With back-to-school season around the corner, it’s time to load up on school supplies, fall sports gear and, as Alcon urges, eye exams.
A recent survey from Alcon, conducted by Wakefield Research and dubbed the Alcon Student Vision Survey, interviewed 1,000 U.S. parents of teens and young adults between the ages of 13 and 25 to gauge the eye care needs of the younger generation and ran alongside Alcon’s back-to-school campaign aimed at eye care professionals.
The survey findings show that while the majority (88%) of parents believe that their child’s vision could impact areas of school life including academic performance, class participation and confidence in the classroom, many (27%) haven’t had their teen’s vision evaluated through a comprehensive eye exam within the last year, or ever at all in some cases.
While school eyecare screenings do help spot potential vision concerns, Alcon emphasizes that the school-based screening is only one step in supporting eye health. Among parents who delayed scheduling an eye exam for their child, 16% reported that they skipped the comprehensive exam because their teen had already passed a school screening. However, as Alcon points out, a full eye exam can help flag broader or more complex vision needs that may be overlooked during a typical screening.
Diving deeper into the findings, more than half (53%) of parents report that they have noticed emotional or behavioral impacts such as frustration, stress and low confidence in children who have difficulty seeing clearly, while some (21%) worry that their child may not recognize potential vision problems on their own.
Within the parents surveyed, 42% of their children wear glasses while 23% wear contact lenses. However, 70% of parents indicated that contacts may benefit their child through convenience, sports performance and improved confidence.
The survey confirmed that eye care professionals are considered one of the strongest drivers of action in this vein, with 45% of parents noting that a doctor’s recommendation would be their top motivator for scheduling an eye exam. To help eye doctors better reach their Gen Z patients, Alcon rolled out its Precision back-to-school campaign, offering eye care professionals a hub of resources for how to connect with their young patients and data supporting Alcon’s line of Precision contact lenses as a suitable option for the age group.
On its campaign website, Alcon suggests that doctors ask Gen Z patients about their screen time and activities to determine if once-daily or one-week Precision lenses may be a good option. The company also supports back-to-school eye doc visits as “quick contact lens opportunities,” especially given the 31% increase in contact lens exams for patients under 25 during the summer months, Alcon notes on the site.
Alcon picked up $4.6 billion from its vision care segment last year, with $2.8 billion attributed to its contact lens business specifically. Earlier this summer, the company rolled out a digital-first campaign to drive up awareness of LASIK eye surgery in Gen Z and Millennial audiences as an option to reduce dependence on glasses and corrective eyewear.