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REVIEW ARTICLE
Year : 2020  |  Volume : 68  |  Issue : 2  |  Page : 316-323

Comprehensive eye care - Issues, challenges, and way forward


1 Department of Ophthalmology, University Vita-Salute, Scientific Institute San Raffaele, Milan, Italy
2 Gullapalli Pratibha Rao International Centre for Advancement of Rural Eye Care, L V Prasad Eye Institute; Brien Holden Eye Research Centre, L V Prasad Eye Institute, Hyderabad, Telangana, India; Senior Visiting Fellow - School of Optometry and Vision Science, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia; Wellcome Trust / Department of Bio-technology India Alliance fellow, L V Prasad Eye Institute, Hyderabad, Telangana, India
3 Gullapalli Pratibha Rao International Centre for Advancement of Rural Eye Care, L V Prasad Eye Institute; Brien Holden Eye Research Centre, L V Prasad Eye Institute, Hyderabad, Telangana, India; Senior Visiting Fellow - School of Optometry and Vision Science, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia

Correspondence Address:
Dr. Rohit C Khanna
L V Prasad Eye Institute, L V Prasad Marg, Banjara Hills, Hyderabad - 500 034, Telangana

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Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None


DOI: 10.4103/ijo.IJO_17_19

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As we move from a disease-specific care model toward comprehensive eye care (CEC), there is a need for a more holistic and integrated approach involving the health system. It should encompass not only treatment, but also prevention, promotion, and rehabilitation of incurable blindness. Although a few models already exist, the majority of health systems still face the challenges in the implementation of CEC, mainly due to political, economic, and logistic barriers. Shortage of eye care human resources, lack of educational skills, paucity of funds, limited access to instrumentation and treatment modalities, poor outreach, lack of transportation, and fear of surgery represent the major barriers to its large-scale diffusion. In most low- and middle-income countries, primary eye care services are defective and are inadequately integrated into primary health care and national health systems. Social, economic, and demographic factors such as age, gender, place of residence, personal incomes, ethnicity, political status, and health status also reduce the potential of success of any intervention. This article highlights these issues and demonstrates the way forward to address them by strengthening the health system as well as leveraging technological innovations to facilitate further care.


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