WSD Photo Competition: Hope in Sight

IAPB, with support from Bayer, is celebrating its online photo competition to mark World Sight Day (8 October 2020). Keeping in mind COVID-19’s impact and marking 20 years of VISION 2020, this year’s theme is “Hope in Sight”. The competition ends on World Sight Day with prizes including a DSLR camera and a cash prize. Find out more at https://photocomp.iapb.org (Do use the hashtags #HopeInSight and #WorldSightDay).

Immediate release: COVID-19 has impacted health outcomes across the world, including eye health. Many countries have prioritised COVID-19 control and every aspect of a country’s health system has been asked to play a role. In these past few months, eye health professionals have played a critical role, initially re-deployed for COVID-19 related work and later to work on eye health emergencies and ballooning backlogs.

Starting July 2020, the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) has been inviting amateur and professional photographers to showcase the impact of, and on, eye health. With support from Bayer Health Care, the international Photography Competition theme this year is “Hope in Sight”. Hope is a powerful word in this climate. It comes from lessons learned, both in a COVID-19 context, and in the larger direction that the sector is heading towards. It rallies people together during a traumatic time for staff, professionals, eye hospitals and their beneficiaries. It stems from the innovation in the sector, and celebrates strategies for the future.

“Bayer is proud to be working with the IAPB to tackle new and existing eye health challenges. Images can be extremely powerful in telling a story and this year we have seen inspiring photo competition entries illustrating the complexities of maintaining eye health during the COVID-19 pandemic. The competition illustrates the bold and inspiring efforts that the eye health community is taking to deliver essential eye care services despite wider pressures caused by COVID-19. These photos represent ‘Hope in Sight’ for the future of healthcare and serve as a reminder as to why eye health needs everybody’s attention.” said Jan F. Voss, VP & Head of Ophthalmology at Bayer.

“These are extraordinary times for the world, and for the sector”, said Peter Holland, CEO, IAPB. “These photos showcase what it takes to deliver eye care, especially when a pandemic is raging and there is no end in sight. They give us hope and showcase the power of human action”.

The competition has built an open-access database of over 4000 eye care photos over the years. Participation in the competition is open worldwide – upload a photo that best exemplifies the theme, “Hope in Sight”, give it a title or caption; clearly note your name, profession and contact details on the competition micro-site: https://photocomp.iapb.org