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VERI supports local ethnic community in Cambridge

Published: 13 July 2022 at 15:40

Prof Shahina Pardhan and Dr Raju Sapkota helped improve health literacy around eye complications at the first-ever Cambridge Bangladeshi Health Fair at Meadows Community Centre in Arbury on 20 June 2022.

Composite image of VERI's Shahina Pardhan and Raju Sapkota examining and giving eyecare advice to South Asian diabetic patients in Cambridge

South Asians have a high risk of diabetes and our research shows that diabetic-related blindness is also high. Factors that increase this risk include lower awareness of how to maintain good diabetic control and language barriers.

Visitors were offered free diabetic eye screenings and could access a culturally appropriate video training program in Bengali language developed by VERI.

The health event, organised by Cambridge Ethnic Community Forum in Partnership with Karim Foundation and Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), was hugely successful in increasing awareness about diabetic-related eye complications in those most at risk.

Find out more about VERI's outreach work with South Asian diabetes patients.