Research and thinking on ophthalmologist training in African countries assisted by the Belt and Road Initiative

AIM:To investigate the challenges and needs of individual ophthalmologists participated in the training and their countries in the prevention and treatment of blindness and visual impairment, sum up the training effects, and discuss how to promote the development of eye health in the Belt and Road countries in the future.METHODS:A total of 48 ophthalmologists from 6 countries, including Kenya, Zambia, Nigeria, South Africa, Malawi, Botswana between August 1 and August 30, 2022, were trained and anonymous questionnaire survey was conducted. The questionnaire consists of 15 questions covering three aspects: challenges and strategies related to vision impairment and blindness in the country, training satisfaction, and recommendations for establishing optometric centers in Africa.RESULTS: A total of 48 questionnaires were distributed and 47 valid questionnaires were collected. The ophthalmologists hold the view that the biggest challenge of their countries in prevention and treatment of ocular diseases was high nursing costs, accounting for 36.17%, the biggest challenge faced by ophthalmologists was low wages, accounting for 29.79%. Building more eye specialist hospitals(38.30%)and providing more training opportunities(65.96%)can effectively help the countries and the ophthalmologists. The organizational satisfaction with the training courses reached 98%, the content and the lecturers' satisfaction were 100%.CONCLUSION:There are urgent needs to build more ophthalmic hospitals and provide more professional training opportunities to solve the difficulties in the prevention and treatment of eye diseases of the countries and the ophthalmologists. This training program has high satisfaction and good feedback.