Bringing eye care within reach

Eye Screening

Since 2015, BCMF has provided free eye screenings in Thai, migrant, and refugee communities in Thailand, as well as in internally displaced person (IDP) camps and other vulnerable communities in Burma. During eye screening missions, beneficiaries are given vision testing, including for far-sightedness, near-sightedness, and colour blindness, as well as eye health screening, checking for eye conditions such as glaucoma, cataracts, and pterygium. For those who need them, basic prescription eyeglasses, sunglasses, blue-light-blocking eyeglasses, eye drops, and vitamin A capsules are provided. Those who require more advanced prescriptions, such as cylindrical lenses, are referred to optometrists, where BCMF covers the cost of the more expensive eyeglasses, while those who require further treatment are referred to local clinics or hospitals or eye surgery missions, with BCMF’s Referral Services Program available to support the cost of more complex surgeries for those who do not have health insurance.

An eye screening mission held outdoors, with a vision chart hung between the trees and another community member waiting their turn.

In addition to conducting eye screening missions, BCMF provides basic eye screening training for medics in refugee camps and local clinics along the Thai-Burma border and in remote communities in both countries. Twice a year, BCMF also supports partner organisation Fiona’s Eye Fund when surgeons from the UK travel to the Thai-Burma border area to conduct basic eye surgeries.

A student covering one eye during a vision test, part of the screening carried out at schools and in remote communities.

Since the project began, BCMF has screened more than 21,282 individuals and given out more than 16,393 pairs of eyeglasses, including prescription eyeglasses, sunglasses, and blue-light-blocking eyeglasses. Additionally, more than 1,417 patients have been referred for surgery from BCMF eye screening missions.