About 700 nurses across the country have so far acquired basic skills in conducting vision assessments and providing treatment after undergoing training in eye care treatment.

The training was organised by the Ministry of Health with support from Vision for a Nation Foundation, a British Non-Governmental Organisation.

So far, the skills development programme has covered 20 districts across the country since last December but is set to cover the entire country before the end of the year. The target is 1,600 nurses from 417 community health centres throughout the country, according to Abdallah Uwihoreye, the Vision for a Nation Foundation Programmes Manager. 

The programme is part of a larger plan to decentralise eye treatment services and make them accessible in health centres countrywide.

Currently, 36 nurses drawn from various health centres in Muhanga District are undergoing a week-long training in both theoretical and practical lessons.  

According to Uwihoreye, many people with eye infections, especially those living in rural areas, don’t have access to eye care.

A survey carried out in 2009 revealed that 80 per cent of eye diseases could be treated in health centres if nurses had basic skills to diagnose and treat them.

The health centres do not have equipment and personnel to provide eye care services, Uwihoreye said, adding that decentralising the services will facilitate the implementation of the national eye care plan which targets providing full access to treatment for every Rwandan. 

"This will also reduce the number of patients referred to hospitals,” he said.

He noted that patients spend a lot of time seeking services in hospitals while they should have been treated at a local health centre.

Improving services

Through this programme, patients will receive free vision assessment and pre-paid eyeglasses if needed. A patient will be requested to pay Frw1,000 and get reading glasses or adjustable glasses according to their conditions, Uwihoreye noted. 

Jean Marie Vianey Bisangimana, an Ophthalmologist at Kabgayi Hospital, said the programme will help the hospital improve service delivery. 

The hospital receives over 120 patients every day from Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo, he said.

"Once nurses start offering basic treatment, transfers will decrease by at least 40 per cent, thus allowing us to give timely treatment and improving on our services,” said Bisengimana.