Exploring interprofessional collaboration in the intensive care unit.

Background: Critical care units require an interprofessional management approach to optimise patients' health. Clinical education and training delivered in remote healthcare settings are vital for fostering interprofessional collaboration (IPC) among health science students for future team functioning.

Objectives: Our study explored the IPC among clinicians in the intensive care unit (ICU) setting at two South African decentralised clinical training facilities to understand the existing collaborative practices that students are exposed to during their clinical training.

Accessibility of and barriers to the use of eye health services in Kumasi Metropolis, Ghana.

Background:  There is a high prevalence of vision impairment and blindness in Africa. The poor access to eye health services, among other barriers, has been found to have a considerable effect on the burden of avoidable vision loss and blindness, particularly in low- and middle-income countries.

Aim:  To determine the accessibility of and barriers to the utilisation of eye health services in the Kumasi Metropolis of Ghana.

Barriers and enablers to low vision care and rehabilitation in sub-Saharan Africa within a global context.

Low vision is an uncorrectable form of visual impairment that affect millions of people worldwide. Low vision care and rehabilitation are essential to improving the independence of affected individuals. Even though sub-Saharan Africa has one of the highest burdens of low vision globally, there are inadequate care and rehabilitation services in most countries and in some cases they are non-existent This scoping review aimed to identify the barriers and enablers to low vision care and rehabilitation in sub-Saharan Africa and assess these within the global context.

Online e-learning during the COVID-19 lockdown in Trinidad and Tobago: prevalence and associated factors with ocular complaints among schoolchildren aged 11-19 years.

Background: The increase in online learning during the pandemic has been linked to various ocular complaints. This study determined the prevalence and factors associated with ocular complaints among schoolchildren aged 12-19 years during the COVID-19 lockdown in Trinidad and Tobago (T&T).

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted between January and May 2021, during the COVID-19 lockdown in T&T among secondary school students studying remotely.

A protocol for a scoping review to map the assessment approaches in optometry education programmes globally.

Background: The training of optometrists aims to prepare practitioners with critical thinking skills who utilise their education and experience to solve clinical problems in real-life practice. Professional competencies should inform assessment, and as such, assessment methods for learning should encompass a wide range of approaches. The objective of this scoping review is therefore to map assessment approaches utilised within optometry education programmes globally.

The Rising Burden of Diabetes-Related Blindness: A Case for Integration of Primary Eye Care into Primary Health Care in Eswatini.

There is a rampant increase in diabetes prevalence globally. Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is projected to carry the largest burden of diabetes (34.2 million) by 2030.

Characterization of Retinal Thickness in Individuals with Albinism: Baseline Data for a Black South African Population.

Introduction: The central retina is responsible for several visual functions and continues to develop postnatally. In albinism, which is a genetic disorder characterized by impaired melanin biosynthesis, the development of the central retina is prematurely arrested and results in foveal hypoplasia. Retinal thickness measurements can be determined non-invasively using optical coherence tomography systems.

Knowledge, attitudes and practices of contact lens use in a South African adolescent population.

Background: Contact lens usage is becoming increasingly popular amongst young people. Assessing their knowledge, attitudes and practices in relation to contact lens wear is therefore important, so that gaps in understanding or incorrect practices can be rectified to promote continued safety and success of contact lens wear.

Objectives: This study aimed to assess and describe the knowledge, attitudes and practices of contact lens wearers aged 18 to 30 years, in the greater Durban area of South Africa.

The universal eye health imperative for Canada: an inescapable reality of unmet need.

Universal eye health is a component of universal health care, which member states of the World Health Organization have supported in principle through their endorsement of the Global Action Plan for the Prevention of Avoidable Blindness and Visual Impairment (2014-2019). While much of the world's attention has been on addressing the needs of developing countries which suffer significant shortcomings in terms of effective and accessible eye care services, similar access inequities exist in developed nations such as Canada. The Canadian health system is based on the principle of universal health coverage; yet, for the majority of the population, access to primary eye care services such as an eye examination and spectacles is an out-of-pocket expense.

Prevalence of congenital colour vision deficiency among Black school children in Durban, South Africa.

Objectives: Congenital colour vision deficiency (CCVD) is an x-linked chromosome disorder that results from abnormalities in one or all three-cone type's photoreceptors. Early assessment and diagnosis of CCVD is necessary to minimise the disability associated with the condition. Multistage sampling was used to determine the prevalence of CCVD among Black South African school children in Durban, South Africa.

Decentralised clinical training in optometry: a developmental strategy for eye health in KwaZulu Natal?

Background: Decentralised clinical training (DCT) in optometry is an emerging concept in South Africa. In 2016, the University of KwaZulu Natal (UKZN) implemented this adaptive model of clinical training for undergraduate health professions. The initiative, which emanated through an agreement between UKZN's College of Health Sciences and the KwaZulu Natal Department of Health, centres on the placement of undergraduate optometry students within public health facilities for clinical training purposes.

Prevalence of Ocular Anomalies among Schoolchildren in Ashaiman, Ghana.

Purpose: Information on ocular anomalies can help in developing specific interventions to prevent visual impairment especially among children. The aim of this study was therefore to determine the prevalence, the causes of ocular anomalies, and their impact on vision of schoolchildren in Ghana.

Methods: A cluster random sampling technique was used to select four government primary schools in Ashaiman Municipal for this study.