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Two Recent Surveys Reveal Consumer Perceptions

Adults with Impaired Eyesight Worry About Seeing in an Emergency

With recent events focusing attention on disaster readiness, vision care is an important and often overlooked consideration in preparedness. A survey conducted by IntraLase Corporation (Irvine, Calif.) found that many U.S. adults would not feel capable without their glasses or contact lenses during emergency situations. More than one-half of adults who wear corrective lenses say they would feel worried (40%), fearful (22%) and/or powerless (18%) if they lost or did not have access to their corrective lenses during an emergency. Only one-third of adults who wear corrective lenses say they would feel capable in an emergency if they didn't have — or lost — their corrective lenses.

Nearly one-third of respondents who wear corrective lenses say they are considering LASIK to avoid having problems seeing in an emergency. Interest in having LASIK to avoid problems in an emergency was highest among males ages 35 to 44 (42%).

About the Data: Harris Interactive, based in Rochester, N.Y., fielded the study on behalf of IntraLase Corp. from Oct. 7-11, 2005, via its QuickQuery online omnibus, interviewing a nationwide sample of 1,367 U.S. adults (18+) who wear corrective lenses. Data were weighted to be representative of the total U.S. adult population on the basis of region, age within gender, education, household income, race/ethnicity and propensity to be online. In theory, with a probability sample of this size, there is a 95% certainty that the overall results have a sampling error of plus or minus 4 percentage points of what they would be if the entire population of U.S. adults who wear corrective lenses had been polled with complete accuracy. Sampling error for the males ages 35-44 sub-sample (97) is plus or minus 16 percentage points. This online sample is not a probability sample

Survey Shows that Many Consumers Don't Know an Optometrist from an Ophthalmologist

Arecent eyecare survey conducted by the National Consumers League (NCL) and J Street, a Washington-based survey firm, found that many consumers, including those who wear glasses or contact lenses, are uncertain about the differences among various eyecare providers, the services they perform, and the training and education they must complete.  

The survey showed that one-third of respondents incorrectly thought that optometrists have earned medical degrees. Additionally, nearly 50% thought an optometrist can be board-certified, when, in fact, only licensure is required. Despite the confusion about which eyecare professionals have medical degrees, consumers have strong opinions on the need for the degree: when it comes to performing surgeries (including laser), injecting and/or prescribing medications and emergency care, more than 80% of respondents said that they would prefer their eyecare provider to have a medical degree.

"When it comes to eye care, it is vital for consumers to understand who can provide what kind of services," said NCL President Linda Golodner. "There are a number of different types of professionals on the eyecare team, and unfortunately, many consumers, as seen in our survey, don't differentiate among them."

About the Data: The NCL commissioned the Web-based survey of 600 adults over the age of 25 in order to explore consumers' understanding of the eye care arena. The majority of the respondents wore glasses and/or contacts or had laser vision correction. Less than 20% of the sample did not have any type of vision correction. One hundred respondents were from Oklahoma and 500 respondents represented the rest of the United States. In general, total respondents are fairly evenly dispersed among all age groups (25-65+ years). It appears that large proportions of people aged 55+ wear glasses/ contacts or have had corrective eye surgery. The survey was made possible by an unrestricted educational grant provided by the American Academy of Ophthalmology. NCL has also produced a white paper about the state of eye care in the United States. To learn more, visit www.nclnet.org.