NEW YORK—Today is World Sight Day 2023 and thousands of eyecare professionals, NGOs, companies, public health groups, organizations and patients are lending their voices and dollars to support the cause of bringing attention to the value of good vision, access to eyecare and eye health for all. According to the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness' update yesterday, this year over 13 million pairs of eyes have been tested and sight screenings held in workplaces around the world have been a part of this year’s World Sight Day initiative. IAPB said it has recorded over 13 million pledges from individuals and organizations to love their eyes, which smashed the 10 million pledge target and is over double the number pledged last year. The pledges are leading to greater public awareness of the importance of taking care of one's own eye health.

 
  
As VMAIL has reported multiple organizations and companies are support the annual day of recognition. Millions of eye tests are being pledged, and hundreds of companies and thousands of ECPs are taking part to advocate the goal or raise awareness and deliver care to underscore the value of good vision. Today at the United Nations a special first-of-its-kind photo exhibition draws attention to World Sight Day and many countries around the world are doing their part as well.

Here are a few more examples of what’s happening:

 
 Today, the Global Myopia Awareness Coalition run a special campaign video in New York's Times Square.
  
Today, The Global Myopia Awareness Coalition (GMAC), a coalition of leading ophthalmic companies and eye health associations, will illuminate a Times Square New York billboard to draw attention to the growing issue of myopia and the importance of getting children an annual eye exam. Myopia, commonly known as nearsightedness, is rapidly growing in prevalence, with potential long-term implications if left unaddressed. GMAC is committed to raising awareness and advocating for getting more patients access to treatment.

The Times Square billboard is a partnership between GMAC and the Volunteer Optometric Services to Humanity International (VOSH) and will feature an awareness message to consumers that by 2050, 1 in 2 people will have myopia. It ends with a call to action to give your child a clear future and schedule an eye exam today.

In addition to the Times Square billboard, GMAC is setting up a booth at the American Academy of Optometry’s annual meeting this weekend in New Orleans, La. GMAC representatives will engage with AAO attendees, including optometrists, other eyecare professionals, and industry representatives. Attendees will have the opportunity to learn more about GMAC’ s mission, share insights on myopia management, and explore potential collaborations to address this public health concern.

Lisa McAlister, chair of the board of GMAC, expressed her excitement about these initiatives, stating, “We are eager to leverage Times Square’s visibility to raise awareness about myopia during World Sight Day. Our goal is to spark conversations about myopia, its impact, and the importance of proactive eyecare for children. Additionally, our presence at the American Academy of Optometry annual meeting will provide a platform to collaborate with experts and advance our mission to increase awareness about myopia.”




Also, today, Prevent Blindness is hosting a Congressional briefing and vision screening on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. This year’s World Sight Day theme is “Love Your Eyes at Work.” Attendees including members of Congress, legislative staff, and the public, will have the opportunity to receive a free vision screening and learn about policies that promote vision and eye health in professional and occupational settings. This event is sponsored by Horizon Therapeutics, Genentech and AbbVie. More event details posted here.

The World Council of Optometry is also deeply involved in World Sight Day efforts. A message from new WCO President Dr. Sandra Block, stated, “World Sight Day is an annual opportunity for all of us to talk about the importance of comprehensive eyecare. This year, 2023, the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) has chosen to focus on the importance of eyecare in working adults. The evidence is clear that a worker who is properly corrected demonstrates performance that far exceeds their ability when compared to output prior to being properly corrected for a visual impairment. Glasses are the most common intervention to address the enormous magnitude of preventable vision impairment due to uncorrected refractive error. This is an excellent reason to ensure that those in the 18-50-year-old age range access appropriate optical corrections.

“Yet,” Block added, “the reality is that simply correcting a person for myopia, hyperopia, astigmatism, or presbyopia is only one step in addressing good vision and eye health. There are many visual conditions that if left undiagnosed and untreated can lead to vision loss that may not be reversable. The World Council of Optometry strongly recommends that adults have a full eye exam to ensure that there are no underlying vision or eye health problems that may need additional care such as cataracts, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy. In addition, the eyes are often referred to as the windows to the body, meaning that some ocular changes are indicators for many systemic diseases that can be detected during a thorough an eye exam."

The Vision Council is also encouraging people to #LoveYourEyes this World Sight Day, encouraging employers to make eye health initiatives standard practice and promote eye health habits that will benefit the well-being, safety and productivity of millions of employees. The Vision Council is one of over 200 organizations that are members of the IAPB, which is coordinating World Sight Day.

 
  
Orbis International, another IAPB supporter, reports that Her Royal Highness, the Duchess of Edinburgh, visited Ethiopia with the charity group to learn about services that help protect the vision of children and adults in Hawassa. In her role as global ambassador for IAPB, the Duchess, pictured here, met health workers screening for and treating blinding trachoma at a primary eyecare unit. Here she learned about the challenges people face which can lead to trachoma, including limited access to clean water and sanitation, and the work being undertaken to find and treat those with the condition, including training for case finders which she witnessed first-hand. Seventy percent of the cases in Ethiopia impact women, who in turn make up 70 percent or more of those receiving surgery for the advanced stage of this condition through Orbis programs. The Dutchess yesterday also participated in a historic trachoma elimination conference in Addis Ababa, which brought together over 40 organizations and more than 100 participants to discuss obstacles, successes and future plans. The World Health Organization has set a timeline to eliminate trachoma by 2030.

The focus on eye health in the workplace follows the release of a report by The International Labour Organization (ILO) and IAPB that stresses the importance of protecting workers’ eyesight. According to Eye Health and the World of Work eye health significantly affects labor markets, with workers with vision impairment being 30 per cent less likely to be employed compared to those without. Multi-lingual and diverse World Sight Day Resources are available from the IAPB website here.

To coincide with World Sight Day, the World Health Organization (WHO) has, just this week, announced the release of ‘WHOEyes’, an innovative health app that guides users through a series of prompts to assess their own eye health. Speaking about the app, Stuart Keel, technical officer, vision and eyecare Program, said, “The WHOeyes app is a perfect complement to World Sight Day activities happening globally. The app, much like the Love Your Eyes campaign, promotes proactive eyecare which is a vital step towards addressing the huge unmet vision needs on a global scale.”