A recent survey conducted by Prevent Blindness indicates that caregivers of persons at risk of retinal disease lack knowledge about common types of diseases that affect older adults, with less than 30 percent of caregivers having heard about the most common types of retinal disease. With that in mind, the Gr8 Eye Movement, a disease awareness campaign from Prevent Blindness and biotech company Regeneron, helps caregivers access the resources they need to understand the risks associated with developing retinal conditions.

Launched in 2023, the program has raised awareness about the importance of prioritizing eye health, with an emphasis on providing education about conditions such as wet age-related macular degeneration (wAMD), diabetic macular edema (DME) and diabetic retinopathy (DR). The program encourages people to check their eye health regularly, suggesting the 8th of each month.

“Prevent Blindness is proud to partner with Regeneron to provide resources to caregivers through The Gr8 Eye Movement. It’s important that caregivers know they are not alone in caring for their loved ones,” Prevent Blindness president and CEO Jeff Todd told VMAIL Weekend.

Many who take care of older parents often also have full-time jobs, and Todd notes that time is one of the major challenges caregivers face. Further, data from Prevent Blindness reveals that 75 percent of surveyed caregivers said it would be challenging to care for someone with significant vision loss, underscoring the burden retinal diseases can have.





“For some caregivers, one major challenge is taking time away from their work to care for their loved one,” Todd said. “For others, it is balancing caring for their children with also caring for their parents, spouses or partners. Caregivers may also experience challenges understanding the condition their loved one is living with.”

By providing tools that can assist in caring for loved ones, Prevent Blindness hopes to lessen the challenges that caregivers face, Todd said, with a goal of the Gr8 Eye Movement to offer resources that can make care more efficient and effective. Kevin Clark, vice president of the ophthalmology commercial business unit at Regeneron, added that consumer education programs like the Gr8 Eye Movement can play an important role in addressing knowledge gaps and help ensure that people are not just informed, but truly engaged in prioritizing their eye health.

“We hope to help empower caregivers with the knowledge they need to spot the early signs of serious retinal diseases and support them as they care for their loved ones' vision," Clark said.

A lack of health literacy or knowledge of health conditions that can lead to detrimental consequences, such as blindness or even death, is a major reason why "millions needlessly suffer from retinal issues," said Rajeev S. Ramchandran, MD, associate professor of ophthalmology, University of Rochester Medical School Department of Ophthalmology.

Dr. Ramchandran noted that retinal diseases are among the leading causes of blindness that affect millions of Americans and people across the world. He said that increasing public knowledgemfor those who have loved ones suffering from diseases of the retina, particularly diabetic retinopathy and age-related macular degeneration, is important because it encourages those with these diseases to take better care of their health and thereby help preserve their vision.

“This education has been through public awareness campaigns such as GR8 and materials available online through Prevent Blindness, the National Eye Health and Education Program, the Centers for Disease Control Vision Health Initiative, professional societies, such as the American Academy of Ophthalmology and the American Society of Retina Specialists, and one’s local eye doctors and retinal specialists,” he said. “The more people who know about blinding disease of the retina, the easier it is for eye doctors to work with their patients and the public to promote eye healthy behaviors, prevent vision loss and keep the world seeing well.”

In addition to the resources provided through Gr8 Eye Movement, Prevent Blindness also provides caregivers with additional information to enhance care. More information about retinal disease and effective care solutions for caregivers, patients and eyecare providers are available on the Living Well With Low Vision webpage.