An ambitious project
For several years, IRIS Mundial has been working with the Foundation for Economic and Social Development (FODES-5) to implement the Program for the Prevention and Fight Against Blindness. This program is fully financed by IRIS Mundial and is now in progress even though the earthquake slowed down its course.
The goal of this program is to make the area, an extremely poor region located in the mountains and difficult to get to, independent in terms of ophthalmic services. This program is particularly ambitious because there is currently no ophthalmology department throughout the Department of Nippes. In recent months, IRIS Mundial volunteers went to Haiti to initiate the establishment of this program for a period of three years.
Awareness and screening in schools
In September, following the signature of an agreement of mutual collaboration with FODES-5, a nurse specializing in public health, was hired and trained by volunteer optometrists so that she is able to raise awareness and give vision screening tests to students in schools as well as the adult population. The program includes people involved in literacy programs. On her first day, the nurse noticed that two students had poor visual acuity. The teacher later confirmed that these were the two students who had the most difficulty in this class.
An Ophthalmology Clinic in Labrousse
Premises to house the future ophthalmology clinic have been built at the Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes Health Center in Labrousse. This clinic will soon be equipped with modern ophthalmological equipment and patients needing eye care will have access to services, treatments and prescription glasses. The program will also enable patients who suffer from cataracts, pterygium and glaucoma to be operated on in a hospital with adequate surgical facilities for eye surgery.
