Homeless have sight tests at pop-up clinic

A pop-up eye care clinic in Cardiff has tested the sight of 23 homeless people, dispensing 22 pairs of spectacles as a result.

Run by Vikki Baker alongside five volunteers, the optometrist established the clinic after reading about an appeal from Vision Care for Homeless People. It was held at the Higgard Centre in Cardiff with frames were donated by Louis Stone and lenses by Lenstec.

Speaking about the conditions that patients presented with, Ms Baker shared: “We saw one patient with diplopia who was treating the problem with one of his lenses taped up, another with recurrent iritis, some significant myopia and several who needed reading spectacles. It was a very worthwhile clinic.”

Ms Baker used an information pack that has been created by Vision Care for Homeless People to support practitioners who wish to set up clinics in their areas. Calling the pack “comprehensive,” Ms Baker said: “It answered all my questions and gave me the confidence to give it a go: running the clinic was a lot easier than I thought.”