Yarrowkabra, Long Creek residents benefit from eye-testing, spectacle vouchers

Residents of Yarrowkabra, Long Creek and surrounding communities along the Linden-Soesdyke Highway benefited from the Government’s eye-testing and spectacle vouchers initiative on Saturday. The distribution exercise was held at Yarrowkabra Health Centre.
Minister of Public Affairs, Kwame McCoy visited the health centre and interacted with residents who voiced various concerns.
Residents expressed gratitude for the programme as it provides them with the opportunity to test their eyes. One such beneficiary is Dahlia Lewis from Yarrowkabra, who had her eyes tested for the first time in her community.
“I feel glad because you don’t have to pay money to go to Georgetown and then you have to wait to have your eyes tested…” Lewis said.
Even though she needs to undergo surgery to remove a cataract, Lewis is glad she decided to test her eyes at the health clinic.
Ehoodia Seebalak, another Yarrowkabra resident, is beyond relieved because she will be acquiring her new spectacles very soon.
“I feel so happy, because sometimes I don’t see good. This programme is very helpful. Thank you very much,” she expressed.
Her husband, who also had his eyes examined, will need to undergo surgery for cataracts.
Yvonne Dexter, a resident of Long Creek, welcomed the programme, which is providing additional support to many families while alleviating the need for persons to travel long distances to access healthcare services.
“It is fantastic to bring the programme here especially for the elderly, since it is very difficult for them to move about…And also for us in these areas which are very far from each other,” Dexter said.
She continued, “I love it because that is why I haven’t been wearing glasses for a while because of the hassle to go all the way to Georgetown…I feel very much relieved that I’ll be getting my spectacles”.
Meanwhile, the Minister emphasised that this programme was just one of the many programmes in the health sector that are being undertaken, ensuring that every citizen leads a healthy lifestyle.
This programme continues to have a major impact on the lives of many Guyanese to reduce the financial burdens of eye care.
“This is a significant help for many people so that they can afford spectacles and for them to have relief of their conditions [relating to eye care]. Generally, we have free health care across our society. We are making sure that we provide good health care to our citizens so that they can lead meaningful lives and contribute to the development of our society,” McCoy stated.