Daniel Williams looks at the importance of maintaining good eye health
Healthy eyes
Most of us are good at attending a GP practice or dentist but visiting an optician to check we have healthy eyes often gets left, even though it’s one of the most important appointments we can attend.
One of the important messages employers should be promoting is “Get Your Eyes Checked!”
How do you know your eyes are healthy if you have never been for an eye test? Only your Optician will be able to tell you how healthy your eyes are!
Do You Know That…
- 50% of sight loss is avoidable! We all know that prevention is better than cure so it’s vital that you have regular sight tests to check your vision and eye health
- An eye test can pick up minor eye conditions such as dry eye or other infections along with more serious conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease
Wealthy eyes
A regular eye test could prevent loss of your income in the future!
Most employers offer free eye tests as part of their employee benefits scheme, but is this promoted and are employees reminded that this is available? Who is monitoring the scheme to establish if staff are accessing this service?
Wise employers
Employers are obliged under Display Screen Equipment (DSE) regulations to provide sight tests for any employee who uses computer screens and displays. If glasses are prescribed to operate DSE, the employer is required either to provide glasses or contribute towards the cost.
Most employers are aware of this requirement. According to 2008 Health and Safety Executive (HSE) research, just over half (53%) of organisations provided tests. For larger organisations (300+ employees), 100% of those surveyed provided sight tests.
Sight loss needn’t equal job loss
If someone attends a sight test and is told they have a condition that cannot be corrected, they may fear they will lose their employment. This is not the case as there are many reasonable adjustments that employers can make to enable employees with a visual impairment to continue in their roles.
Reasonable Adjustments
An employee with a visual impairment should always have a workplace assessment to establish their needs and any adjustments they may require. This will enable and empower them to continue working just as effectively.
For more information on work-place adjustments please visit: https://visualisetrainingandconsultancy.com/consultancy/workplace-assessments/
The 20-20-20 Rule
When looking at a screen for lengthy periods of time ensure you take regular breaks away from the computer screen. The 20-20-20 rule states that for every 20 minutes of screen time, you should look away at something at least 20 feet away for at least 20 seconds. These regular screen breaks give your eyes some much-needed rest and help prevent eye strain.
Prevention is better than cure!
To raise awareness of the importance of eye health, employers should consider having Eye Health Days and these should be promoted regularly to all colleagues during the the run-up and on the day of the event.
A typical Eye Health Day would include:
- The importance of eye health
- Basic sight test
- Raising awareness of the types of visual impairments
- Simulation of visual impairments to give an eye-opening experience
- A variety of tasks to complete whilst wearing glasses that simulate various eye conditions.
- Drop-in stands to discuss the importance of eye health
- Advice on Healthy, Wealthy and Wise eyes
For further information please email [email protected] or visit https://visualisetrainingandconsultancy.com/training/visual-impairment-awareness-training/