THE Wentworth Early Childhood Development Forum (WECDF) water, sanitation, health and hygiene (Wash) programme has been extended to include eye health and the detection of visual learning impairments.
“Healthy eyes and vision are a critical part of every child’s development. Undetected vision problems may result in difficulty with learning and interfere with a child’s ability to perform to his full potential. Their eyes should be examined regularly, as many vision problems and eye diseases can be detected and treated early,” said WECDF member, Gail Richards.
Optometrist from Central Durban, Dr Hajra Paruk, chose Wentworth ECD centres for her outreach work, providing eye screening for free to all the children.
Dr Hajra assessed vision, eye movements, colour vision and overall health of eyes. Of the 422 children evaluated, 59 were recommended for comprehensive eye testing and four were referred to doctors.
“Eye care and health has now been incorporated into the WECDF Wash programme, which Save The Children implemented in 20 ECD centres,” said Richards.
WECDF chairman, Laurel Cook added: “We are grateful to partners, like Dr Hajra, who support our efforts to promote the healthier eye care of the young children in our ECD centres. Together, we are taking huge leaps in ensuring the rights of young children to health and eye care are realised.”
