Join a powerful, unprecedented alliance for better eye health for all.
Join IAPB| Role | Attributes | Responsibilities |
|---|---|---|
| Project manager (PM) | Medical or public health background programme management experience Preferably ophthalmologist or optometrist with management skills | Overall management of the programme ·Planning all aspects of implementation ·Managing finances and other programme staff ·Coordination and collaboration with partners, sensitization of other stakeholders; coordination with other school health programmes for possible integration ·Seeking permissions ·Trouble-shooting ·Procurement ·Leadership and motivation ·Managing data ·Communication ·Monitoring: ensure regular reporting; compilation; use indicators to identify problems ·Evaluation: initiation and planning ·Reporting to donors, Ministries and other stakeholders |
| Technical programme manager | Skills in planning and management; communication and organization | ·Communication: liaison with teachers, obtains consent from parents ·Coordination: timetable for screening in collaboration with the school contact teacher/ head teacher through the liaison teacher ·Ensures an appropriate contact teacher is identified by the head teacher ·Organize the venue for screening: a large enough, well lit, clean room ·Communicate what screening will entail with head teachers etc. If child needs treatment what will happen ·Arrange dates for sensitization in school assembly ·Train and manage screeners ·Follow up children referred ·Answer technical questions from Contact Teachers i.e. face to face, by SMS or phone calls |
| Coordinator/ district level teacher | ·Knowledge (authority/ relationship) of all schools and teachers in the county ·Good relationship with senior education authorities | ·Works with programme manager to seek permission and planning ·Coordinates training of screeners ·Visit every school ·Sensitize head teachers ·Appoint contact teachers ·Allocate schools for screening ·Day-to-day management of screeners ·Logistics ·Maintain record of number of children screened and referred |
| Role | Attributes | Responsibilities |
|---|---|---|
| Head teacher | ·Identifies and supervises contact teacher ·Date for assembly sensitization ·Fix a date for screening – motivates teachers to participate – select two contact teachers, in each participating school, who will be trained to assist and coordinate screening. | |
| Contact person for the school (one for each school; can be a teacher, school nurse, member of administration etc) | · Interested and motivated by eye health related activities ·Knows if there are any other children have eye problems or that are not attending screening | ·At school level, prepares the venue ·Liaises with class teachers to ensure flow of children for screening ·List ready of children to be screened, gender, age, contact number for parent, which parent ·On the day helps screener ·Record of those screened and those referred ·Sends list of children referred to the referral centre ·Contact referral centre to identify children who have not attended ·Follow up those who have/have not gone for treatment |
| Class teacher | ·Knows and understand the family situation of the children (i.e. financial, other issues) | ·Prepare list of children who require screening with names ?& phone numbers ·Assists while screening ·Crowd control on the screening day · Prepares and organizes eye health education activities · Monitors who wears/does not wear spectacles after screening |
| Screener | Background in community-level health (health workers, school nurses) | ·Liaise with contact teacher ·Check screening venue and measure and mark the screening distance ·Screen all listed children and record findings as per SOP ·Ensure children who fail screening are referred for refraction ·Prepare list of children who fail screening for contact teacher and refractionist ·Collects spectacles, delivers them to school and works with contact teacher to ensure the correct children are given the correct spectacles |
| Refractionist, vision technician, allied ophthalmic assistant | Mid-level ophtalmic personnel trained for refraction in children | ·Refract children according to SOP ·Record prescription and relevant data ·Ask child to select preferred frames ·If vision does not improve with refraction, refer according to SOP ·Give child needing spectacles or referral an information sheet for their parents ·Give contact teacher lists of children a) who fail screening and require spectacles b) referred ·Give list of children who require spectacles to the relevant dispensing optician |
| Optometrist | Same role than refractionist but also provides detailed examination, with ocular health and binocular vision assessments ·If vision does not improve with refraction record a preliminary diagnosis and refer according to SOP |
| Role | Responsibilities |
|---|---|
| Dispensing optician (or partner local eye care provider) | ·Makes up spectacles correctly, using the correct frame ·Marks each pair of spectacles with the child’s name, class and school ·Provides reparation or replacement services when spectacles are broken or lost |
| Parents | ·Take child to eye care provider, if referred ·Pay for treatment (mechanism required to support the child with financial barriers) ·Encourages spectacle wear at home when required |
| Community leaders | ·Encourage children to be screened and to wear their spectacles ·Encourage parents to take child for treatment e.g. not spectacles · Sensitize other members of the community on importance of eye health |
| Child welfare officer | ·Work with community leaders to encourage parents and children to comply with recommendations, if required. |
| Cadre | Training |
|---|---|
| Screeners
(Health workers, teachers and nurses) |
|
| Eye care personnel – Refraction
(Optometrists, Ophthalmologists, Ophthalmic Clinical Officers (OCO), Ophthalmic Nurses (ON) and other cadres qualified to provide refraction services for children) |
|
| Optical dispensers
(Dispensing opticians, optometrists, OCO, ON and other cadres qualified to provide dispensing services) |
|
| All cadres |
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Resources for training can be found at: Brien Holden Foundation and Cybersight.
