Changes to vision are natural with aging as well as exposure to certain visual environments. It’s important to have periodic eye exams as well as review the work being performed to ensure the visual requirements of the job meet the visual health of the individual.
Presbyopia is the name for the condition in which the eye is no longer able to accommodate focus at near, intermediate and far distances and can be due to changing conditions of the lens of the eye. Glasses or contacts are worn to correct for vision that is blurred or unfocussed. There are different types of corrective lens including single lenses, bifocals and trifocals. Progressive are similar to bifocals and trifocals except the regions of the lens are not distinct; instead the changing power of the lens is progressive or blended with distance vision power (i.e. up to 3 meters of distance for indoor use) at the top and near vision power at the bottom (i.e. up to 1 meter distance for indoor use).
For computer workstation users, the use of corrective lens may require corrective changes to the chair, computer monitor, and document set up and layout. Without that, the worker may feel discomfort when sitting awkwardly or tilting the neck to read documents or view the monitor. Pain could be felt in the neck and shoulders, back, or even lead to visual discomfort.
To assist any of your staff who may need progressive lenses or bifocals, EWI recommends a multi-pronged approach, based on extensive research, that must be applied to the design of a workstation and tasks. The two key steps include:
- Conduct a task analysis to determine the visual requirements as well as the environmental and work requirements (e.g. lighting, furniture arrangement, and equipment being used).
- Have employees receive an eye examination to determine their visual health and capabilities. In addition to visual health, the employees musculoskeletal health should also be evaluated (e.g. neck, back, shoulder).
Based on the results of these, the appropriate lens should be selected by an optometrist to ensure that visual discomfort and performance will not be affected.