AfricaPress-Tanzania: BENJAMIN Mkapa Hospital (BMH) last Friday resumed its outreach programme in Dodoma rural areas, whereas among other things, it offered eye clinic free of charge.
In a statement released by BMH Communication and Public Relations Unit (CPRU) yesterday, the programme resumed after the government re-opened activities after months of closure to avoid overcrowding as a way to protect people against the outbreak of novel coronavirus.
According to the statement, BMH conducted its outreach programme on eye screening and medication in Zuzu on the outskirts of Dodoma City.
“The hospital conducts free of charge eye screening in Dodoma Rural District,” read part of the statement.
The statement said the hospital offered reading eye glasses at an affordable price of 10,000/- to people found with complications.
“Eye screening is conducted free of charge, but members of the public will have to cover medicine costs when found with eye complications and those with serious cases will be referred to BMH,” said the statement.
It is reported that cataract has affected some people in rural areas of Dodoma Region. The disease is an opacification of the lens of the eye, which leads to impaired vision. Cataracts often develop and can affect one or both eyes.
Symptoms may include faded colours, blurry or double vision, halos around light, trouble with bright lights and trouble seeing at night.
BMH thus decided to introduce an outreach programme on eye clinic to control the prevalence of cataracts in the Central Zone.
