ODs, paras, students assist at National Urban League meeting
September 9, 2010Local optometrists, technicians, and optometry students gathered at the recent three-day meeting of the National Urban League in Washington, D.C., to help educate attendees about the importance of regularly scheduled eye exams.
At a vision screening, supported by Vistakon, Division of Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Inc., the eye care professionals distributed educational material and conducted vision screenings for 366 patients, referring about half to area optometrists for further evaluation.
The referrals ranged from annual exams for prescription changes, to glaucoma suspect/glaucoma evaluations, and other retinal observations.
Participating optometrists came from local AOA affiliates, health maintenance organization Kaiser Permanente, and military bases in the area.
Douglas Kiessling, O.D., president of the Optometric Society of the District of Columbia, led the efforts in recruiting for the professional staff.
The National Naval Medical Center’s four student externs ably assisted in the screening.
In addition to the optometric societies of the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Northern Virginia, Optos and Lombart Inc. also provided support for the screening.
