MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va. -- When it comes to eye care, naval health care providers aren’t just willing to help Marines and sailors — the Department of the Navy is eager to keep its war fighters’ vision in top shape.
“Obviously, it’s pretty dangerous if you’re out in the field and you can’t see,” said Navy Lt. Adam Preston, head of the Optometry Department at Naval Health Clinic Quantico.
In the last year, he said, the Quantico clinic’s Optometry Department has seen more than 3,300 sailors and Marines, provided more than 2,200 pairs of glasses and coordinated refractive surgery for more than 150 active duty patients.
Marines and sailors should have a comprehensive eye exam every two years to be checked for cataracts and glaucoma and have their retinas looked at, in accordance with the recommendations of the American Optometric Association. Anyone at risk of eye problems, such as those with diabetes or hypertension, or who work in visually demanding or hazardous conditions, should get checked more frequently.
Secretary of the Navy Instruction 6120.3 mandates, “Two pairs of eyeglasses are required for service members who require vision correction.”
This is because service members cannot wear contact lenses in the field, due to an increased risk of infection, Preston said. “It’s a dirty environment, and the water they’re going to be using is not very clean,” he explained.
According to the Navy instruction, active duty service members who need vision correction are also to have at least one prescription insert for combat eye protection and a prescription gas mask insert. A pair of prescription sunglasses is also recommended.
The Navy will supply Marines and sailors with all these glasses — up to five pairs — free of charge, Preston said. “This is considered mission readiness.”
For those who don’t wear corrective lenses, symptoms such as persistent squinting, eye strain difficulty reading and noticeable vision changes could mean they should have a vision test to determine whether they need glasses, he said. Farsightedness or astigmatism can also cause headaches.
The Department of Defense will also cover corrective surgery for eligible service members who require lenses. Eligibility generally depends on being at least 21 years old, having stabilized eyesight and having at least a year of active duty left after the date of surgery. That date, however, may be four to eight months after the operation is approved, and a service member cannot deploy for three to four months after the surgery.
For those who are eligible, Preston said, “It’s a great benefit, not only for the patient but also for the military because we don’t have to provide glasses every year, and it’s safer for them out in the field not to be reliant on glasses.”
The clinic has access to data from all eye exams in the Department of Defense health record system, so those who had their last eye exams through the military do not need to bring their records to an appointment.
— Writer: mdicicco@quanticosentryonline.com