Robert Greenbaum administers the glaucoma test while Kara Archer (standing) looks on.
As my husband drove me to the metro for my Prevention of Blindness (POB) project during the NBC4 Health and Fitness Expo, he casually mentioned that he was getting his eyes checked and hoped he didn’t have glaucoma. He sometimes saw double and halos, and driving with him at night was getting more exciting that it needed to be.
Three hours later, after I ended my volunteer shift with the POB, I’m a nervous wreck, waiting to see how his eye exam turns out.
POB, who provides eye care for the poor, screens children for eye problems and promotes independence for seniors with vision loss, asked me to help with glaucoma testing. I wasn’t exactly sure what glaucoma was, but can say with authority now that it’s a group of diseases that cause damage to the optic nerve. Without treatment it may result in gradual vision loss through blurred vision, loss of peripheral vision, difficulty in focusing and the presence of halos around lights.
The NBC4 Expo was a sea of fitness and health booths and as I walked among the vision, cholesterol and fitness screenings it occurred to me that many of these people were here because the screening and the expo were free. Otherwise, I guessed that many of them were unable to afford these tests, many of which could prevent serious, long-term costly health issues in the long run.
Yahoo! I got a clean bill of health on my glaucoma test.
The first order of business, once I found the POB station, was to get a glaucoma test myself. I’ve been on the receiving end of the glaucoma “puff” test and was looking forward to being the “puffer” this time. However, there were no puffs today. Instead, I stared into a scope that showed a neon blue-bordered cream-colored screen with a tiny black square box smack-dab in the middle.
My job was to stare at the black square and press a button if I saw silver squiggly lines appear anywhere on the screen.
Game on.
The squiggly lines appeared in random places and at times. It reminded me of the Air Force audiology tests back in the day when they shut you in a chamber and told you to press a button when you heard sounds at varying pitches. The testers varied the length of time between tones, convincing me that they were in fact sending sounds outside of my hearing range. I would randomly press the button so they wouldn’t think I was deaf.
While I might have done that today, I have no signs of glaucoma, despite my best efforts to jeopardize my test results.
This client was not as lucky. The grey-shaded boxes indicate areas of possible vision loss.
I hoped to learn how to run the testing machine and administer the glaucoma test, but since people were lined up throughout the afternoon the POB staff never had a chance to show me. So, my volunteer job was to wipe the screening machine with an alcohol wipe between tests.
Who knew foreheads could be so dirty.
After a few hours I was dispatched among the crowd to hand out screening applications. I wandered among the hundreds of Expo visitors and kept an eye out for anyone over 60 (especially Mexican-Americans) or African-Americans over age 40.
I learned quickly to err on the side of youth after the first person I approached told me, in no uncertain terms, that she was well south of 40 years old.
One of the best things about POB is that they operate two “Look Again” resale stores – one in Kensington, MD and one in Old Town Alexandria. Never one to pass up an excuse to shop-and who’s going to argue with shopping for charity-I paid my respects to the Old Town store on the corner of King and Alfred Streets. I found a gorgeous pair of red Manolo Blahniks (not my size, alas), two black leather Barcelona lounge chairs and a 1930’s-looking set of china that would have gone home with me if I didn’t already have 40+ mismatched plates already.
POB offers free vision screening at elementary schools and free adult vision and glaucoma screening at organizations, churches and businesses. (I hope any business who contacts them would make a donation though). They also provide leads for financial support for advanced eye care problems.
What are their volunteer needs? Glad you asked.
"Look Again" is right! Here's a peek at the POB resale shop in Old Town Alexandria.
Their biggest need is at the two resale stores where volunteers can sort through donations, run the cash register and as an added bonus, get first pick of the donated goodies. POB will also train volunteers to help with glaucoma testing machine during their free screenings, especially at offices and government facilities during the week (call them for details).
Donations are always appreciated – old glasses, clothing and housewares for the resale stores. Other volunteer opportunities include general support at events and fundraisers, including little-girl models for their November American Girl fashion show.
By the way, my husband doesn’t have glaucoma after all. Looks like a new pair of glasses will ensure our nighttime drives are less adventurous.
AmeriCorps members Dorothy Shepard and Ryan Baesten, assigned to Rebuilding Together Alexandria, stayed warm by hauling these heavy bags to dozens of apartments.
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Washington ICON 11 Talent Showcase winners
