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Harris
Opticians
10 High Street
Lytham
FY8 3QR
Phone 0800 123456 |
Opening Hours
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| Monday |
08:30 - 13.00 |
14:00 - 17:00 |
| Tuesday |
08:30 - 13:00 |
|
| Wednesday |
08:30 - 13:00 |
14:00 - 17:00 |
| Thursday |
08:30 - 13:00 |
14:00 - 17:00 |
| Friday |
08:30 - 13:00 |
14:00 - 17:00 |
|
Spectacles
Spectacles
worn for seeing the television should also be used for walking around. This is
a distance prescription and provides the recipient with the ability to see objects
further away more clearly and include the floor, stairs and people.Spectacles
worn for reading would also be worn when eating and looking at photographs, etc.Spectacles
must be clean and in good repair. A frame which is a bad fit can cause pain.
Be aware that some of your residents may not be able to complain if spectacles
are ill fitting or causing discomfort.Many
residential and nursing homes have very poor room lighting and an 80-year-old
may require twice the light of a 30-year-old to achieve a reasonable visual performance.
There are some eye conditions which worsen sight in bright light. Establish what
amount of light your resident finds most useful!
Macular Degeneration
The
most common cause of visual problems in the over 60's is macular degeneration.
This is often the reason why elderly people have considerable difficulty adapting
from bright to dim indoor light conditions. Be very careful when bringing residents
indoors after being out in the sunshine. They lose central vision but retain
normal peripheral fields. They will move about normally but will not see any
central detail.
Use
contrasting colours where possible. Milk in a white cup is almost impossible
for some elderly people to see.
Sudden
(within a day or less) loss or deterioration in vision with or without pain may
be symptomatic of a retinal detachment, haemorrhage or occlusion of a vein or
artery and needs to be examined immediately.
Sudden
onset of diplopia (double vision) may be just old age or the early sign of a
tumour or aneurysm. If optometric advice is not available seek immediate medical
advice. If the patient has diabetes the double vision may be associated with
this but take no chances. There are many different kinds of double vision and
it is difficult to differentiate. Be cautious always and seek advice.
Ocular Blood Flow Monitor
Within
our elderly population a high incidence of glaucoma has persuaded us to equip
ourselves with diagnostic tools particularly for detection of this disease. The
diagnosis of glaucoma is many faceted but two of the key indicators in detection
are pressure within the eye and ocular blood flow.
The
first and most commonly used test is a pressure check. All dedicated domiciliary
companies will use an instrument specifically designed to do this.
The
second and equally important check is that for decreased ocular blood flow. The
instrument designed to monitor OBF (Ocular Blood Flow) has very recently been
developed and is invaluable in early and pre-damaged detection.
The
monitor, through regular use, can also give indications to circulatory disorders
which can be pointers to other diseases e.g. diabetes, thyroid and heart disease.
Diabetic Screening
Diabetic
screening is a vital part of our service and is carried out annually for all
diabetics and six monthly where closer monitoring is required. This allows Matron
and staff to rely on automatic monitoring of their diabetic residents.
We
keep a record of all diabetics in our care and contact the home on a regular
basis to ensure that new residents who are diabetic are seen by us as soon as
possible.
All
patients, no matter what type of diabetes they have, should have their eyes examined
annually.
Diabetes,
especially IDDM, can cause serious changes in eyesight, leaky blood vessels or
secondary glaucoma and is one of the most common causes of blindness in the western
world.
Any
diabetes sufferer reporting changes in eyesight lasting for any more than twenty-four
hours should be seen as soon as possible.
If
no doctor or optometrist is available they should be taken to the nearest A&E
facility, especially if they are IDDM.
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