Operation: Eyes on the Future
Text by Evangeline Politis
ForestBluffMagazine.com

Dr. Bradley Ruff lent a helping hand to the community this summer by offering free vision screenings to school-aged children. In January, the Illinois legislation began enforcing Bill 641, which requires that every child entering kindergarten must have a vision screening by either an optometrist or an ophthalmologist. This legislation also mandates that all children new to the State of Illinois school system must go through this screening as well. Despite this new law, the State has not provided any extra funds to families without healthcare. Dr. Ruff recognized this deficit and decided to hold Operation: Eyes on the Future on August 9 at Envision Eye Center in Highwood.

Operation: Eyes on the Future was a success and Dr. Ruff was able to help dozens of children from the area. He screened children in kindergarten through grade 12. He also fully examined pre-kindergarteners whose screening deemed such an examination necessary  and generously supplied them with free glasses. For the older children who attended the event the doctor not only screened them, but also discounted a large group of frames and lenses.

Dr. Ruff believes this new state legislation is a wise idea, the only flaw being the lack of funding for lower income families. For many children, poor vision stunts their learning –  not being able to view the blackboard or the projector screen in the classroom. Plus he mentions that if the poor vision is not corrected by age nine or ten, there is no way to completely remedy the problem past that age, making these early examinations crucial. He also points out that while in the past it was helpful having school nurses checking students’ vision, they are not experts. Now that this law requires the screening by either an optometrist or ophthalmologist, the diagnosis will be more precise and detailed.

Dr. Ruff explains that it’s difficult for children to recognize if their vision is impaired. “The brain doesn’t know what good vision is,” he adds. These examinations will only help Illinois students inside and outside the classroom.

Dr. Ruff developed the program in May 2008 in partnership with the North Shore Health Center of the Lake County Health Department and Community Health Center along with several school nurses in the area. Each child was referred through the Community Relations Coordinator at the Lake County Health Department North Shore Health Center.

The doctor has been involved in numerous philanthropic services prior to the Operation. In the late 80’s he developed a mission to India to help the large population of people with cataracts by teaching and performing intraocular surgery. More recently he has volunteered at the Free people’s Clinic on the Southside of Chicago, which provides free health care and health promotion services to the uninsured. He was also the medical and surgical eye consultant for the Chicago Bears for sixteen years and performed LASIK surgery on a number of the players.