NEI plans to use the survey results to develop ways to raise public awareness of eye disease and the importance of early detection and treatment. NEI also will expand its educational outreach to Hispanics.

In addition, NEI will increase its efforts to educate health care providers on how to communicate with patients about ways to preserve and protect their vision. "The survey shows us that nearly one quarter of Americans have not seen or heard anything about eye health or disease, and yet more than 90 percent have seen a health care provider," Sieving said. "We need to educate these doctors, nurses, and other health care professionals with the tools they need to educate their patients on how to better maintain their eye health."


NEI coordinates the National Eye Health Education Program (NEHEP) in partnership with a variety of public and private organizations that conduct eye health education programs. The focus of NEHEP is on public and professional education programs that encourage early detection and timely treatment of glaucoma and diabetic eye disease and the appropriate treatment for low vision.

Lions Club International Foundation developed the Lions Eye Health Program, a community-based education program for Lions clubs, other community organizations, and individuals to promote healthy vision and to raise awareness of the causes of preventable vision loss. The mission of this Program is to empower communities to save sight through the early detection and timely treatment of glaucoma and diabetic eye disease, encourage those at higher risk to get a dilated eye exam, and educate those with low vision and their caregivers about these conditions.

"Lions have long been champions of people who are blind and visually impaired. By better educating the public on the need for regular eye exams and timely treatment of eye diseases, we can end preventable blindness," said Jimmy Ross, Chairperson, LCIF.

For the full report, visit: http://www.nei.nih.gov/nehep/kap.

Lions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF) is the charitable arm of Lions Clubs International, the largest service club organization in the world with 1.3 million members in 200 geographic areas and countries. Through the SightFirst program, LCIF has improved eye care services for hundreds of millions of people, distributed sight-saving medication, built eye hospitals, and trained eye health care workers. For more information, visit http://www.lcif.org.

The National Eye Institute (NEI) is part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and is the Federal government's lead agency for vision research that leads to sight-saving treatments and plays a key role in reducing visual impairment and blindness. For more information, visit the NEI Website at http://www.nei.nih.gov.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) - The Nation's Medical Research Agency - includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It is the primary federal agency for conducting and supporting basic, clinical and translational medical research, and it investigates the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.

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