One in four school-aged children have a vision problem significant enough to impact learning. – Vizavance

As a group of qualified health care professionals, we care deeply about children’s health. Several of us are also moms to young children, which means we feel strongly about early detection and the importance of recognizing potential problems the children in our homes and our community may face.

With my own children attending private schooling, I understand the value of screenings in the school and the concerns parents may have when screenings are unavailable. Without school screenings, deficits may not be caught at an early age and issues may be missed, which can be detrimental to school performance. With an increase of children in our nation attending non-traditional schools, my goal is that children across Oklahoma have access to preventive health screenings at school regardless of their school setting.

• Chloe Callaghan, registered nurse and School Health Screens community health director