Power of Sight Free Vision Clinics

Health care access

Expand existing project, program, or initiative (expanding and continuing ongoing, successful work)

For low-income individuals and families, finances can be a sometimes insurmountable barrier to vision care even with insurance. Without means, people try to manage with varying degrees of impaired vision, impacting their performance at work or school and their overall quality of life. Eye exams also can uncover symptoms that indicate other underlying health issues. Low-income persons, particularly in rural areas, also can face transportation challenges to accessing vision care. PSF brings care to them and further addresses logistic barriers by producing free glasses on the spot so people do not have to find the time and the means for a follow-up visit. Working with community partners provides not only sites for our services but also effective networks to publicize them. Past events have attracted more than 200 people in six hours. With the requested funding, we could do so much more - more frequent clinics covering a greater expanse of LA County and serving more people in need.

PSF will address the need for essential vision care for those facing prohibitive financial and/or transportation barriers by offering free vision clinics throughout Los Angeles County, providing eye exams and prescription eye glasses on the spot in one visit. Trained volunteer clinicians will provide services using mobile testing and diagnostic equipment and technicians will produce eye glasses likewise with mobile equipment, lenses, and frames transported by PSF. Community partners will provide venues for the free vision events and help to publicize them to residents. The requested funding will enable PSF to increase the frequency and geographic range of these events, reaching people in need throughout L.A. County including rural areas. This program also provides valuable practicum hours for optometry students in L.A. County under the supervision of experienced certified optometrists.

Low-income individuals and families throughout Los Angeles County will receive free vision care and prescription eye glasses without having to travel outside their communities, thereby improving their ability to perform well at work or school and increasing their overall quality of life. This can lead to improved productivity and economic mobility as well as greater independence for seniors. All of this serves to not only help individuals lead happier lives but also aids in strengthening communities.

PSF measures impact quantitatively by tracking the numbers of individuals served, the number of eye exams performed, and the number of prescription eye glasses produced and distributed. We also track progress qualitatively by providing surveys to people served and also to the volunteer clinicians and technicians who provide services to determine their level of satisfaction with each part of their experience. Lastly, we survey and solicit informal feedback from our community partners to determine their level of satisfaction and identify and address any challenges in the process of planning and executing the free vision events. It is important to PSF that we always provide our services professionally and treat recipients, volunteers, and partners with dignity, respect, and kindness, creating a positive experience for everyone involved. To date, we have provided more than 650 free eye exams and 5,018 sets of free prescription glasses, a value of approximately $783,432.