Eye screening helps children be their best

Nurse Rosie Abrigo from Alice Pediatric Clinic uses an automated handheld photo-refractor referred to as a spot vision screener to check the eyes of fifth-grader Brody Garcia from St. Elizabeth School.
Carolina Nisimblat for South Texas Catholic
 

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For Esmerelda Hernandez, a parent whose child attends St. Joseph School in Alice, back to school season is a busy time of year. Sometimes the checklist of things to do can be daunting. What she and other parents in Catholic schools don’t have to worry about is getting their children’s eyes checked. Thanks to the schools and Alice Pediatric Clinic those tests are done at the beginning of every school year.

This year Alice Pediatric Clinic provided vision screening for 325 students attending St. Elizabeth and St. Joseph Elementary Schools on Aug. 14 and 15.

“As parents and adults, I think we might take for granted, our kids are young, and we forget those vision problems do exist in young children. So, I feel very fortunate and grateful for our schools and Alice Pediatric Clinic who make these screenings possible,” Hernandez said. “This is just one more way our community pulls together to ensure that our children are given every possible resource to be their very best.” 

"Vision Screening for our children is on top of our back to school list," principal of St. Elizabeth, Patricia Garcia, said. "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and that’s exactly what we are pursuing with our children’s eye health.” 

Members of the staff from Alice Pediatric Clinic, Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Sam Carrell, Nurse Practitioner Ramona Garcia and Nurse Rosie Abrigo, LVN use an automated handheld photo-refractor referred to as a spot vision screener. A child merely looks at the device for approximately two seconds, and a computerized vision report is obtained. 

Children were also screened using the HOTV eye chart, and the Sloan Letter wall chart, cover/uncover testing and Hirschberg corneal light reflex.

"About a quarter of all school-aged children have a significant vision problem," Dr. Erik Nisimblat, MD FAAP from Alice Pediatric Clinic, said. “Left untreated, eye conditions can create far-reaching and long-lasting consequences.” 

A child must see to read,” Dr. Nisimblat said. “Any abnormal results are relayed to the child’s parent or guardian so that they may schedule an appointment with their primary physician and optometrist or ophthalmologist. 

This special gift of time, resources, and expertise that Alice Pediatrics and others have shared with Catholic school communities provide a vision screening service above and beyond the capabilities of a standard screening. 

At St. Elizabeth School “we try to make sure the whole person is cared for," said Father Pedro Elizardo, pastor at St. Joseph Church in Alice. The staff at Alice Pediatric Clinic offers that extra service at no charge to us. They come from the perspective of wanting to make sure the kids have the ability to see, which brings them the benefit of knowing."