Your eye test

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Before Iris has her full eye examination she has what’s known as a pre-test with an optical assistant, which helps the optician to check that her eyes are healthy.
The optical assistant creates a confidential customer record for her and then runs through a few straightforward, practical checks.
These tests don’t take long and of course they don’t hurt, but the results will help the optician during Iris’s eye examination later. Using some special equipment, the optical assistant measures the pressure inside Iris’s eyes, their curvature, how well they focus and her field of vision. He also uses a special camera to take photos of the inside of Iris’s eyes, as the optician will want to take a look at these later. The optical assistant also checks Iris’s last pair of glasses to get an idea of how much her eyes have changed since her last eye test.
He then hands Iris into the care of the optician, who will now interpret all these results during her full eye examination. First of all, the optician talks to Iris about her lifestyle, work and health, so she has a clear understanding of what the best options might be for her. She’ll only recommend new glasses if they’re absolutely necessary, but she knows from the pre-test results that in Iris’s case this is likely.
The optician tests each eye individually before testing both together, making sure her vision is comfortable. She asks Iris to read from the wall chart, making lens adjustments and asking questions until Iris has the clearest and most comfortable vision possible.
After this, she looks at how Iris’s eyes work together, and makes sure that they’re giving her balanced and co-ordinated vision, before checking how they focus at different distances.
The optician then dims the lights so she can look closely into Iris’s eyes, checking that they’re healthy on the inside as well. She also reviews the photos of Iris’s eyes taken earlier.
Finally, the optician explains Iris’s prescription and answers her questions. She talks through some options that she thinks are most suitable for Iris’s individual lifestyle and makes sure she’s happy with her choices.
This animation shows a typical in-store experience; details may vary depending on individual customer needs.