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Fungai Lupande

Mashonaland Central Bureau

In line with the Second Republic’s vision to achieve an upper middle economy status by 2030, through an education system that moulds the complete citizen capable of interacting acquired knowledge with practical skills, Bindura University of Science Education (BUSE) yesterday opened a top-notch optometry clinic.

The clinic is open to members of the public, with the elderly, particularly, visiting the centre to have their eyes examined.

Acknowledging the role health plays in meeting objectives enshrined in national Vision 2030, the university’s Vice Chancellor Professor Eddie Mwenje, said the Government has approved the expansion of the optometry clinic to accommodate an eyeglass manufacturing plant.

The clinic, commissioned by President Mnangagwa on November 6, last year, is registered with the Professional Health Board.

“We did not have an optometry clinic in the province (Mashonaland Central). This facility is going to assist all people in the province to have their eyes examined and treated,” Prof Mwenje said.

“We have state-of-the-art equipment, and we are expecting people across the country to seek eye-care services at our centre.”

Prof Mwenje underscored that many people suffer visual complications, although they may not be aware of it.

The university’s optometry centre is the answer to such complications of vision that make reading and other activities problematic, as citizens can walk in and be examined.

Cognisant of the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science and Technology Development’s thrust towards bridging the gap between acquired knowledge and attained skills in human capital development, Prof Mwenje said BUSE students training to become optometrists are given practical experience through the clinic.

The ministry designed a five mission education model of teaching, research, community outreach, innovation and industrialisation for the production of goods and services.

The philosophy behind Education 5.0 is that no education system functions effectively if it is divorced from the realities prevailing in the community it is meant to transform, hence the drive for a heritage-based inclination, which BUSE has adopted.

The clinic has three examination rooms equipped with ophthalmic machines, including a slit lamp and phoropter. To complete the hi-tech equipment are retinoscopes, which are mobile and manual machinery for eye examination in remote setups.

The institution’s chairperson of the department of optometry, Dr Claudio Mtuwa, said the centre will not only check patients and give them spectacles, but also do the general evaluation of vision.

Toddlers, starting from two years, can also be examined, Dr Mtuwa said, urging parents to desist from dismissing eye problems in their children.

The clinic is working in collaboration with Bindura General Hospital for referral of patients identified to be suffering from other ailments. Glaucoma and diabetes in the eye, are some of the diseases that can be identified after an eye examination, and patients will be referred to the hospital.

Through Education 5.0, under the guidance of Professor Amon Murwira, the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science and Technology Development, seeks to help the citizenry keep abreast with prevailing global trends.

In 2019 the ministry launched innovation hubs at universities across the country meant to convert academic knowledge into tangibles through research and development.

Hence, cooperation in research, and development, higher and tertiary education as well as science and technology at local, regional and international platforms should always be sought. BUSE has not been caught napping on that note, as Dr Mtuwa said: “We are getting assistance from Ghana. One doctor and chief technicians are from Ghana.

“We also have a visiting professor from Ghana. We are hoping to have a resident optometrist to attend to the public on a daily basis.”

The clinic has also become a teaching centre, thus benefiting students, who before had to be trained outside the country.

At the moment students at the institution are studying for a Bachelor of Science degree in Optometry, with the first group graduating this year.  The university is training its fourth group of students under the programme.

The optometry department is also doing a community outreach programme, offering screening services and eyeglasses to citizens.

Dr Mtuwa urged people to seek eye-care services early, and recommended hypertensive and diabetic patients to have their eyes examined regularly.

The first batch of patients had their eyes screened for free and were given prescription glasses.

One of the beneficiaries was 73-year-old Mr Raymond Fungayi Tengwa from SOS Village in Shamva, who was “over the moon,” for the clinic’s generosity.

Mr Tengwa, an elder with the Seventh Day Adventist church, said he was blind in the left eye, and struggled to see using the right one to read the Bible.

“After being  screened, I was advised that my right eye is developing a cataract. In the long run I was going to go blind. I was prescribed reading glasses, and I am happy. I love reading the Bible,” he said.

An elated Gogo Ester Saini (68), said her eyes were sore and she was failing to thread the needle.

“After going through eye screening, I could see clearly. Today was my first time to have my eyes examined. I am happy that we now have a clinic nearby, where we can easily go for constant eye check-ups,” she said.

A fourth year student at the university, Vimbai Kahoto, said the clinic is sharpening their skills to become the best among optometrists.

Indeed, the national agenda embodied in Vision 2030, is attainable, as outlined in Education 5.0 (HTE), which will help Zimbabweans to keep pace with their global peers, which will enable the country to retool and revive its industry using the latest technology.