JAKARTA (ANTARA) – An official from the Ministry of Health reminded that eye health and eyesight affect personal quality and social productivity.
„Eye health also affects personal quality and social productivity,” the ministry’s director of prevention and control of non-communicable diseases, Eva Susanti, noted in a written statement on Friday.
He, therefore, reminded the public to be vigilant and prevent vision impairments in an effort to maintain their daily functioning and productivity.
„(This is) especially (important) for office workers, who spend long hours staring at screens every day. Interventions should be made as soon as possible,” he noted.
Susanti said the number of working Indonesian citizens reached 138.63 million in 2023 according to Statistics Indonesia (BPS) data. This means that half of Indonesia’s population suffers from visual impairments in the workplace, both in the formal and informal sectors.
According to Sushanthi, to reduce the risk factors from eye problems, early detection of visual impairments for workers should be done on a massive scale with the support of stakeholders in the workplace.
One of the educational initiatives of the Ministry of Health is to commemorate World Sight Day, which is celebrated on the second Thursday of October every year.
„To commemorate World Sight Day, to encourage policy makers in the workplace to take care of their employee’s eye health, including early detection of vision problems for employees,” he noted.
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In addition, Dr. Trilaksana, Vice President III of the Indonesian Association of Ophthalmologists, shared several tips for good posture when working with computers.
The first tip is to make sure the seat is comfortable, and the second tip is to maintain a distance of 40-75 centimeters between the eyes and the computer screen. A third suggestion is to use a computer radiation protection filter.
Additionally important is ensuring that the tilt between the computer screen and the eyes is at most 20 degrees, and the fifth point is strategically placing objects to minimize head movement.
„Sixth, ensure adequate lighting and seventh, blink your eyes occasionally to prevent irritation,” Trilaksana noted.
He also recommends preventing eye strain by using the 20:20:20 system while working. After 20 minutes at the computer, a person should focus for 20 seconds on an object at least 20 feet or six meters away, which helps relax the eye muscles.
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