Accra: Only 18 out of every 100 Ghanaians suffering from cataracts are able to access surgery to correct the error, due to the uneven distribution of ophthalmologists in rural and underserved regions. Presently, six regions - Western North, Savannah, North East, Upper West, Upper East, and Oti - have no ophthalmologists to provide essential eye care services, leaving patients with no options other than to live with the condition or travel far to access care.
According to Ghana News Agency, Dr. Hornametor Afake, Head of the Eye Care Unit at the Ghana Health Service (GHS), revealed this information during the commemoration of World Sight Day in Accra, themed 'Increasing Access to Quality Eye Care in Ghana'. He stated that Ghana needs to perform at least 68,000 cataract surgeries annually to eliminate the backlog and manage new cases. Over the past five years, fewer than 30,000 cataract surgeries have been performed each year, resulting in an average Cataract Surgical Rate (CSR) of 712 per million population. This low surgical output has contributed to a growing backlog of untreated cataracts, which remain the leading cause of blindness in Ghana.
Dr. Afake emphasized the need to integrate eye care services into primary health care and allocate resources to expand surgical services, train and deploy more professionals, and improve infrastructure in neglected areas. He stressed the importance of the government's prioritization of cataract care as part of national health planning to prevent a deepening crisis of avoidable blindness across the country. Additionally, Ghana must expand access to surgeries for cataracts and other conditions such as glaucoma, corneal care, and posterior segment conditions, including diabetic retinopathy. For corneal opacities, legislation on organ donation and transplantation is needed to enable professionals to perform corneal transplants, potentially restoring sight to over 27,000 Ghanaians.
Professor Samuel Kaba Akoriyea, Director General of the GHS, in a speech read on his behalf, disclosed that approximately 252,000 Ghanaians are blind, while 360,000 suffer from severe visual impairment, with up to 80 percent of cases considered preventable or treatable. He highlighted that while most ophthalmologists and eye clinics are located in urban centers, people in remote areas face significant obstacles such as distance, cost, and a lack of trained personnel. Although the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) covers surgeries for cataract and glaucoma, it does not include essential services like spectacles and low vision devices, a cost that many families cannot afford.
Prof. Akoriyea affirmed the GHS's resolve to integrate eye care into primary health care through the Community-based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) system. The service is also focusing on strengthening human resources by expanding the training and retention of ophthalmologists, optometrists, ophthalmic nurses, and opticians across all regions.
World Sight Day serves as a reminder that vision is not just a health issue but a human right, a driver of education, productivity, and dignity. The day is observed annually to raise awareness about blindness and visual impairment, advocate for accessible and quality eye care, and mobilize action at all levels. In Ghana, it provides stakeholders the opportunity to reflect on progress, confront national challenges, and renew commitments to ensuring that no Ghanaian is needlessly blind or visually impaired. Currently, the country's leading causes of blindness include cataract, glaucoma, posterior segment diseases, corneal opacities, and uncorrected refractive errors. Ghana currently has 141 ophthalmologists, 570 optometrists, 900 ophthalmic nurses, and 800 opticians.