Happy World Optometry Day 23
World Optometry Day is celebrated on March 23 of every year and it is a day set aside to celebrate every optometrist and eye care professional worldwide.
World Optometry Day was started in 1986 by the International Optometric and Optical League to celebrate the growing profession of Optometry in the world.
What is Optometry?
According to the World Council of Optometry “Optometry is a healthcare profession that is autonomous, educated, and regulated (licensed/registered), and optometrists are the primary healthcare practitioners of the eye and visual system who provide comprehensive eye and vision care, which includes refraction and dispensing, detection/diagnosis and management of disease in the eye, and the rehabilitation of conditions of the visual system.”
Also read Therapeutic optometrist
Different Governmental, Non Governmental eye health organizations and pioneers arrange various activities, events and gatherings to raise awareness about the part optometrists play in helping people with their eye problems and eye care.
Theme of World Optometry day 2023
This year, the World Council of Optometry (WCO) will celebrate World Optometry Week from March 19 – 25, and specifically World Optometry Day, Thursday, March 23, with the theme “Expanding Optometry’s Role
This calls for optometry to consider our responsibilities and
potential roles within health care delivery systems, to identify how we can make a maximal
contribution to reducing the burden of eye disease and its impact. We need to ensure that
optometrists worldwide possess the necessary skills, knowledge, and competencies to
effectively move our profession forward to better serve our communities.”
With the theme, “Expanding Optometry’s Role… The Time is Now!”, WCO seeks to advocate for
stronger global access to eye care and ensure that optometrists around the globe have the
education and skills to thrive and contribute within their respective healthcare systems.
Recent
resolutions of the World Health Assembly and United Nations have adopted eye care targets
that are ambitious, yet certainly achievable, through a collaborative approach among all eyecare professions.
To achieve improved eyecare worldwide, all optometrists and their representative organizations must work proactively with other eye care professions, along with government, to make eye care accessible, equitable, affordable, and effective… the time is now!
Happy World Optometry Day !!