27th September 2013
Following an acute shortage of eye specialists in
Tanzania, the government plans to start offering degree programmes in
the country’s universities.
The shortage is partly caused by the country’s late start in introducing such studies.
To date, there are no degree programmes offered, a situation that is said to discourage students from pursuing the studies, the director of eye services in the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Dr Nkundwe Mwakyusa, said in Dar es Salaam on Wednesday at the opening of the 14th Tanzania Optometric Association (TOA) annual general meeting.
She said currently higher learning institutions only offer diplomas in optometric studies and that the country only has 200 optometrists.
“The country has only 25 eye specialist doctors and the majority of them are based in Dar es Salaam while a few others are in Kilimanjaro Region. We have plans to start offering degree programmes in Optometric and believe this will help to reduce the challenge which we are currently facing,” she said.
President of TOA, Rajeshwari Sagar, said the shortage of optometrists is due to the government’s lateness in offering studies in the universities.
Sagar said, Tanzania only started offering diplomas in Optometric about 30 years ago and up to date there have been no degree programmes introduced.
“We have a very big shortage of optometrists. Every year we get only 15 graduates with diplomas and few practice the profession. We need to start degree courses so as to attract many students to join the field,” the president noted.
Introduction of the degree programme might attract a number of students to take such studies and hence curb the shortage.
The shortage is partly caused by the country’s late start in introducing such studies.
To date, there are no degree programmes offered, a situation that is said to discourage students from pursuing the studies, the director of eye services in the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Dr Nkundwe Mwakyusa, said in Dar es Salaam on Wednesday at the opening of the 14th Tanzania Optometric Association (TOA) annual general meeting.
She said currently higher learning institutions only offer diplomas in optometric studies and that the country only has 200 optometrists.
“The country has only 25 eye specialist doctors and the majority of them are based in Dar es Salaam while a few others are in Kilimanjaro Region. We have plans to start offering degree programmes in Optometric and believe this will help to reduce the challenge which we are currently facing,” she said.
President of TOA, Rajeshwari Sagar, said the shortage of optometrists is due to the government’s lateness in offering studies in the universities.
Sagar said, Tanzania only started offering diplomas in Optometric about 30 years ago and up to date there have been no degree programmes introduced.
“We have a very big shortage of optometrists. Every year we get only 15 graduates with diplomas and few practice the profession. We need to start degree courses so as to attract many students to join the field,” the president noted.
Introduction of the degree programme might attract a number of students to take such studies and hence curb the shortage.
SOURCE:
THE GUARDIAN
