Johnson & Johnson Vision (JJV) and Lion Clubs International Foundation (LCIF) attended Wat That Thong School on Monday, February 6, 2023 to organize a vision screening and provided eyeglasses for 180 students. The activity is part of JJV’s and LCIF’s “Sight For Kids” collaborative program, which celebrated its 20th anniversary this year.
Sight For Kids (SFK) is the largest-known, school-based eye health program that provides comprehensive eye health services in low-income schools around the world. Since its inception in Thailand in 2002, SFK has trained over 35,000 school teachers in Bangkok and the provinces to help select up to 200,000 potentially visually impaired children per year to join the program. Each year, 8,000-9,000 students receive eye screenings and examinations by professionals from the Optometry Department, Ramkhamhaeng University. Approximately 4,000-5,000 pairs of glasses are given to visually impaired students. To date, more than 92,500 pairs of glasses have been given to Thai youths, mostly in underserved communities.
Mr. Vaibhav Saran, Area Vice President, Vision Care Asia Pacific at Johnson & Johnson Vision, shared the importance of eye care for underprivileged children: “Healthy vision is fundamental to overall health and educational success. Through Sight For Kids, we are able to provide comprehensive eye health services in low income schools, to help remove these barriers in under-resourced communities, making an impact where it matters most.”
Mr. Vaibhav also spoke on JJV’s continued commitment to the effort, saying, “For the last 20 years, our partnership with LCIF has helped many students in underprivileged Thai communities. We will continue working with the teachers, schools and professionals to help more children. Thailand is one of our first markets to embark on this collaboration and we hope to be able to replicate its success as well as expand our program to help many more underserved students around the world.”
Captain Kajit Habanananda, Former International President, LCIF, and SFK 310 Program President, said, “Our journey over the past 20 years has been amazing. In the beginning, we thought the program would only run for a couple of years but now Sight For Kids is our longest-standing program. We are grateful and proud to partner with Johnson & Johnson Vision to help provide optical care for Thai children and help them reach their fullest potential. Many Thai kids, especially in rural areas, do not have opportunities to have their eyes checked, and in turn, do not pursue high-level education.”
“Our eye screenings and examinations are thorough and individualised. We do not believe in just handing out eyeglasses. We’re proud to be part of such a great initiative and will continue to look for more ways to create a positive impact in society.”
Eyeglasses for children at Wat That Thong School were provided by Top Charoen, Sornthai Optometrist, Infinite Eye wear, KT Optic and Eye Lab Exclusive.
