Kindergarten student Peyton with Cobram Lion Lyn at the depth-perception station.
Photo by
Owen Sinclair
Healthy eyesight is critical to a student’s wellbeing at school and in life.
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But too often, conditions such as myopia and long-sightedness remain undiagnosed until it’s too late, leaving students with inexplicable headaches while they struggle to read or write in the classroom.
The Cobram Lions Club has kicked off its free vision screening program, the first of its kind to be run by the club through local schools.
Students at St Joseph’s Primary School had their vision screened earlier this month.
Most recently, the club held a screening at the Barooga Public School on Thursday, June 26.
“A lot of the schoolchildren actually haven’t had an eye test prior to this,” Lion Janet Austin told The Courier.
Kindergarten student Alexander has his distance vision checked.
Photo by
Owen Sinclair
“And the results we’re picking up is that about one in four children require treatment.”
Over 50 students across kindergarten to Year 6 were screened by Lions volunteers across colour vision, distance vision, visual acuity and depth perception.
The free vision screening service provides a referral for students should they need to see a specialist.
Photo by
Owen Sinclair
While not an official diagnosis, the screening picks up those students who may need to seek further specialist attention, with the aim of the program to help students get the help they need.
“They’re better off being checked, being over-cautious, than missing something,” Mrs Austin said.
Early detection of eye disease is critical to ward off preventable conditions such as cataracts or trachoma in young people.
A recent review by academics based in China found that about one in three children around the world were living with myopia, or short-sightedness.
Researchers expect that number to increase, thanks to the prevalence of digital screens in our lives.
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