Document Type

Honors Thesis

Publication Date

Spring 5-2015

Abstract

In many developing countries, access to medical care and screenings are difficult, and this is especially true for countries with large rural populations, such as Ecuador. There are many groups and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that contribute time and money to educational systems and other basic infrastructure, but not necessarily medical screenings. In the case of eyesight, without proper screening an individual may fall behind academically or even withdraw from education simply because they cannot see. The simple addition of corrective lenses could be the difference between a life of poverty, and a life of wellbeing for many of these individuals. Visual acuity is a good indicator of eye health, and can be used to quickly screen large populations and identify those with vision problems. Working with Dr. Kass we have developed a program that uses an “open door” method to determine visual acuity. The acuity results from this program can be compared to results from a standard Landolt C eye chart to determine if the program accurately predicts visual acuity. Ecuador is an excellent country to use as a trial for this program, and successful implementation can lead the way for implementation in other countries.

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