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Join IAPBIntegrated people-centred eye care (IPCEC) can address many of the challenges to delivering effective eye care services.
As summarised in the World Report on Vision, integrated people-centred eye care:
The implementation of integrated people-centred eye care requires four strategies:
We can empower and engage communities in eye care through increased awareness of the:
This can be achieved through various methods including the use of education and technology.
To address population eye care needs, all levels of eye care are needed, from community through to specialised tertiary care. These must include integrated and effective referral pathways.
We need to use innovative models of care to strengthen eye care in universal health coverage and ensure:
The World Report on Vision reminds us that without good continuity and coordination of eye care, patients are at risk of experiencing fragmented, poorly-integrated care from multiple providers.
Coordination of care for the individual involves a range of strategies including case management, team-based care, and efficient referral systems.
Coordination also encompasses the creation of linkages between eye care and other health programmes.
WHO has conceptualized an enabling environment as six building blocks of a health system. The following three blocks include specific challenges faced by the eye care sector.
The responsibilities of governance in health care involves developing a strategic plan, then managing accountability and overseeing the plan’s implementation.
IPCEC depends on the availability, accessibility, acceptability and quality of services provided by the health workforce.
A well-functioning health information system should collect information about the capacity of the health system to provide eye care services. It should also measure its performance – how well existing eye services address population needs in an equitable manner.
The concept of integrated, people-centred eye care, as promoted in the World Report on Vision, confirms that by working hand-in-hand with Ministries of Health, we can ensure eye health services reach those who need services the most. In this way, we can make a huge difference in the lives of people for generations to come.
Reference: World Report on Vision, World Health Organization, 2019.
Michael Scholonfeld, Eye Corps