Routine optometric care in nursing homes: a retrospective study

Residents of nursing homes do not have the same access to health care as do others. A retrospective study of the records of optometric examinations at three nursing homes with demographics presumably similar to those of most nursing homes in the United States was performed in order to determine the prevalence of vision anomalies in this population and to determine if optometric intervention was beneficial. Sixty-five percent of the patients received an immediate benefit from the optometric examination in either treatment or referral to another health care provider for an undetected or poorly controlled health problem. We concluded that this type of service was needed by the patients in the nursing homes and was professionally rewarding to the optometrist providing it.