Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #113238

Stacy Ayn Lyons, OD, New England Eye Institute, New England College of Optometry, 1255 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02215, 617-236-6335, lyonss@neco.edu

Visual impairments in children can lead to serious consequences, including poor school performance, low self-esteem and injury. A recent survey indicates that 48% of parents with children under the age of 12 haven't taken their child to an eye examination. Of these, 25% didn't seek eye care because their child had been screened at school. This indicates that parents are depending on school-based vision screenings to detect vision problems in their children.

However, attempts to ensure children who fail a screening are actually seen by an eye care professional are usually up to the school nurses and/or teacher. The goal of a school based vision center is to decrease the barriers that hinder parents from seeking eyecare for their children and to increase access to eyecare for those in need.

The FPS and NEEI have partnered to achieve an integration of eye care service with other health care and education professionals in order to best care for the FPS children with the program goal to eliminate pediatric patients' vision problems so they are better able to achieve success in school.

The goal of this program is to improve access, education, and awareness of eye care services to the children of Framingham by conducting educational seminars, visual function risk assessments and using a school- base comprehensive vision center to deliver eye care. Case examples seen in our program will illustrate the issues children face in receiving eyecare and reinforce the necessity to change the way we delivery care to children.

Learning Objectives:

• To articulate a multidisciplinary collaborative approach to school based vision care
• To recognize that vision impairment in children is a public health concern

Keywords: School-Based Health Care, Vision Care

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Recorded presentation