Perspectives on Child Eye Health among Junior High School Teachers in Ledzokuku Krowor Municipality, Ghana

Abstract

1.1.Aim: More than 80% of the information children receive about the world comes from vision. This underscores the truth that good vision is important for a child’s educational, physical and social development. The purpose of the study was to investigate the perspectives held by Junior High School teachers regarding child eye health. 1.2.Materials and Methods: In thisdescriptive cross-sectional study, a semi-structured questionnaire was administered to 346 teachers (mean age = 32.85±9.72 years) in the Ledzokuku Krowor Municipality. Descriptive statistics was computed and Chi-squared tests were done at a 5% significance level to assess statistical significance of associations. 1.3.Results:The outcome of this study showed that out of a total of 346 respondents, 90% of them was knowledgeable in red eye, 82% were knowledgeable in refractive errors and 80% showed knowledge in eye injury. Ninety-three percent of respondents identified blur vision as the commonest symptom of an eye problem whilst 91% reported red eye to be the most obvious sign of an eye problem among children. There was statistically significant difference between academic qualification and respondents’ knowledge on ocular conditions (p=0.01). Ninety-four percent of respondents were of the view that children with vision impairment can go to school and 94% of respondents agreed that poor vision can negatively impact a child’s educational performance. With respect to preventive eye health practices, 84% of the respondents suggested regular eye examination at least once a year, 40% recommended vitamin A intake and 23% suggested facial hygiene. 1.4.Conclusion:Overall, teachers in this study had adequate knowledge on ocular diseases and healthy practices that promote good visual health. It is recommended that teachers, eye care professionals, the media and other stakeholders collaborate to intensify eye health education in educational institutions in order to achieve VISION 2020 goals.