Marking World Sight Day at Auckland City Hospital: (back) Delayne Tutemahurangi, Kāpō Māori, Mary Grace Roaquin, VRS, Sandy Grant, Low Vision Clinic, Doreen Morrison, MDNZ, Carol De’Ath Te, Whatu Ora, (front) Nazim Ali, Kāpō Māori, James Carrick, Retina NZ and Daniel Shu, VRS

Marking this year’s World Sight Day, and its focus on the importance of eyecare in the workplace, representatives from some of the country’s eye health organisations came together at the Greenlane Clinical Centre in Auckland and Auckland City Hospital to promote regular eye checks to public and staff.

Event organiser Sandy Grant, from the Low Vision Clinic at Greenlane, said it was wonderful to see members from Kāpō Māori Aotearoa, Glaucoma NZ, Macular Degeneration NZ, Retina NZ, Auckland University’s School of Optometry and Vision Science and new charitable organisation Vision Rehab Services (VRS) present. Set up in a busy spot between the Greenlane eye clinic and the hospital café, the purpose of the display was to let people know who these organisations are and that they are here to help, said Grant, with everything from health, equipment and day-to-day living support in a holistic way. “Although not intended, we have even managed to get some referrals and help people access low-vision equipment.”

Sandy Grant and Rita Ribeiro with Dr Sarah Welch

Chrissie Cowan, Kāpō Māori Aotearoa CEO and Eye Health Aotearoa co-chair, said she was grateful for the opportunity to be there to connect with the public and strengthen relationships with other organisations. “Our mission here today is to let people know we’re here to help them and their whānau navigate through their vision journey and offer support and assistance if required.”

A joint report produced by the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) and the International Labour Organization found around 13 million working-age people globally currently live with occupational vision impairment. This year’s World Sight Day was centred on helping people understand the importance of protecting their vision in the workplace and called on international business leaders to prioritise the eye health of their workers.