Practice Metrics

Why Did You Take Your Child to Have an Eye Exam?

Parents care about their child’s eye health. The Vision Council VisionWatch 2012 Parent Child Vision Care Report reveals that of 1,400 poll respondents who have taken their children to receive an eye exam at least once in the past two years, 54.3 percent claim they had their child’s eyes examined to maintain healthy vision and stop vision problems before they start. This preventive maintenance approach to vision care is especially popular among parents with a managed vision care plan and parents with high annual household incomes ($100K+). As we might expect, parents without any form of insurance coverage are less likely than other parents to take their children to receive an eye exam in order to maintain healthy vision.

Another key finding: Vision problems prompt an eye exam. Close to 23 percent of parents who have taken their child to have an eye exam in the past two years did so because their child was experiencing a vision problem. This is significantly less than in 2006 when almost 30 percent of parents took their child for an eye exam because they were experiencing a vision problem. Vision problems were a strong motivator for parents of children who currently wear prescription eyewear, especially eyeglasses, and other forms of vision correction. About one out of every six parents who have taken their children for an eye exam in the past 24 months did so based on the recommendation of a physician while almost 11 percent did so based on the recommendation of an educator or teacher. Parents of younger children (age nine and under) were more likely than other parents to have taken their child to get an eye exam within the past two years based on the recommendation of a physician, educator or teacher.

We’ve struggled with this problem for a long, long time. The conclusion we’ve reached is that there are two different schools of thought about children and education. One school of thought is that the parent delivers to the school system a child to be taught. From this perspective, it is the school’s responsibility to get the child ready to learn–whatever that may be–and then, it is the school’s responsibility to teach the child. If the child does not learn, it is the school that dropped the ball.

The other perspective is that it is the parents’ responsibility to bring to the school system a child ready to learn. It is the parents’ responsibility to resolve any issues that may interfere with the child’s potential learning, and then, it is the parents’ responsibility, working with teachers, to make sure the child learns.
In our eyecare world, these two perspectives end up with radically different approaches to the child’s vision care. From one perspective, the parent waits for an authority figure to tell them when to get the child’s eyes examined. From this group when you ask the question, “When did your child last have his eyes examined” the answer is almost always, “Last year in school.” From the other perspective, the parent proactively brings the child annually into the eyecare practice for care. This latter group understands that undetected problems are unresolved problems.

So, what is the answer? It is education, education and more education. We have to take the opportunity to educate mothers, fathers, aunts, uncles, grandmothers, grandfathers–anyone who has any relationship with any child. It is an important activity. It is an ongoing activity.

Here’s your action point: Walk through your office from the front door to the web site and rate yourself on the job you are doing educating people on the need for annual eye examinations for children. Find at least one area where you can improve your efforts.

Let’s make a difference as we move forward.

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