229073 A national model for children's eye care

Monday, November 8, 2010 : 8:51 AM - 9:09 AM

Gwendolyn Camacho-Hughes, Director , Eye Care Services Program Department, Sight Savers America, Pelham, AL
Jeffrey Haddox, President , Eye Care Services Program Department, Sight Savers America, Pelham, AL
Margie Haddox, Director , Vision Rehabilitation Department, Sight Savers America, Pelham, AL
Lisa Maher, Director , Eye Care Services Program Department, Sight Savers America, Pelham, AL
PURPOSE: To improve access to eye care for school children. Alabama is the only state that provides an annual vision screening and comprehensive follow-up eye care service for k/2/4 students statewide with each child's outcome recorded in a database. METHODS: Between 10/1/08 and 9/30/09, K/2/4 students received a vision screening in 98% of Alabama public schools. The parents of children who failed were contacted by Sight Savers America and each child's needs were assessed in order to coordinate comprehensive eye care. RESULTS: Of the 140,475 children screened, 23,554 failed. Sight Savers established contact and initiated follow-up protocol with 20,935 of these children's parents. Eyeglasses were received by 12,057 children. Furthermore, 2,695 children received vision aids or treatment for amblyopia and other serious eye conditions. Normal vision was reported for 2,297 children subsequent to eye exams. Final outcomes were not reported for the remaining 3,886 children. The percentage of children wearing glasses at the time of screening as compared to the total number of children who failed the screening increased from 17.2% for kindergartners to 29.9% for second graders, and 41.9% for fourth graders. CONCLUSION: Established in 2005, this annual vision program in Alabama schools offers a successful method of providing access to comprehensive eye care. The high percentage of reported outcomes (81.4%) and the increased percentage of older children wearing glasses demonstrate the program's success. As a national model, this program could result in broader access to eye care for all school children across the nation.

Learning Areas:
Program planning
Provision of health care to the public

Learning Objectives:
1. Describe a model for providing statewide comprehensive children’s eye care. 2. List three outcomes for children who have partcipated in Alabama's comprehensive eye care program.

Keywords: Vision Care, Children's Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I co-direct Sight Savers America's children's eye care services program.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 3068.0: Evaluating and Addressing Children's Vision Needs