In 2022, after several years of hiatus due to COVID restrictions, SightLife (now jointly HCP) was able to resume work in Nepal. They facilitated an in-person training on clinical management of cornea care for ophthalmic assistants in Nepal. The event was hosted by Bharatpur Eye Hospital, one of SightLife’s longtime regional partners. It focused on updating primary eye care providers in the effective management of corneal disease to better serve rural communities and prevent corneal blindness.
Approximately 20 ophthalmic assistants (OA’s) participated in the training. Ophthalmic assistants are a critical part of the eye care community, as they are often the first care providers to see patients at vision centers in their communities. They received training in diagnosis, management and treatment of corneal disease, and referral protocols, including hands-on experience with patients.
Ophthalmic Assistants’ primary focus lies in the diagnosis and management of eye health problems that encompass ocular disorders, ocular emergencies, preoperative and postoperative cases, investigative procedures, external corneal surgical procedures, community programs and health education, optical dispensing, and low vision clinical assessment. A fully trained OA can fill the eye care gaps in Nepal’s health system between rural communities and tertiary hospitals. This gives patients more access to providers who can identify and treat a corneal ailment, rather than being referred to a larger hospital further away, where they may incur higher costs for treatment, which can also prevent care seeking behavior.
Under this collaboration, SightLife will be able to scale this initial training program by training eight master trainers who will subsequently train all the OAs in the country.
Statistics:
There are currently 2,000 OAs in Nepal, with an additional 320 new OAs being certified every year. Under this partnership, SightLife will train two groups of OAs totaling 60 individuals, this will additionally include 4 master trainers, who will then go on to provide training for other OA’s in the country and provide a more sustainable solution to continue this project.
Each OA serves a population of approximately 50,000 – 100,000 people
This project will help ensure that 3,000,000 – 6,000,000 people will have access to corneal eye care across Nepal
This project will target master trainers and OAs from regions in Nepal where the 8 training centers reside. Local and international corneal experts will additionally be invited to donate their time and lead these trainings. Training the master trainers to conduct regular courses for OAs across several regions will build vital capacity in the region and create sustainability and longevity in the OA training program. With this collaboration and partnership, SightLife will train master trainers from 4 of the 8 training centers in 2023.
Image Credit: Credit: Himalayan Cataract Project, used with permission.
