Today’s blog post is a newspaper article about the La Plata Lions PVS team. The article was part of the last district 22-C newsletter.
The La Plata Lions PVS team had another successful year again during the 2018-2019 club year. A grand total of 1, 228 preschool children were screened with a total number of 229 referrals to pediatric eye-care for evaluation and necessary treatment so these children can have clear vision during their education.
The PVS team spent many hours traveling many miles to the 22 Charles County Public Elementary Schools, 20 church sponsored preschools and private centers, and the Charles County Head Start to perform screenings beginning August 1, 2018 and ending May 3, 2019.
Two Plusoptix cameras were used to screen the children. These cameras are special pediatric cameras that take a photo of the eyes and evaluate for: anisometropia (unequal refractive power), astigmatism (deviation from spherical curvature), hyperopia (far sightedness), myopia (near sightedness), and strabismus (abnormal alignment). All these conditions can lead to amblyopia (lazy eye). Children who are “REFERRED” receive a form with a printout from the camera to take to a pediatric ophthalmologist for professional diagnosis and treatment. These measurements by these cameras make it possible to detect the following most prevalent childhood vision disorders that may lead to the development of amblyopia (lazy eye): • Hyperopia (farsightedness) • Myopia (nearsightedness) • Astigmatism (blurred vision) • Anisometropia (unequal refractive power) • Anisocoria (unequal pupil size) • Strabismus (Eye misalignment)
Team Leader Carolyn Rogers worked closely with Ayanna White, Vision and Hearing Technician, Charles Co. Health Dept., and the Charles County Public School nurses at each school or center scheduling the screening dates. The school and center nurses recorded the results and did follow-up with children who received referrals. This team project will improve the school success for the 229 precious children who will become future leaders!
THIS IS GREAT LIONISM!
We would be happy to receive more great articles and reports from screening events!
For more information about the Plusoptix Vision Screener, see: https://plusoptix.com/en/vision-screener/landing