Focus on Malawi

We are very happy to be taking part in today’s conference at Mzuzu’s Grand Palace Hotel which will be celebrating World Sight Day. It will emphasise the importance of eye-health care in wellbeing and sustainable development. It is being organised by DGMH’s public health and primary healthcare officer, Erasmo Mbemba.

The theme of the day is “Love your Eyes”. Attendees will be asked to consider how they can contribute to strategies for improvements in community eye healthcare regionally and nationally, in response to the community eye health programme underway in Livingstonia. The results of the knowledge, attitudes and practices survey, mentioned in previous posts, will be published at the conference.

It will also be an opportunity to gather eye care clinicians in the north of the country to meet together for networking and sharing of good practice.

We’d like to say a warm “thank you” to our friends in Malawi who have been kindly sending us their thoughts and condolences following the death of Queen Elizabeth. We thank God for her life, and her devotion to service.

We send our hearty congratulations to Mirriam Nyirenda, who has just celebrated formally receiving her diploma in clinical ophthalmology at the Malawi College of Health Sciences in Lilongwe. She successfully completed the course last year (sponsored by The Raven Trust), and was appointed clinical officer in ophthalmology at Embangweni Mission Hospital.

Through our friends at The Bananabox Trust, we report the safe arrival at Ekwendeni of the latest container from the UK. It includes a lot of eye care stuff – including measured glasses, ophthalmic instruments and equipment – donated and prepared by many generous people. Destinations include clinics at Livingstonia, Embangweni, Mzuzu Police HQ. Thanks again everyone!

Are you a subscriber to Newslink, our bi-annual email newsletter? If you’d like to see it or subscribe, go to our Newslink page. The latest edition, with lots of info on the new community eye health programmes, was sent out at the end of August.