As a mother, I understand the importance of giving our children the best possible myopia care and support in their growing-up years. Myopia, or near-sightedness, is a common condition that can make it difficult for children to see things clearly at a distance. Without timely and proper treatment, a child’s myopia can progress and lead to more serious vision problems later in life such as retinal detachment, glaucoma, and even blindness.

Myopia occurs when one’s eyeball is too long, or the cornea has too much curvature so that light rays entering the eye converge before reaching the retina. Graphic: HOYA MiYOSMART

When my son started Primary School, he struggled with his vision as he was normally seated at the back and the words on the whiteboard were hard to read. Thankfully, we obtained a prescription to make his spectacles, which improved his eyesight, led to better focus in class, and gave him a more cheerful outlook towards attending school.

HOYA Improves Access to Proper Vision Care for the Underprivileged

Access to proper vision care can be especially limited for underprivileged children who may not have the means to pay for myopia-control lenses and regular myopia check-ups. As a result, their myopia may go unmanaged during their growing up years. This is where HOYA comes in.

Founded in the city of Hoya, Tokyo, in 1941 by two visionary brothers Shoichi and Shigeru Yamanaka, HOYA has been innovating revolutionary optical and healthcare solutions for customers around the world. Launched in Singapore in November 2019, MiYOSMART also recently celebrated its 3rd Anniversary in Singapore.

HOYA is committed to bridging the vision care gap by making a long-term impact through relationships with local communities and charities.

Through its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives, HOYA partners organisations such as Boys’ Town to provide their eye-screening expertise and educate the children about the importance of protecting and maintaining their eye health. Not forgetting, to help the kids to regain their eye health through visual aids.

Boys’ Town is a charity founded by the Montfort Brothers of St. Gabriel in 1948 which began by providing residential services and vocational skills training and education to disadvantaged boys. It has since expanded to provide a continuum of services catering to include poor and underprivileged youths as well as those who encounter greater difficulties and challenges growing up.

These boys are children and youths who come from disadvantaged and disengaged families who may have faced hardship resulting from difficult home situations, financial struggles, abandonment, and abuse. Thus, they may not have access to vision/eye health intervention. Thus, they may have undiagnosed myopia, or their myopia has risen higher than the power of their current spectacle lenses, leading to blurry vision.

HOYA Bridges the Vision Gap for Boys Living in Boys’ Town

At HOYA’s CSR visit to Boys’ Town on 5th December 2022, nineteen primary and secondary boys received expert myopia-control and eye-care tips, and an assessment for spectacles prescription from the HOYA team.

Each boy had his eyesight assessed to obtain his estimated prescription or degree with an Auto-refractor machine. Boys who wore spectacles would have their lenses assessed by a Lensometer. HOYA’s optometrists would then determine each boy’s level of myopia and astigmatism using a refraction test.

Each boy would also undergo a frame selection and fitting to ensure his chosen spectacles frame fit well on his face and align with his eyes. Subsequently, each boy would receive his own customised spectacles.

Most importantly, having good eyesight will make a real impact on the lives of these young boys. By improving their vision, confidence, and their overall quality of life, these boys have a better chance at reaching their full potential.

HOYA’s Corporate Social Responsibility efforts are making a real difference in the lives of underprivileged children. The boys from Boys’ Town can count on better access to vision aids to support their eyesight in their formative years, and the gifts of improved vision and better eye health will stay with them for the rest of their lives. HOYA also plans to expand on their CSR efforts by covering more homes in the future.

Brought to you by HOYA Lens Singapore MiYOSMART.

About HOYA Lens MiYOSMART

MiYOSMART is HOYA Lens Singapore’s award-winning lenses to manage children’s myopia progression. Coupled with the release of 6-year clinical trial results this year, it is proven that with the use of the D.I.M.S. technology – it is able slow down the rate of myopia in children by 60% on average compared with those wearing single vision lenses. Not only that, MiYOSMART lenses are impact resistant and water-repellent, thin and lightweight with UV protection, making it all suitable for children to wear them. Read more about MiYOSMART’s non-invasive myopia-progression technology at HOYA MiYOSMART.

By Julia Chan.

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