Today, October 8, is World Sight Day, an annual event held on the second Thursday of October.* Hosted by The International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB), this event puts the spotlight on visual impairment and blindness globally. Eye conditions, like cataracts, nearsightedness, glaucoma, and diabetic retinopathy, impact people of every age group.

This year’s theme is #HopeInSight—a message in the form of a social media hashtag that advocates for universal eye care health coverage. More than 2.2 billion people have a vision impairment that may or may not be addressed, and of that number, at least 1 billion people have a vision impairment that could have been prevented or has yet to be addressed. 

Barriers to adequate care, such as expensive healthcare and lack of healthcare insurance, can be addressed with universal eye care coverage.

To participate in the important message of World Sight Day, consider doing the following:

1. Arm yourself with your country’s eye disease prevalence data.
2. On Oct. 8, share the IAPB’s pre-written social media posts on your social media accounts, like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Don’t forget to add #WSD2020 or #WorldSightDay at the end of your message. Include a World Sight Day image with your post.
3. Download the World Sight Day 2019 Activities Report, which has record of more than 200 member events from 48 countries, such as awareness events, seminars, launches, donation drives, rallies, and online events. Contact the organizations that appear on the map in your city to see what events they’re putting on for the 2020 event that you can participate in.
4. Enter an international photo competition, hosted by IAPB and Bayer (meant for amateur and professional photographers from around the world), on the theme #HopeInSight. Send the IAPB your pictures by October 8, 2020, here. 
5. Hear interviews with some of the best minds in eye care about research and key scientific achievements. Empower yourself to better understand a disease you or a loved one is suffering from or prone to, as well as the treatments available. Listen here.

Don’t miss out on promoting the prevalence of eye health and disease and the importance of universal health care as a solution to disease prevention and management. With worldwide participation by individuals, eye care professionals, health administrators, and non-governmental agencies, the hope is that World Sight Day may someday soon make preventable blindness a thing of the past, according to Enhanced Vision.

For more information on World Sight Day 2020, head to the Prevent Blindness website!

*The International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness. (2020, Oct. 2). World Sight Day 2020. The International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness. https://www.iapb.org/advocate/world-sight-day/

Any sources from outside of Prevent Blindness do not imply an endorsement from Prevent Blindness. The contents of the material used are the responsibility of the authoring organization, Responsum Health.