Permanent program
Program for the Prevention and Fight against Blindness (PPFB) - Saint-Louis, Senegal Donate to PPFB in SenegalThis program was created in collaboration with the local partner l’Association Saint-Louisienne pour la Vue (ASV).
September 2021 to August 2024
Consolidation phase
Context
Thanks to a grant from the Nouveau Québec sans Frontières (NQSF) of the Quebec Ministry of International Relations (MRIF), the visual care program in St. Louis will be able to continue to receive financial support from IRIS Mundial for a 3-year period in order to pursue its activities and consolidate its service offer to the population.
Budget
$97 500 CAD
Objectif
To consolidate the service offer and to continue to make available to the population of the St. Louis area a self-sufficient and sustainable quality eye care system.
Results (September 2021-December 2022)
- 5 101 vision screenings
- 1490 optometric examinations
- 272 ophthalmological examinations
- 18 eye surgeries
JANUARY 2019 to MAY 2021*
Initial phase
Context
Following a one-time project in November 2018 during which 30 Canadian volunteers provided eye examinations and care to 2000 people, IRIS Mundial committed to support its partner, the Association St-Louisienne pour la Vue (ASV) in the implementation of their project which aims to offer accessible eye care services to the most disadvantaged people of the Saint-Louis region. Thanks to funding from the “Ministère des Relations internationales et de la Francophonie” (MRIF), IRIS Mundial obtained a grant from the Quebec International Development Program (QIDP) to support ASV in its initiative.
Implementation
In January 2020, the employees of the program were hired and began an internship of more than two months in the ophthalmology department with their partner hospital center. At the same time, construction of the center was undertaken (in partnership with the French organization LÉO) and lasted until October. In March, the employees benefited from an initial training by IRIS Mundial vision professionals and were thus able to gradually start building mobile clinics to reach the population, while waiting for the center to become officially operational.
Budget
$ 280 000 (volunteer participation included).
Objective
To make accessible to the population of the Saint-Louis area, an autonomous and sustainable quality eye care system for 5,000 inhabitants, including 2,100 children.
Results
- 6 410 vision screenings
- 823 ophthalmological examinations
- 48 eye surgeries
* Note that due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the project – which was initially scheduled to end at the end of December 2020 – has been extended until the end of May 2021.
Other activities carried out
- Organization of awareness sessions for teachers, so that they can provide basic visual hygiene advice to their students and also identify students who need an eye exam.
- Production of 14 radio capsules of approximately 45 minutes on visual health and hygiene.
- Training for the “badienou gokh”[1] so that they can educate mothers on visual health and eye infections in newborns.