Vision impairment affects millions in the US, especially children who consequently struggle at school. In early February, Essilor Vision Foundation, brought its mobile clinic for a marathon day of vision screening for nearly 900 children in Fort Worth, Texas.
80% of learning in a child’s first 12 years comes through his or her eyes. On average, 25m of all school children in the US have a vision problem significant enough to affect educational achievement. Kids Vision for Life aims to tackle this by providing vision care to students in need, removing barriers by bringing services directly to schools. The program has a number of mobile vision clinics that are equipped with examination equipment and everything needed to mount, edge and finish lenses.
150 volunteers were ready from 9am in Tarrant County College in a large area with multiple eye screening stations. More than 875 children aged from 5-12 years were screened, and three quarters went on to have a full eye examination. In total Essilor Vision Foundation was able to provide 600 pairs of glasses customized to each child’s individual needs.
“It’s such a transforming experience for the kids inside and outside the classroom, you see the immediate impact on the children who get their vision corrected and how they then interact with their teachers and peers.”
“It’s such a transforming experience for the kids inside and outside the classroom,” said one of Essilor’s 70 volunteers at the event. “You see the immediate impact on the children who get their vision corrected and how they then interact with their teachers and peers.”
When children don’t see well, they find it difficult to learn to their full potential. The sooner visual problems are corrected, the better for individuals, as one student at Tarrant County College who had his vision corrected last year demonstrated. “After I got my glasses and could see the board properly at school, my grades picked up.”
Kids Vision for Life Tarrant County began collaborating with local partners in Texas in 2008. Since then it has provided screenings for 95 schools and dispensed 20,193 new prescription glasses to area students at no cost to their families. Strong relationships with school administration, nurses, vision professionals and employee volunteers contribute the success of the program.
To find out more about the vision fest click here!