Is Your Eyesight Roadworthy

ROAD SAFETY ARTICLE

Let me start with a personal confession. This confession might sound a bit funny but it calls for the necessary precaution before it is too late. What you are about to read is being shared with you only because I sought the counsel of a professional who thoroughly took me through the rudiments of an eye check and test to save my eyesight.

My story all began sometime in 2019 when I embarked on my annual leave. During the leave, I promised to give myself a treat by getting a new frame for my reading glass. On the said day, I walked into a specialist shop to prize one. The smart attendant I approached informed me there were procedures for that. She insisted that a professional must first conduct a free eye test/check before I could be guided on the right frame. The moment I heard awoof, I quickly obliged.

The test was so thorough that when I finally was told I needed an improved reading glass, I chuckled, convinced that I was still good to go. My choice for a fancy reading glass similar to what the former Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Corps, Dr Boboye Oyeyemi was using was turned down by this ever smiling Optometrists. With the aid of technology, they determined my facial structure and recommended it based on that.

But before this test in 2019, I had routinely gone through a check as a prerequisite for a training programme as well as career growth. During one of such routines, I was merely shown different specs to choose from back home in our clime. Now my other confession. Before this test in 2019, I recall several times when I took on my secretary. Each time she did a draft copy or presented me with the computer draft for me to read, I recall always screaming at her for using very tiny fronts which were not readable. Little did I realise that the problem was not the fronts, but my eyesight.

At my age, I still prided myself on having a sound eyesight, forgetting that despite God’s divine promises regarding my health as contained in the Holy book, age which is also a divine blessing comes with some body changes. This changes includes failing eyesight especially if we were not fortunate to have enjoyed healthy lifestyles among others. Today, I have come to terms with the realities of my eyesight and can be seen with my designer frames whenever I am reading or even watching television, especially when the lighting is poor.

I do not know if like me, you also delude yourself that your eyesight is perfect, ignoring seeking help from a professional. Like I asked last week, I don’t know the last time you did an eye test or check. If you are a driver and you haven’t done so especially in the last ten years, you should do as experts insist this is necessary.

In my introductory piece on the same topic last week, I took you through the guidance of an expert who insist drivers like you should have a sight test every 10 years to prove their vision still meets driving standards. To drive home the imperative for this, he recalled an incident in March 2017 when a three year old poppy named Arabella Clarke was killed by a motorist just weeks after the driver was warned his vision was too poor to drive.

I know that data on road traffic crashes and deaths in Nigeria caused by poor vision are scanty but in the United Kingdom, records show that almost 3000 injuries on the roads are caused by drivers with poor vision. Despite this, it is ironic he posited that if a driver in the UK can read a number plate at 20 metres during their driving test, they may continue driving for a lifetime with no further checks which is why he is championing a law review. 

Although I could not trace this provision in our traffic regulations, however, the procedure or current law in the United Kingdom provides for drivers to report problems with their eyesight to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency. As usual, some don’t while others fall below required standards without realising it because their vision has changed since they passed their driving test.

The case in Nigeria with regards to ascertaining eyesight for drivers is captured in the National Road Traffic Regulations. Section 45 of the Regulations spells out the requirement for applicants seeking a fresh driver’s license. They include providing evidence of training at an approved driving school and a learner’s permit.  

The key requirement which forms the core of our focus is that a certificate of visual acuity and general medical fitness test be provided as prescribed in regulations 52(1) of the Regulations. The section says an applicant shall not be issued a driver’s license unless he furnishes the Authority with certificates of vision acuity test and general fitness from any government hospital.

As I told you last week, this expert posited that the consensus among 1000 practitioners surveyed is that more than one in three of those surveyed reported they had seen a patient in the past month with vision below the driving standard, yet continuing to drive. Many of these experts agree that there was a need for more stringent rules. 

Leonard further noted that nine in 10 practitioners observe that the current sight requirements for a driving licence are insufficient. They call for regular sight tests for all drivers. Based on poll conducted, two-thirds, representing 62 percent of people, are currently “putting off” a sight test while 36 percent are relying on an out-of-date spectacle prescription. I also uphold that we need to review the requirements in tandem with the need to upscale the vital imperatives of road safety. 

Optometrists recommend that everyone has a regular sight test at least once every two years, and more frequently in some cases. This means I am due for another sight check. A sight test is much more than simply a check of whether you need glasses or contact lenses; it is also an eye health check, and can even pick up some general health conditions, such as diabetes, high blood pressure and raised cholesterol. 

In his opinion, some eye conditions, such as glaucoma, come on gradually over many years, noting that without a regular sight test, you might not know there is anything wrong until it is too late to treat effectively. Studies show people can lose up to 40 percent of their peripheral vision to glaucoma before they realise anything is wrong, but if it is picked up early as part of a routine sight test, it is usually readily treatable with laser treatment or eye drops.

He therefore recommends that we need to change the law; in much the same way that we check cars to remain roadworthy through a regular MOT, we should check that drivers’ vision remains clear enough to drive safely at regular intervals. 

Ideally, experts recommend that everyone should have a sight test at least once every two years.However,in the worst case scenario, to prove that drivers vision meet driving standards, they should be required to do a test when they renew their driving licence every 10 years.it would still be a big step forward in terms of road safety. This change is required in our laws to recognise the importance of vision to road safety, as is obtainable in many climes in Europe. Meanwhile, having a regular sight test every two years, and getting the right vision correction is the plank needed to promote safe driving.

So what exactly are the driving eyesight rules? You must wear glasses or contact lenses every time you drive if you need them to meet the ‘standards of vision for driving. In Nigeria the law requires that you drive with your glasses if it is required. I know the traffic regulations do not contain this as an infraction but it is indicated in the driver’s licence as GL.