Labor Day weekend is the unofficial end of summer, and many people hit the roads for a last celebration of sun and fun. Unfortunately, Forbes magazine cites Labor Day as the second most dangerous holiday for drivers. (Thanksgiving is number one.) While drunk driving accounts for many accidents (28 percent of fatalities), the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Statistical Summary 2017 notes “inadequate surveillance” as a driver-related critical reason (the immediate reason in a chain of events) for 21 percent of vehicle crashes. Inadequate surveillance is different from distracted driving. It is “a situation in which a driver failed to look, or looked but did not see, when it was essential to safely complete a vehicle maneuver.” Certainly, poor vision plays a part.
The Vision Council reports that more than 11 million Americans have uncorrected vision problems. How many of those folks are driving? While most states require a vision test before issuing a driver’s license, many don’t require additional testing for license renewal. Connecticut is a good example. I’ve had a Connecticut driver’s license for many years, but haven’t had to produce evidence of a vision exam since my initial application. Before you try to grab my car keys, rest assured that I practice what I preach.
The NHTSA has other cautionary statistics. The driving fatality rate between 6:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. is triple the daytime rate. Obviously, people who don’t see well during the day see even less well at night, and the report cited headlight glare as one critical reason for crashes. What’s more, with 18 percent of traffic fatalities caused by drivers over 65, the aging population affects highway safety. It’s not simply an acuity problem. Our attentional visual field, scanning left and right, decreases with age. Older folks tend to keep their attention on what is straight ahead of them, with limited awareness of peripheral objects.
For safer driving, Forbes recommends regular eye exams, wearing corrective lenses, anti-reflective treatments for eyewear, illuminating headlights before dusk and breaks to relieve eye fatigue that can occur when driving a straight highway for long periods. As ECPs, we know to recommend those things to our existing patients, but how can we reach people who don’t get regular eye exams? This month and next, our marketing strategies will aim at children for back-to-school exams. Why not reach out to their parents about their own eye health? Create a brochure with information about vision and products such as anti-reflective treatments, photochromics and polarized sun lenses for driving safety. For information about new lens technology for clear vision, check out our CE “Clearest, Most Protective, An Inseparable Part of the DNA of Lenses” at 2020mag.com/ce. Have a safe Labor Day!
• Linda Conlin
[email protected]
2020mag.com/education
