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Essilor focuses on patient safety, uncorrected refractive error
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NEW YORK – Executives from Essilor and its Vision Impact Institute shared a number of the company’s initiatives here at a press conference during Vision Expo East.
Lauri Crawford, senior vice president of marketing, said that blue light will continue to be a topic for Essilor through its Prevencia lens, which Crawford referred to as “task-specific eye wear.”
“With Crizal Prevencia we focus on patients with high risk for early-onset age-related macular degeneration and high digital device users,” she said. She referred to this new product category as “ophthalmaceuticals.”
Crawford said Essilor launched XperioUV.com March 19.
According to company press release, the site provides information to consumers as they consider purchasing a pair of sunglasses, with details on the impact of UV rays on eye health and why it is essential to protect the eyes when outside in the sun. Visitors can use the online locator to find an eye care professional near them who dispenses Xperio UV lenses.
Crawford said the company will focus its OptiFog advertising campaign on chefs and endurance athletes because fog creates a safety issue for them.
According to an Essilor press release, there are nearly 1 million Americans in the culinary industry and 550,000 active triathletes.
Maureen Cavanagh, president of Essilor’s Vision Impact Institute (VII) said the organization was launched 2 years ago, but is now experiencing a relaunch, which includes a new website. She said the institute’s efforts focus on children, the elderly, workers and drivers.
“We curate research that focuses on the impact of uncorrected refractive error,” she said at the press conference. “Our priorities are healthy vision and quality of life. We’ve partnered with the African Vision Research Institute, conducting a systematic research review on children.
“We will have a higher caliber of research as we move forward,” she continued. “VII will be the curator of research to help change policy.”
Essilor Vision Foundation President Steve Shawler said the group provided 239,121 vision screenings and 45,759 pairs of glasses to Special Olympics participants in 2014. The goal for 2015 is to raise $2 million and dispense 52,000 pairs of eyeglasses. – by Nancy Hemphill, ELS, FAAO
Disclosures: Crawford and Cavanagh are employees of Essilor.