Mobile ophthalmologist teams are examining rural schoolchildren in remote villages of the Vitebsk region
Ophthalmologists primarily visit remote villages in the Vitebsk region. Using high-tech portable equipment provided by the project organizers, they check the vision of children in rural schools. If vision problems are detected, they prescribe treatment, issue prescriptions, and, if further examination or surgery is necessary, refer the children to the regional center. Specialists also provide recommendations on maintaining eye health to young patients, their parents, and educators.
The mobile teams have already visited Sennensky and Verkhnedvinsky districts, where they have examined approximately 1.4 thousand schoolchildren in total. Visual impairments were detected in 38% of the students, with 16% of them receiving a diagnosis for the first time. Myopia is the most common among the identified disorders. The second most common condition is accommodative spasm, a disorder caused by prolonged eye strain (according to ophthalmologists, often due to children's excessive use of computers, tablets, and smartphones), which can develop into myopia if left untreated. Only 60% of the examined children had no eye problems, which once again confirms the importance of preserving vision among schoolchildren.
As explained by Irina Mikheenko, Chief Specialist of the Medical Care Organization Department of the Main Department for Healthcare of the Regional Executive Committee, the results of the examinations conducted as part of the campaign will be transferred to local medical institutions and the regional children's clinical center. She reported that a medical examination of the child population is currently being carried out in the region in conjunction with the Main Department for Education for the early diagnosis of vision impairments.
The "I See!" project started on March 11 and will conclude in December. During this time, medical professionals plan to examine approximately 14,000 children in 19 districts. Incidentally, Vitebsk region became the fourth region to join the project. Previously, similar work was carried out in Mogilev, Gomel, and Brest regions, where nearly 37,000 schoolchildren were examined.
– The project is a vivid example of public-private partnership, where a public organization, a business structure, government bodies, and institutions solve a common task, in this case, preserving children's health, – summarized **Irina Chernyakova, Deputy Director of the Belarusian Children's Fund**.