Making Eye Care Work for You
Outreach Optometry offers high-quality eye care with convenience. Our experienced optometrists bring specialty eye care services to you in the comfort of your own home.
Low Vision Assessments
We specialize in low vision care and ensuring all our patients receive the long-term attention they need for healthy eyes.
What Is Low Vision?
Low vision is vision loss that can’t be corrected with prescription lenses or vision correction surgery. Those with low vision may struggle with everyday tasks, like reading, writing, watching TV, driving a car, or recognizing faces.
What Causes Low Vision?
There are many causes of low vision, ranging from injuries or diseases like diabetes, congenital disabilities, to eye diseases like glaucoma and macular degeneration, and age.
How Is Low Vision Diagnosed?
Low vision is diagnosed by determining the root cause of your vision loss. This can only be done during thorough, comprehensive eye exams. We’ll perform a series of tests to assess your ocular health, diagnose your vision problem, and evaluate your vision.
What Happens If I’m Diagnosed with Low Vision?
If you have been diagnosed with low vision, don’t worry. You’re not in this alone. Our optometrists are devoted to ensuring our patients receive accessible and long-term eye care.
We come prepared to every eye exam and bring low vision devices, like magnifiers. Together, we’ll test various devices and find ones that work best for you. There are multiple products that can help you enjoy your life. We’ll be with you every step of the way, from finding you the right devices to helping you learn how to use them.
Digital Eye Strain
Digital eye strain, also known as computer vision syndrome, is discomfort and pain caused by prolonged time focusing on a digital screen, like a computer monitor, smartphone, e-reader, or tablet.
“Digital eye strain” is a bit of a misnomer, however, as it’s not the device itself that’s the cause, but the fatigue caused by intense use of your eyes. This can happen while reading, driving, or working on a computer for long periods. But, since digital devices are becoming more common, we tend to spend more time on them than before, leading to digital eye strain.
Uncorrected vision problems, like myopia, hyperopia, or astigmatism, can also increase eye strain.
Symptoms of Digital Eye Strain
- Blurred vision
- Double vision
- Headaches
- Eye irritation
- Excessive tearing
- Excessive blinking
- Dry eyes
- Eye pain
How to Treat Digital Eye Strain
How we use digital devices can also cause symptoms related to eye strain. Poor posture, poor lighting, and improper screen brightness can increase the tension placed on our eyes and, subsequently, our bodies.
To reduce digital eye strain, you can adopt some simple lifestyle changes and habits:
- Make a conscious effort to blink while using a computer, smartphone, or TV. We tend to blink less when using a computer, which can lead to dry, irritated eyes.
- Ensure your workspace is ergonomic. By positioning your monitor correctly and sitting with proper posture, you will reduce eye strain and the risk of other workplace-related injuries.
- Set the colour, contrast, and screen brightness to suit your eyes and match your environment.
- Reduce glare on your screen by dimming lights, positioning monitors away from windows, or using an anti-glare screen cover.
Give your eyes frequent breaks. Take a break every 20 minutes to look at something at least 20 feet away for 20 seconds. Known as the 20-20-20 rule, this is designed to give your eye muscles a chance to relax.
Dry Eye Therapy
Did you know that our tears are essential for maintaining the health of our eyes? They lubricate, nourish, and protect our corneas from debris and wash out harmful irritants like smoke and foreign objects.
Tears keep our eyes comfortable and happy, so if you don’t have enough, or the ones you have evaporate too quickly, you can develop dry eyes.
Symptoms of Dry Eyes
- Stinging or burning eyes
- Scratchy eyes
- Foreign body sensation
- Pain or redness
- Excessive tearing
What Causes Dry Eyes?
Ultimately, if the surface of the eye lacks the lubricating and nourishing tear film, dry spots appear, exposing the nerves of the cornea. There are several reasons why this happens, which can only be diagnosed during a comprehensive eye exam.
- Environmental: dry, heated houses in the winter, dry, air-conditioned houses in the summer, or smoky, arid, and dry climates can all lead to dry eye symptoms.
- Medications: Antihistamines, decongestants, antidepressants, hormone replacement therapy, diuretics, and some blood pressure medications list dry eyes as a symptom.
- Age: Our tear production changes as we age, which may lead to dry eyes.
- Autoimmune disorders: Sjögren’s syndrome, lupus, scleroderma, and rheumatoid arthritis can cause dry eyes.
- Digital eye strain: We tend to blink less when working on a computer or using a tablet, which can exacerbate dry eyes.
- Laser eye surgery: Dry eyes are a side effect of various corrective laser surgeries.
- Gender: Women tend to experience dry eyes more often than men, especially those who are older or who are pregnant.
- Other health conditions: Diabetes, thyroid conditions, or a Vitamin A deficiency can all cause dry eyes.
Treatments for Dry Eyes
The exact treatment needed depends entirely on the root cause of your dry eyes.
Treatment may be as simple as adding moisture to your home with a humidifier or correcting your workplace ergonomics. Our experienced optometrists can also perform various treatments in the home, such as BlephEx®.
We can determine what kind of dry eyes you have and formulate an appropriate treatment plan during a comprehensive, in-home eye exam.
Eye Nutrition
It’s no secret that maintaining a healthy diet promotes your wellness. But did you know that research shows some nutrients and vitamins have been found to promote strong vision and protect our eyes from eye diseases?
If you’re curious about how diet can protect your eyes, we can provide you with information and education on foods and supplements rich in eye-friendly nutrients, lutein, zeaxanthin, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, and zinc.
Our Eye Care Services
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Testimonials
Excellent service and care. Dr. Panesar has been working with my dad who is in his nineties and very hard of hearing, and he has really gone the extra mile with his care and in answering all my questions. Both my dad and I are very happy with his services.
Sanya
Thanks to the very helpful and kind staff from Outreach my elderly mother now is able to continue with her most precious pastime of reading books. She is unable to get out and about and bringing their service to her was way beyond just helpful.
Keith
It was so nice to find a mobile optometrist, our family has been looking for a Doctor to come visit our housebound grandmother. Dr.Jassal does a great job with his patients. He is very good with communication and explaining things thoroughly. I would highly suggest this service to anyone that needs a mobile optometrist. Thanks Dr.Jassal!
Francis
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Outreach Optometry
- 100-466 Felix Jack Road
- Mayne Island, BC
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P: 250-591-1072
[email protected]