Veronica Mendez, O.D., is the assistant director of vision and clinical care for the Houston Health Department’s See to Succeed Program. Involved in the day-to-day activities of managing the clinic, she is also the primary optometrist for the program’s follow-up clinic. Here she shares details of the program.

1 SUPPORT

See to Succeed is a public-private partnership and safety-net program providing free comprehensive eye exams, quality eyewear, and follow-up care to school-aged children (ages 6-18) in the Houston area. Thanks to our donors, partners [including Berkeley Eye Center on the retail side], volunteer organizations, and doctors who come back year after year, over 70,000 eye exams and 65,000+ pairs of glasses have been provided since 2011.

2 NUMBERS

Over 92% of the children need correction, because all of them have already failed a school vision screening and parents/guardians were unable to take them to an eye doctor. We see about 125 children daily at our home location October through March and 200 to 400 a day at four external clinics for one week each—over 10,000 patients per year.

3 SCHEDULING

We start planning, scheduling, and recruitment in August. And about four weeks after the exam, our optical team—including an optician to fit and adjust—delivers glasses in person at each school. COT!

—Stephanie K. De Long

To learn more about the See to Succeed program: houstontx.gov/health/sts/ .