A global challenge set by the World Council of Optometry (WCO) and CooperVision, calling on the eye care community to commit to a myopia management standard of care, is being met with resounding success.
In just over one month, 63 global eye care organisations and more than 25,700 practitioners have signed up to the Myopia Management Standard of Care Pledge challenge.
WCO President-elect Dr. Sandra Block said, “The response in just over a month since we launched the challenge has been impressive. Myopia has reached epidemic levels and we know that myopia can lead to eye health issues that reveal themselves in adults. It is our hope that early diagnosis of myopia and management can help reduce the long-term eye health complications. Taking the pledge sends a clear message that organisations and eye care professionals understand the seriousness of myopia as a public health threat and that they are taking active measures to manage that threat. We are encouraged to see that so many are actively taking the pledge.”
63 global eye care organisations and more than 25,700 practitioners have signed up to the Myopia Management Standard of Care Pledge challenge
The World Council of Optometry and CooperVision introduced the myopia management standard of care resolution in April 2021, defining an evidence-based standard of care comprised of three main components:
- Mitigation — Optometrists educating and counselling parents and children, during early and regular eye exams, on lifestyle, dietary, and other factors to prevent or delay the onset of myopia.
- Measurement — Optometrists evaluating the status of a patient during regular comprehensive vision and eye health exams, such as measuring refractive error and axial length whenever possible.
- Management — Optometrists addressing patients’ needs of today by correcting myopia, while also providing evidence-based interventions (e.g., contact lenses, spectacles, pharmaceuticals) that slow the progression of myopia, for improved quality of life and better eye health today and into the future.
Get Involved
Learn more and take the pledge here.
For practical tools and information for optometrists, visit the World Council of Optometry’s myopia management online resource.
Free Virtual Myopia Management Event
WCO is holding its second global virtual event on myopia management, Advancing the Standard of Care, on 16 February, 2023. Hear directly from patients and eye care professionals working in research and clinical practice on how they have integrated myopia management into their practices. Sessions are planned in different time zones to suit your schedule. Register here.
