Eye screening program

One of the most worthwhile projects of the Franklin Lions Club is the eye screening program. This program is specifically for the  detection of eye problems in children ages 1-5.

Children's eyes are measured with a specialized no-contact PlusOptix instrument.  The readings are sent to the Vanderbilt Children's Eye Center where they are  evaluated.

Many eye problems are more easily resolved when found early. For some vision problems, it is critical to resolve the problem early to  prevent long term vision impairment or blindness.

Thousands of children have been evaluated and referrals have been  made in 4 to  5 percent of the children screened.  Help is available to those without the means to have their child's  problem diagnosed and corrected.

Each location is supplied with an English and Spanish copy of the consent/results form. This  form needs to be copied for each child and signed by a parent before any screening can be done.  We  can supply you with a poster to put up announcing the time and nature of the screening.  We will  arrive promptly, 15 minutes before the screening is scheduled to begin, with an assistant in most cases.   The screening is available to any child ages 1-5 who is not now under the care  of an eye doctor.  We also do not screen developmentally delayed children as the screening will  not detect neurological problems that should be addressed by a physician directly.

On the screening day, we need an area to take the readings that is near an electrical outlet, along with 2 adult chairs and a table.  Please have a small chair for the child being screened.    One adult from the school needs to be available  to monitor their classes.  Since the process is very quick, it is helpful for the screener to obtain all forms for the class so that information can be entered into the computer. 

The Lions in our district usually screen upwards of 25,000 children a year.  The Franklin Lions Club typically screens approximately 4,000 in Williamson County.  

After the screening, all of the readings are sent to Vanderbilt Eye Center, after which the results are sent back to the schools. Information will be included for any referred child to see their eye physician.  We do ask that the examining doctor report their results to our center so that we can keep track of our success.   

Our non-invasive screening process can detect most problems that cause poor vision in young children, such as amblyopia (lazy eye), strabismus (crossed or turned out eye), hyperopia  (farsightedness), media opacity (possible cataract), anisometropia (a difference in the ability of each eye), myopia (nearsightedness), ptosis (drooping eyelid) and astigmatism (unequal focusing causing blurriness).