One of the most awesome things about living in the UK is the NHS.
It rocks.
It really does.
Free eyes tests for kids is just one element of the NHS and I could list many 1000’s more. We must make the most of it and take full advantage of all it has to offer. Every thrifty home need to know exactly what it is entitled to and take up the fabulous free things this wonderful country has to offer, like education, libraries and health care. I am so passionate about that. We are so lucky!
When I had my children I was overwhelmed with the amount of input I had from the NHS; health checks, breastfeeding support, pre-pregnancy groups and regular visits. Just awesome. Later with hearing tests, weight checks and heigh checks I continually felt supported in regard to the monitoring and development of my children’s health. Every 6 months they get free dental checks and there is always a school nurse and my local GP to check in with if I have any concerns in regard to their health. What a fabulously supportive healthcare system. And it’s free and available to all. Wonderful. In times of emergency my children have had swift, professional and kind treatment too.
I take up all that the NHS have to offer in regard to my children’s health but I have to admit I am pretty lax when it comes to eye tests. It is probably a couple of years now since I had their eyes tested despite this service being freely available on a yearly basis.
There has been some enlightening recent research, conducted by leading UK eye hospital group Optegra Eye Health Care, around children’s eye health. Optegra is a specialist provider of ophthalmic services and they offer treatment for all medical eye conditions as well as laser eye surgery and lens replacement. Their research shows that while over 90 per cent of parents take their children for regular immunisations against infectious diseases, eye health is not on their radar. The research, which took place earlier this year, surveyed 2,009 UK adults aged over 16 and 101 GPs and optometrists. It showed some rather shocking results about our general awareness of vision problems.
The new research shows that for many children, symptoms of poor vision may be missed.
More than four in 10 adults do not realize a child sitting close to the television can be an indicator that they need an eye test. Another 30 per cent of adults do not think a child unable to see the whiteboard or struggling with reading may need an eye test, yet these are both clues that a child may have vision problems.
We need to be much more alert when it comes to eye health and absolutely make a point of taking our kids for their free yearly checks. It coudl make all the difference to theior develipment,
We are lucky enough to have these free tests and we really should make the most of them.
collaborative post
