📄 Abstract
Aim The aim of this review was to elaborate upon the relevance of Optometrists in the Primary eye care services and their major role in reducing or eliminating avoidable eye related problems. Optometrists have a very crucial and pivotal role as a team member in comprehensive eye care services in India. Material & Methods This narrative review study was done to have a relook of the situation of Optometry profession in India and to understand the reasons of its underutilization per se. Recent peer reviewed articles/ studies were referred to ascertain the current primary eye care services status and the role of Optometrist as a primary eye care provider. Results Availability of eye care services at the primary level is very essential requirement in order to reduce or eliminate the avoidable visual impairment in India. The primary eye care professionals or Optometrists have a great responsibility not only to prevent but also to manage the eye related problems at their own level. Conclusion Although primary eye care services are meant to reduce the risk of avoidable visual impairment by preventing or by identifying causative factor on time or by increasing the health education. But, still the public awareness about eye care systems and their delivery mechanisms is not much in our country. Therefore, it is very much needed to device a policy and mechanism so that the primary eye care services can reach out to the grass root level with proper and adequate human resource utilization. This ultimate motive i.e. of preventing or reducing the burden of avoidable visual impairment from the country is easily achievable with proper utilization and engagement of Optometrists, the available trained & skilled human resource.
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📚 How to Cite:
Salal Khan, Kamal Pant, Rajat Bansal , OPTOMETRIST, A PRIMARY EYE CARE PROVIDER: AN UNDERUTILIZED AND UNTAPPED HUMAN RESOURCE IN INDIA , Volume 7 , Issue 9, september 2021, EPRA International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research (IJMR) ,