Garo Meghrigian Institute for Preventive Ophthalmology Celebrates World Sight Day 2016

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YEREVAN, Armenia – On October 13, the Garo Meghrigian Institute for Preventive Ophthalmology (Meghrigian Institute) of the School of Public Health distributed eye glasses to the beneficiaries of the Center for Social Services for Single Elderly and Disabled People in Yerevan to celebrate World Sight Day 2016. World Sight Day (WSD) is an annual day of awareness held on the second Thursday of October to focus global attention on blindness and vision impairment.  This year, the call to action for WSD is “Stronger Together.”  

The staff of the Meghrigian Institute screened 382 beneficiaries of the Center for Social Services for Single Elderly and Disabled People between May and October 2016.   The mean age of participants was 74 years ranging from 21 to 95.  Women constituted the majority of the beneficiaries (86.4%).  Refractive errors such as nearsightedness, farsightedness, astigmatism, and presbyopia were found in 332 participants.  Other eye conditions such as infections, allergic conjunctivitis, cataract, glaucoma, diabetic angiopathy, hypertonic retinopathy and macular degeneration were diagnosed in 310 patients.  All patients with eye problems received free ophthalmic consultation, medical treatment prescription, and 324 free eye glasses from the Meghrigian Institute.  Meghrigian institute plans to continue eye screenings among single elders and disabled people living in Gyumri and Gavar.

The AUA School of Public Health works actively to improve population health and health services in Armenia and the region through interdisciplinary education and development of public health professionals to be leaders in public health, health services research and evaluation, and health care delivery and management.