NCCVEH at Prevent Blindness Names Dr. Anne L. Coleman, UCLA Stein Eye Institute, as Recipient of the 5th Annual Bonnie Strickland Champion for Children's Vision Award

CHICAGO, September 4, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- In celebration of its 10th Anniversary of helping to establish and promote children's vision programs and services, The National Center for Children's Vision and Eye Health at Prevent Blindness (NCCVEH) has announced the recipient of the fifth annual "Bonnie Strickland Champion for Children's Vision Award" as Anne L. Coleman, M.D., MPH, UCLA Stein Eye Institute. Dr. Coleman is the Fran and Ray Stark Foundation Professor of Ophthalmology at Stein Eye Institute of the David Geffen School of Medicine; Vice Chair, Academic Affairs, UCLA Department of Ophthalmology; Professor of Epidemiology in the UCLA Jonathon and Karin Fielding School of Public Health; Director of the Stein Eye Institute Center for Community Outreach and Policy and president-elect of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

The Bonnie Strickland Champion for Children's Vision award recognizes significant efforts to improve children's vision and eye health at the state or national level. The award will be presented at the NCCVEH Annual Meeting on Sept. 14, 2019, in Baltimore, Md.

The Bonnie Strickland Champion for Children's Vision Award was established by the NCCVEH Advisory Committee to commemorate Bonnie Strickland and her groundbreaking work to establish a comprehensive system for children's vision in the United States. Strickland served as Director of the Division of Services for Children with Special Health Needs, Maternal and Child Health Bureau prior to her retirement in 2014.

Dr. Coleman was selected by the volunteer Bonnie Strickland Champion for Children's Vision Award Committee for her efforts to improve children's vision through stakeholder engagement, resource development, and services to high-risk populations of children. Specifically, through her work at the UCLA Mobile Eye Clinic (UMEC).

Highlighted contributions to children's vision and eye health under her direction at the UMEC include:

• Strengthening ties with program partners, community advocates and schools (including Head Start programs).
• Screening a total of 90,000 preschool students in underserved communities through a grant from First 5 LA.
• Expanded the reach of the UCLA Mobile Eye Clinic, now providing vision screening, eye exams and treatment in hundreds of locations including schools and Head Start Programs annually at no cost.
• Created educational materials, including videos and other materials for teachers, parents and caregivers in English and Spanish through a grant from UCLA Changemakers on the importance of eye care for preschool children.
• Achieved increases in the follow-up rate of children accessing treatment and children wearing their eyeglasses.
• Collaborating on a study of Return on Investment (ROI) on the social, environmental, and economic value created by the UCLA Mobile Eye Clinic.

"Providing vision care and education to children and their families can enhance quality of life by using preventative measures to avoid vision loss," said Dr. Coleman. "Receiving the Bonnie Strickland Award is an immense honor as it recognizes the importance of using and improving public health approaches for children's vision and eye health, a mission I am passionate about."

Past recipients of the Bonnie Strickland Champion for Children's Vision Award include the Vision in Preschoolers (VIP) Study Group, Richard T. Bunner, retired from the Ohio Department of Health, Dr. Sean Donahue, Vanderbilt University, the Illinois Eye Institute (IEI) at Princeton Vision Clinic based at the Illinois College of Optometry, and the Pediatric Physicians' Organization at Children's (PPOC) based at Boston Children's Hospital.

"Prevent Blindness commends Dr. Coleman for her outstanding efforts to improve the vision and eye health of children through partnerships, resource development, and research," said Jeff Todd, president and CEO of Prevent Blindness. "We hope her program successes will serve as a platform for other vision leaders to learn from and build on across the country."

For more information on the 2019 Bonnie Strickland Champion for Children's Vision Award, Prevent Blindness or the NCCVEH, please visit http://nationalcenter.preventblindness.org, or contact Donna Fishman at (800) 331-2020 or dfishman(at)preventblindness(dot)org.

About the National Center for Children's Vision and Eye Health at Prevent Blindness
Founded in 1908, Prevent Blindness is the nation's leading volunteer eye health and safety organization dedicated to fighting blindness and saving sight. Focused on promoting a continuum of vision care, Prevent Blindness touches the lives of millions of people each year through public and professional education, advocacy, certified vision screening and training, community and patient service programs and research. In 2009, Prevent Blindness established the National Center for Children's Vision and Eye Health, with funding and leadership support from the HRSA- Maternal and Child Health Bureau. Serving as a major resource for the establishment of a public health infrastructure, the National Center advances and promotes children's vision and eye care, providing leadership and training to public entities throughout the United States. The National Center is advised by a committee of national experts and leaders from the fields of ophthalmology, optometry, pediatrics, nursing, family advocates and public health to guide the work and recommendations of the Center. For more information, or to make a contribution to the sight-saving fund, call 1-800-331-2020. Or, visit us on the Web at http://nationalcenter.preventblindness.org or http://www.facebook.com/preventblindness.

SOURCE National Center for Children’s Vision and Eye Health at Prevent Blindness

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http://nationalcenter.preventblindness.org