CVMA July Newsletter

2020:

Make this The Year of Vision!

AUGUST IS CHILDREN'S EYE HEALTH AND SAFETY AWARENESS MONTH!

As part of August’s Children’s Eye Health and Safety Month at Prevent Blindness, and as a follow-up to its 2016 publication, The National Center for Children’s Vision and Eye Health at Prevent Blindness (NCCVEH) has released an updated version of the report titled “ Children’s Vision and Eye Health: A Snapshot of Current National Issues ” second edition.

The goal of the report is to provide updated U.S. surveillance data, share best practices from eye health programs, describe current vision and eye health requirements for preschool and school aged children, and share key policies and recommendations from the NCCVEH Advisory Committee on the best approaches to providing children with access to eye care .

Among other findings, the report highlighted:

· Children experiencing health and socioeconomic inequities have lower rates of vision testing, experience disparities in visual impairment, and reduced access to care.

· Non-Hispanic children aged 0–17 years whose primary language at home was not English, had the lowest percentage of vision testing as compared to children in homes where English or Spanish were spoken.

· An analysis of children’s vision disorders in 2015 with projections to 2060 indicates significant increases in visual impairment among Hispanic, Asian American, and multi-racial children 36 months to 72 months old.

NCCVEH NAMES RECIPIENT OF THE BONNIE STRICKLAND CHAMPION FOR VISION AWARD

The National Center for Children's Vision and Eye Health at Prevent Blindness selected Logan Newman, NBCT, ABO, MS Ed, Program Developer and NYS Certified Science teacher and Career in Technical Experience Teacher at the East High School Vision Care Program as the 2020 r ecipient of the Bonnie Strickland Champion for Vision Award . Newman, a former US Navy medic with training as an optician, and current East High School science teacher, was selected by the all-volunteer Bonnie Strickland Champion for Children’s Vision Award Committee in recognition of his innovative, educational and vocational approach to vision and eye care for disadvantaged and underserved youth in Rochester, New York.

Under Newman’s direction, local volunteer eye care providers perform refractive examinations in the Rochester City schools for students who do not pass their school-based vision screening. Newman and his team of student-opticians have provided over 100 clinics for eyeglasses- including eyeglass selection, fitting, and dispensing- throughout Rochester City Schools.

PREVENT BLINDNESS HOLDS SUCCESSFUL 9TH ANNUAL FOCUS ON EYE HEALTH SUMMIT

Prevent Blindness held the 9th annual Prevent Blindness Focus on Eye Health National Summit as a virtual event on July 15, 2020. This year’s Summit included a variety of presentations and discussions related to the theme “An Eye to the Future” with more than 1,200 registered attendees. Peter Holland, CEO, International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness , served as the keynote speaker for the Summit, sharing the WHO World Report on Vision. To view the presentations and webinars click here .

BACK TO SCHOOL EYE EXAMS CRUCIAL FOR UPCOMING SCHOOL YEAR

Nationwide, the ongoing coronavirus pandemic has placed unprecedented challenges on school districts weighing parents' need for safe, effective learning options for their children and the pressure to reopen in-person classes to jump-start a fettered economy. With so much riding on school reopening plans, not to be lost is the fact that the 2020-21 academic year could be more crucial than ever in setting up schoolchildren to succeed.

"Many academic difficulties for school-aged children are linked to a vision problem, but an eye exam is often overlooked in the battery of testing to determine the child's learning discrepancies"......