News, Access Health Louisiana Primary Care at Pythian, Belle Chasse C.H.C, St. Charles Community Health Center – Luling, St. Charles – Norco C.H.C, St. Tammany – Slidell C.H.C, Tangipahoa C.H.C, Washington C.H.C, Woodworth C.H.C., Kenner C.H.C., South Broad C.H.C
Optometry Services Now Available
Access Health Louisiana now offers vision care services at its Kenner Community Health Center located at 671 West Esplanade Avenue. Patients can receive contact lens and eye exams on the first floor of the medical building. Medicaid patients receive one annual eye exam. Pediatric Medicaid patients can receive up to three pairs of glasses annually. Coverage may vary slightly depending upon each individual patient’s insurance plan. Commercially insured and uninsured patients are also welcome.
Routine eye exams are important to maintain clear vision, detect eye diseases early, and prevent vision loss or blindness. Early screenings can also help detect conditions such as cataracts, glaucoma, and diabetic retinopathy.
Access Health Louisiana uses Digital Optometrics’ technology to allow licensed optometrists to remotely perform comprehensive eye exams for patients. When you arrive for your appointment, you will be greeted by an optometry technician who will help get you set up for your remote examination and assist the virtual optometrist with the exam. The optometrist, who is located remotely, can not only perform the exam using technology that allows them to remotely control the phoropter to exam the patient’s eye, but also see and speak with the patient throughout the exam. All information is relayed to the optometrist in real-time. The patient will not only see their retinal images displayed, but also discuss their results with the optometrist so they can answer any questions. Prescriptions can be issues for glasses or contacts within just 30 minutes. Access Health Louisiana currently works with five licensed optometrists seeing patients virtually at its Kenner clinic location.
For diabetic patients seen at Access Health Louisiana with mild or moderate non-proliferative diabetic retinopathy, they can be scheduled for a comprehensive eye exam and Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) to see if a macular edema is present. OCT is a non-invasive imaging technique which creates a detailed image of the retina and optic nerve. This allows the optometrist to determine the thickness of the patient’s retinal layers and determine if there are any abnormalities present such as fluid or blood buildup. OCT is imperative to detect early signs of eye disease that may not show up during routine eye exams. This can help prevent or delay vision loss especially among diabetic patients.
Visit our new Optometry Department located inside the Kenner Community Health Center and Pharmacy at 671 West Esplanade Avenue.
Vision care services at the Kenner Community Health Center are available for children and adults. To schedule an appointment, call (504) 712-7800.
