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Surprisingly, the severity of car accidents increased while roads became less busy during last year’s lockdowns. This makes road safety and the importance of vision care paramount for drivers. Even if you don’t work with fleets of drivers as a primary business, your employees still commute to and from work. This partly makes their safety your responsibility. Then to add to the strain, they spend hours staring at a screen. You can help your employees keep the perfect 20/20 while on the road and in the office with the following tips, resources and a solid alternative to vision insurance plans in Oklahoma.
How does a computer screen affect your eyes?
Extensive time in front of a computer screen can lead to a lot of issues for the eyes. There’s even an official name for it: Computer Vision Syndrome (CVS). The root cause of CVS is the repetitive pattern your eyes follow when working on a computer screen. That repeated pattern, analogous to the repetitive stress of carpal tunnel syndrome, causes strain and injury to the eye’s muscles.
The moving images and the constant refocusing involved in screentime, coupled with the reduced blink reflex experienced in front of a screen, can contribute to stress and serious injury.
More time behind the wheel
American workers have been spending more and more time getting to and from work. Although the pandemic has likely slowed this increase by keeping millions of workers at home, the average American spends nearly an hour a day driving to and from work. Add in the other reasons we drive every day, and you will find an average American employee with tired eyes.
As an employer, you should also be aware that if any of this driving is taking place during work hours, as part of your employee’s job, the final financial impact may fall on you. Accidents caused by your employee’s eye problems will have grounds for workers’ compensation because they can count as on-the-job injuries. An alternative to vision insurance plans in Oklahoma or elsewhere can help your employees monitor for problems that may affect their driving abilities.
How does driving affect your eyes?
Similar to working with a computer screen, excessive or long-distance driving causes your eyes to move constantly and refocus continually. This strains the muscles in the eyes, causing pain and headaches. Your employees also have to contend with oncoming lights, bad weather and the distractions of other drivers. They must also contend with glare, whether from sunlight during the day or from headlights at night. Driving with high heat or air conditioning can cause also dry eyes. This will make any other eyestrain or glare problems feel even worse.
Ultimately, driving while fatigued can contribute to stress, which will then only increase fatigue.
What can you do to alleviate these problems?
There are a number of steps that you can take to help preserve your employees’ vision:
- Reduce the glare – Most monitors sold today have already reduced the glare. Matte and glossy monitors are available, as are glare-reducing screen covers. Consider investing in these for your office employees and encourage the use of sunshades for drivers. Overhead lighting or the location of windows near the computer screens can also cause glare. So, consider rearranging the office space and look into blinds and different lighting. Remind employees to keep screens clean, since looking around smudges and fingerprints exacerbates eye strain too.
- Wear sunglasses – To reduce strain while driving, motivate your drivers to wear sunglasses to control the effect of glare.
- Remember to blink – Computers and cars can dry out your employees’ eyes by reducing their blink reflex. Encourage your employees to take breaks periodically to relax their eyes, and perhaps put up friendly reminders in the office or truck cabs about remembering to blink and refocus.
In addition to offering these tips and tools, you can go a step further:
- Communicate vision risks and training – Education is key. Take the time to educate your employees on the vision risks associated with their jobs. Adopt training processes to help your employees learn the best practices and resources at their disposal to support eye care. Additionally, periodically retrain your workers to ensure everyone is maintaining their eye health. Not only will this promote the usage of the tips and tools you provide above, but it will also show that you care about your workers’ wellbeings.
- Offer alternatives to vision insurance plans in Oklahoma – Whether your team is full of office workers or truck drivers, all will benefit from a robust vision benefits plan that offers annual comprehensive eye exams. Having access to eye doctors and the opportunity for a routine check-up will help you preserve your employees’ eye health. They can stay proactive and access all of the resources they need – from glasses to contacts to coatings – in order to continue doing their job effectively.
A reliable alternative to vision insurance plans in Oklahoma
Keeping your employees safe on the road and in the office means offering a comprehensive vision benefits plan that enables them to maintain their eye health. While providing resources like screen covers and sunglasses are helpful in preventing eye strain and other problems, giving your employees access to professional help will ensure they are monitoring for more serious issues that could affect their job performance and overall health.
At Vision Care Direct, we offer alternatives to vision insurance plans in Oklahoma and beyond. We provide pre-paid vision plans and negotiated savings to enable you to give your employees the eye care they need. To learn more about how we can help you make sure your employees can keep their 20/20 vision on the road and in the office, contact us today.
