About 675 people turned up during the two-day eye check up camp at the Thimphu referral hospital, which was organised by the Druk lions club.
Most patients, who came for the check up had cataract and retina problems, although the camp was for screening glaucoma.
Glaucoma refers to a group of eye conditions that lead to damage of the optic nerve, the nerve that carries visual information from the eye to the brain.
In many cases, damage to the optic nerve is due to increased pressure in the eye, also known as intraocular pressure (IOP).
Secretary of the Druk lions club Duptho Rinzin said there were around 40 patients, who needed immediate treatment for glaucoma.
“We’re now contacting the Siliguri lions hospital for treatment,” he said. “Then we’ll arrange funds for them.”
Treating a glaucoma patient at Siliguri lions hospital costs about Rs 700, he said.
Lions club will be organising a similar eye camp in Trashigang during the moenlam chhenmo in March this year and a blood donation camp in Paro.
“There’ll be more people gathered during the moenlam chhenmo,” he said. “And we can provide services to more people.”
Opthalmologist at Thimphu referral hospital, Dr Nor Tshering Lepcha, said glaucoma is treated at the hospital as well. “Only some complicated cases are referred to eye hospitals in India,” he said. “Most referred patients are children.”
The rapid assessment on avoidable blindness (RAAB) survey 2009 showed 5.9 percent of eye cases in Bhutan are glaucoma-related, while cataract was 68 percent.
Besides the eye camp, the club is also planning to train teachers in counselling in the next two months. “In a way we’d be helping the government to place a counsellor in each school,” said Duptho Rinzin.
