Date: 06/03/2004
Source: Gauteng Provincial Government
Title: G Ramokgopa: Opening of St John Care Centre
SPEECH BY GAUTENG HEALTH MEC, GWEN RAMOKGOPA, ON THE OFFICIAL OPENING OF THE ROBERT ENTHOVEN/ST JOHN CARE CENTRE, 6 March 2004
Programme Director
Honoured guest
Ladies and Gentlemen.
I am pleased to have been invited to witness the opening of this eye centre. I would like to congratulate Ken Ford, Hollard and St John Ambulance Care for having the foresight to establish a centre of this nature in this part of our province.
St John has a long and proud history of providing of working in partnership with government to prevent blindness and restore sight to many people. Eye care and the prevention of blindness is one of the top priorities of our government and the interventions we have made over the past ten years, in collaboration with the private sector and NGOs such as St John, have given hope to thousands of people who otherwise would have lost sight today.
The prevalence of blindness in South Africa is 0,75% or 7 500 per 1 million of population and 80 percent of it avoidable and can be treated or prevented through simple and inexpensive means. Among children prevalence is 0,47 of 1 000 of young people under the age of 15 with African children facing the highest risk. The economic burden of blindness in South Africa is estimated to be over US$1000 million per year.
Because of the racially segregated, inaccessible hospital based health care system, the previous government failed to pay sufficient attention to eye care and to the need of poor majority who needlessly lost their sight. The present government has had to devise a programme that is coherent, dependable and consistent with broad primary health care approach. Our commitment to eliminate avoidable blindness was cemented in April 2000 when South Africa signed the Vision 2020 declaration.
The objective of our programme is to provide immediate access to primary eye care in primary health care clinics and community health centres, to provide referral access to secondary and tertiary eye care facilities and reduce the prevalence of blindness from 0,75 percent to 0,50 percent by the year 2005.
The leading cause of blindness in our country is cataract and government has identified cataract surgery as an intervention requiring focussed attention. It is cost effective and immediately brings tremendous benefit to the daily lives of our people. Since 1997 about 159 515-cataract operations were done in South Africa, improving the quality of life for people who would otherwise have been blind.
In Gauteng, we performed 6 000 cataract operations in 2001 alone and we continue to perform the highest number of these operation in the country. The national target is to have 1 000 cataract surgeries per million population in 2005. This target doubles to 2 000 surgeries per million population by 2010.
We are well on our way to meeting the targets we have set for ourselves and ultimately eliminate cataract blindness. I look for to a day when we will come together with our partners in the private sector and the non-government organisation to celebrate this achievement.
Although we have made good progress in reducing cataract blindness we still have challenges in other areas. Although accounting for just 8% of blindness in the country, diabetic retinopathy is on the increase. To deal with this we have to deal with obesity among our people by encouraging health lifestyles, good nutrition and regular exercise. We also have to discourage smoking, exercise use of alcohol. We also have improve early diagnosis and control of diabetes especially type 2.
Our expanded programme of immunisation, promotion of breast feeding to increase dietary intake of Vitamin A, Vitamin A supplementation for all children who are not breastfed and for those from communities where Vitamin A deficiency is a public health problem have succeeded tremendously in preventing childhood blindness. The influx of people into Gauteng for better opportunities however requires that we intensify these programmes.
The knowledge and technology to make a difference in the lives of thousands of affected people is available. The opening of this centre is evidence of that. The elimination of avoidable blindness is not merely a health issue. It is a social and moral imperative and congratulations again for a wonderful initiative.
Thank You.
Issued by: Gauteng Provincial Government
6 March 2004
Source: Gauteng Provincial Government (http://www.gpg.gov.za)
Source: Gauteng Provincial Government
Title: G Ramokgopa: Opening of St John Care Centre
SPEECH BY GAUTENG HEALTH MEC, GWEN RAMOKGOPA, ON THE OFFICIAL OPENING OF THE ROBERT ENTHOVEN/ST JOHN CARE CENTRE, 6 March 2004
Programme Director
Honoured guest
Ladies and Gentlemen.
I am pleased to have been invited to witness the opening of this eye centre. I would like to congratulate Ken Ford, Hollard and St John Ambulance Care for having the foresight to establish a centre of this nature in this part of our province.
St John has a long and proud history of providing of working in partnership with government to prevent blindness and restore sight to many people. Eye care and the prevention of blindness is one of the top priorities of our government and the interventions we have made over the past ten years, in collaboration with the private sector and NGOs such as St John, have given hope to thousands of people who otherwise would have lost sight today.
The prevalence of blindness in South Africa is 0,75% or 7 500 per 1 million of population and 80 percent of it avoidable and can be treated or prevented through simple and inexpensive means. Among children prevalence is 0,47 of 1 000 of young people under the age of 15 with African children facing the highest risk. The economic burden of blindness in South Africa is estimated to be over US$1000 million per year.
Because of the racially segregated, inaccessible hospital based health care system, the previous government failed to pay sufficient attention to eye care and to the need of poor majority who needlessly lost their sight. The present government has had to devise a programme that is coherent, dependable and consistent with broad primary health care approach. Our commitment to eliminate avoidable blindness was cemented in April 2000 when South Africa signed the Vision 2020 declaration.
The objective of our programme is to provide immediate access to primary eye care in primary health care clinics and community health centres, to provide referral access to secondary and tertiary eye care facilities and reduce the prevalence of blindness from 0,75 percent to 0,50 percent by the year 2005.
The leading cause of blindness in our country is cataract and government has identified cataract surgery as an intervention requiring focussed attention. It is cost effective and immediately brings tremendous benefit to the daily lives of our people. Since 1997 about 159 515-cataract operations were done in South Africa, improving the quality of life for people who would otherwise have been blind.
In Gauteng, we performed 6 000 cataract operations in 2001 alone and we continue to perform the highest number of these operation in the country. The national target is to have 1 000 cataract surgeries per million population in 2005. This target doubles to 2 000 surgeries per million population by 2010.
We are well on our way to meeting the targets we have set for ourselves and ultimately eliminate cataract blindness. I look for to a day when we will come together with our partners in the private sector and the non-government organisation to celebrate this achievement.
Although we have made good progress in reducing cataract blindness we still have challenges in other areas. Although accounting for just 8% of blindness in the country, diabetic retinopathy is on the increase. To deal with this we have to deal with obesity among our people by encouraging health lifestyles, good nutrition and regular exercise. We also have to discourage smoking, exercise use of alcohol. We also have improve early diagnosis and control of diabetes especially type 2.
Our expanded programme of immunisation, promotion of breast feeding to increase dietary intake of Vitamin A, Vitamin A supplementation for all children who are not breastfed and for those from communities where Vitamin A deficiency is a public health problem have succeeded tremendously in preventing childhood blindness. The influx of people into Gauteng for better opportunities however requires that we intensify these programmes.
The knowledge and technology to make a difference in the lives of thousands of affected people is available. The opening of this centre is evidence of that. The elimination of avoidable blindness is not merely a health issue. It is a social and moral imperative and congratulations again for a wonderful initiative.
Thank You.
Issued by: Gauteng Provincial Government
6 March 2004
Source: Gauteng Provincial Government (http://www.gpg.gov.za)
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