The Memorandum of Understanding between Nepal Netra Jyoti Sangh, Biratnagar Eye Hospital, and Karuna Foundation Nepal was signed on 6^th August 2021; in Nepal Netra Jyoti Sangh premises with an aim to reduce eye and ear related disabilities and improve the quality of life of those with these disabilities in Province No.1. The chairperson of Karuna Foundation Nepal, Prof. Dr. Bhagwan Koirala, and the Central General Secretary of Nepal Netra Jyoti Sangh, Mr. Bharat Bahadur Singh, signed an MoU to expand eye and ear care services. Likewise, another agreement between Karuna Foundation Nepal and Biratnagar Eye Hospital was also signed during the program.

The agreement between the two organizations is believed to improve the quality of lives of children and adults with disabilities and bring progressive changes in the lives of families at risk in Province No.1.

Addressing the program, Mr. Bharat Bahadur Chand, General Secretary of Nepal Netra Jyoti Sangh, opined that this multi-sectoral partnership strategy would help in eliminating preventable eye and ear-related problems and increase access to a comprehensive and equitable eye care system. Moreover, Prof. Dr. Bhagwan Koirala stressed that the agreement paved effectiveness in identification, medical intervention, and the practice of setting up an appropriate rehabilitation option for the eye and ear care services to prevent avoidable deafness and blindness.

The agreement facilitates the timely identification of the eye and ear-related problems, its prevention, and referral to receive a continuum of promotive, treatment, and rehabilitative interventions, said the Executive Director, Mr. Deepak Raj Sapkota of Karuna Foundation Nepal. This collaboration is a good step of joint implementation and advocacy for early detection and prompt treatment to avoid refractive error and other visual blindness and deafness-related diseases.

Before the agreement, many programs for avoidable eye and ear-related diseases were jointly conducted with Karuna Foundation Nepal and Biratnagar Eye Hospital, which had in addition ease the joint implementation to strive for common goal attainment, said Hon. Mr. Padma Narayan Chaudhary Chairperson, Biratnagar Eye Hospital.

The combined effect will be proven to produce effective ophthalmic services, which are more extensive and penetrative than anything so far attempted in Nepal’s health care field. The senior ophthalmologist, Dr. Ram Prasad Pokharel, has also shown his presence in the agreement program.