COMMUNITY AFFAIRS

Why should you do Kids2See?

• You like working with kids

• You want to do something

clinical in Pre-Clerkship

• You want to have tangible

impact in an at risk community
Agenda

• Why the initiative?

• The Plan
• Get Involved
 1. Why the
initiative?

Consequences of Untreated
Childhood Eye Disease
Description
• 80% of children’s learning is visual
Learning • Children can experience:
Difficultie
– Visual confusion
s
– Difficulty focusing in class
– Headaches
– Misdiagnosis of ADHD, MID, etc.
• Problems with clarity of image or image
Preventable
processing by brain can lead to poor long
Blindness
term visual development in blurrier eye ->
amblyopia
• While asymptomatic at first, uncorrectable if
not treated
Source: Preventblindness.org; Strabismus.org; Health News Digest; Ontario Association
of Optometrists
 1. Why the
initiative?

What is ambloypia?
Definition
• Reduced vision in an eye that has not received
adequate use during early childhood

Cause
• Any condition that causes one eye to be favored,
and the other ignored by the brain.
– Examples: strabismus (crossed eyes),
farsightedness, nearsightedness, cataracts

Effect
• Non-favored eye is ignored by the brain to avoid a
clash between the two different images from the
eyes
• Permanent once brain stops growing
Estimated 1/20
children have
amblyopia!!!
Source: Preventblindness.org; Kovacheye.com; Health News Digest; Medline plus
 1. Why the
initiative?

Strong precedent…

Ontario: “Due to provincial

funding reductions, the
Public Health Unit no
longer provides vision
screening in elementary
schools in Ontario for
young children.”
Agenda

• Why the initiative?

• The Plan
• Get Involved
2. The Plan

What are we testing for? What

do we use?
Pot. Definitio Estimates Screening Test
issues n
Visual • Sharpness of • 1/7 have • Sheridan-
Vision refractiv Gardner
Acuity e error Visual
Acuity Test

• Both eyes • 1/25 have • Stereo Fly

Binocul used strabismus (eye Stereopsis
ar synchronous misalignment)
vision ly to • Other disorders
produce include aniseikonia
single image (diff. refractive
states),
convergence
Source: Preventblindness.org; Strabismus.org; Health News
deficiency, etc.Digest; Ontario Association
of Optometrists
2. The Plan

What do we do?
Follow up
Refer
with Revaluate
Screen those
families and
Childre suspected
and deal Expand
n with
with program
problems
access
issues
• Wave 2 - • All families • Those suspected as • Initiate
~140 will be having problems program
kindergarten
children at 2 informed of referred to at other
schools benefits of Kids2See advisor schools
• Stats will be (free) ophthalmologist • Expand
recorded annual eye • Accommodate voluntee
• Screening exams children utilizing r base
not an exam
gov. programs,
Lenscrafters Gift of
Sight, and Sick Kids
2. The Plan

Screening setup
Plan
Volunteer
• Children w/ SG
brought in 4 at a test
time
PRIZES!!

Rescreeners
• In teams of 2, 2
tests 20ft
administered and
!

history taken
• Borderline cases
rescreened Child

• When a child Master Volunteer

has been list holder
screened 1
volunteer takes
child to get prize
and other report
to master list
holder
2. The Plan

History and Next Steps

35 children
referred!

?? ? ?
? your
We need
?
? help!!! ?
? ? ?
Agenda

• Why the initiative?

• The Plan
• Get Involved
3. Get Involved

UofT Meds Volunteers

• Sign up to receive training session and

Vision
screening dates!!!
Screene
• Watch your email
r

• Work with 1T0 Coordinators in

1T1 preparation to run program next year
Coordinator • Stay tuned to apply