Once again, it is national AMD Awareness Week – September 10th to 16th.

As members of the Association of Optometrists, we will be offering AMD (Age related Macular Degeneration) screening free of charge in practice next week. AMD used to be called ARMD, which given its actual meaning still makes more sense to me!

Please call us to book a slot if you wish to avail, but please be aware that this is not a free eye examination, it is a free AMD screening. Also please remember that we are fitting these checks into our already busy diary, so you might not get the exact time that you would like. If you just arrive, please don’t be annoyed if we ask you to come back later – we are doing this as part of a national awareness campaign, which is more for your benefit than ours!

If you are entitled to a government funded full eye examination, either due to Medical Card or PRSI entitlement, you would be much better to get the full test done, rather than this “freebie”. By all means have this freebie too, but this is not a substitute for a full test, but given what I said here, even a full test is perhaps not enough, due to the speed of onset of the most devastating type of AMD?

Every year we have callers who have no particular interest in Age Related Macular Degeneration, but a very strong interest in getting something for nothing. We will happily accommodate them, but everyone, please understand that the staff will advise you to have a full test rather than the very reduced screening offered – if the full exam is still not going to cost you, why not avail of that instead?

If you have had a recent eye examination and everything was OK, and you have no issues now, you likely will not benefit from this screening, but do ensure that each eye is distortion free and seeing as well as you are used to – you should do this on a weekly or fortnightly basis. If not, you should get your eyes checked as soon as possible, ideally in the establishment you normally attend – they best know your eyes after all!

(And you do trust them, don’t you?)

Ian

AMD Awareness Week 2018 10 September 2018 – 16 September 2018

 

AMD Awareness Week 2018 ‘SightSee With Me’ will take place from the 10th-16th September. This year marks the beginning of a new decade for the awareness campaign, as we mark the 11th anniversary of the multi eye care stakeholder group initiative, supported by the Irish College of Ophthalmologists.

 

The aim of the awareness week is to create greater public awareness and understanding of AMD, and encourage those aged 50 and over to get their eyes tested regularly.

 

Further information on AMD Awareness Week 2018 activities and testing locations will feature shortly on the ICO website www.eyedoctors.ie and www.amd.ie.