following national COVID-19 protocols.

“But this has caused some delays in programme work due to the time it takes to complete risk assessments and get PPE. In February and March 2021, we were able to deliver treatments for river blindness in 76 districts and reached almost 4 million people through the Ghana Health Service. We trained 1,772 health workers to supervise community volunteers during mass drug administration, which far surpassed our target of 1,000 people. This training also included information about COVID-19’s symptoms and preventative measures. More than 12,000 community distributors were also given refresher training about treatment doses and taught about COVID-19 symptoms and precautions.

“The way we work has also changed. Before the pandemic, we mainly met face to face for meetings and workshops. However, we’ve discovered that virtual workshops also yield results, and they have advantages for our patients and beneficiaries. The pandemic has led us to do things differently so we can ensure our activities don’t contribute to the spread of the virus. It has also shown us the importance of planning for unforeseen circumstances, and we now believe we’re more adaptable to any future challenges.” More from Ghana

Barbara Anang Marok
Eye health project officer, Nigeria

“Reported cases of COVID-19 are rising in Nigeria, but eye health programmes have adapted to work safely during the pandemic. Hand washing or using alcohol-based sanitiser is being strongly encouraged, and temperature checks and use of PPE is mandatory. Education about COVID-19 is also key, and the project team are committed to ensuring that precautions are still taken.

“Dr Amina Hassan Katsina, a paediatric ophthalmologist with the National Eye Centre, told us about the challenges of working. ‘It’s not comfortable using glasses, wearing a face shield, a face mask and using the microscope to perform surgeries,’ she explained. ‘But I and members of the team are taking all necessary precautions to protect ourselves and others.’

“Over the past year, the work of eye health projects in Nigeria has begun to increase since their sharp decline in 2020. The programme has stepped in to fill gaps and meet new areas of demand. For example, surgical camps are not normally part of the project in Nigeria, which is funded by People’s Postcode Lottery. But because of the lockdown, the backlog of children needing treatment soon grew. To meet this demand, a surgical camp was organised and held as soon as the lockdown was eased. This is just one example of our work evolving to help people during COVID-19 who need eye health services.” More from Nigeria