Practice Metrics

Why Haven’t You Taken Your Child to Receive an Eye Exam Recently?

Among the 1,532 parents responding to the Vision Council’s VisionWatch Parent for Child Report who have not taken their children to receive an eye exam within the past two years, 63 percent claim they have not taken their children for an exam because their children do not need an exam. Parents with children over the age of 10 living at home and parents with more than one child living at home were more likely than other parents to avoid eye exams for their children because of the belief that their children don’t need one.

A significantly large portion of parents who have not taken their children for an eye exam recently (35.6 percent) believe that their children are too young to experience vision problems and therefore do not need an exam. Parents with only one child living at home, and parents with a child under the age of 10 were more likely than other parents to avoid taking their child for an eye exam due to the belief that their child is too young for a vision problem. Fourteen percent of parents said they have not taken their child for an eye exam recently because their vision problems are only minor. This was especially true for parents of older children (age 10 and older) and parents with more than one child living at home. For almost 8 percent of parents whose children have not received an eye exam recently the perceived high cost of an exam has prevented them from taking their child for an exam. The notion that the exam will cost too much was a particular strong deterrent for parents with no vision insurance and for parents with an average household income of under $40,000 annually.

Seven percent of parents with children who have not received an exam in the past two years said they were too busy to take their children for an eye exam. This was especially true for parents with more than two children living at home and for parents with children between the ages of 10 and 13. Another 7 percent of parents said their children had not received an exam recently because they did not have an eye doctor. This was especially the case for parents with an annual household income under $40,000, those with no vision insurance coverage and for parents with children over the age of 13 living at home.

What are the numbers? One in four school-aged children have vision problems.

What is the risk? Undiagnosed visual conditions cause unresolved life problems. What is the solution? Education.

How good of a job are we doing? Based on the Vision Council’s report, not good.

We have to start somewhere, so let’s start in our practices. We can do this by signage in the office.

Here are three signs that should be in every doctor’s office:

“Did you know that one in four school-aged children have vision problems? A child who has never seen the world clearly has no reference point to tell you that something is wrong. Don’t let your child live with a problem that can be easily addressed. Get your child’s eyes examined yearly by an optometrist.”

“Did you know that the eyesight test done by the school nurse or by the pediatrician does a poor job of identifying visual problems? It identifies correctly about half of the children screened. In other words, when children are given the test, about half are told they do not have a problem when they do or told they do have a problem when they do not. Don’t let your child live with a problem that can be easily addressed. Get your child’s eyes examined yearly by an optometrist.”

“A child’s body changes every year. The eyes are part of the body and they change just like the rest of the body. Just because your child had an eye exam one or two years ago does not mean they are still the same today. Don’t let your child live with a problem that can be easily addressed. Get your child’s eyes examined yearly by an optometrist.”

Take a walk through your practice today. As you walk through the practice, ask yourself: “How can I use the setting of my practice to better educate people? Look for places to put messages on the walls, on computer screens, in scripts staff use with patients or even in notebooks placed in the reception areas and exam rooms. This is an issue that demands immediate attention. Don’t put it off. We must do a better job of getting children the help they deserve.

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