Prof. Jeffrey LEUNG Tsz-wing, Member of the Research Centre for SHARP Vision (RCSV) and Assistant Professor of the School of Optometry at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, together with his research team, conducted a cross-sectional study in three special education schools. The study provided vision screening for students with mild to moderate intellectual disabilities and assessed their ocular alignment, visual acuity and stereopsis.
The study was conducted using a questionnaire survey, which collected data on the students’ eye-care history, carers’ awareness of vision problems, and their access to financial support for ophthalmic care services. The findings showed that strabismus is fairly common among students in Hong Kong special education settings, while carers’ limited awareness of strabismus has become a major barrier preventing students from receiving the ophthalmic care they need.
The findings highlight the urgent need for public health reform. Prof. Leung noted that, in the long term, it is necessary to establish an integrated closed-loop referral system and strengthen cross-sector collaboration to improve coordination between schools and ophthalmic healthcare providers, so as to ensure that this vulnerable group can receive timely, equitable and appropriate ophthalmic care services.
The findings were published in Optometry and Vision Science under the title of “Ocular misalignment and unmet eye care needs among students with special education needs in Hong Kong”.
Read the full paper: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ovs2.70026
| Research Units | Research Centre for SHARP Vision |
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