A new and visibly safe device for screening the vision of Bermuda’s young students has been brought to the Island for demonstration.

The service has been offered for many years by the Lions Clubs of Bermuda, according to Dessaline Waldron, the organisation’s zone chairman.

“It’s for preschoolers, just before they go on to kindergarten, to make sure they do not have vision problems. Sometimes it can look like they’re having trouble learning when it turns out their problem is seeing.”

The Hamilton Lions Club has offered the service for many years but some parents had expressed concern that children were being given eyedrops, or that the device used might touch their eyes.

While it does not come into contact with children’s eyes, Ms Waldron said the machine now in use was obsolete, and unwieldy compared with the simple-to-use instrument demonstrated yesterday.

Visiting from New York, Tejinder Anand of the Lions Club International’s district 20-K2 showed youngsters from Warwick Preschool how quickly and easily they could get a check-up with the new technology. “It’s so quick and compact compared to the old machine, everyone was blown away,” Ms Waldron said.

Education minister Wayne Scott was on hand for the demonstration, with school principals from all across the Island in attendance.

Mr Anand returns home tomorrow with the device, but Ms Waldron said the local Lions planned to launch a fundraiser soon toward the purchase of the latest technology for Bermuda’s students.