FLORIDA LIONS DIABETIC RETINOPATHY FOUNDATION
New Retina Camera Troubleshooting Guide
See "Resources and Forms"
Lions Diabetes Awareness Foundation of MD-35 Florida Lions Diabetic Retinopathy Foundation
DIABETIC RETINOPATHY FOUNDATION APPROVED AS OFFICIAL MD-35 ENTITY
At the Multiple District Convention in Orlando in May 2019, your Diabetic Retinopathy Foundation was approved as an official MD-35 entity by a vote of the delegates attending.
What does this mean and why is it important?
As an official entity, we can solicit financial support from Lions Clubs, Individual Lions, Businesses and Charitable Foundations as a sanctioned outreach of Multiple District 35. Our LCIF Sight First Grant which enabled us to launch this program was for 3 years and has been completed. We no longer are receiving funds from LCIF Sight First and fundraising is necessary to continue our mission of service.
What can I do to help?
Be an advocate for your foundation and proudly share your accomplishments. Together we have screened 15,000 clients over the past 3 years with a referral rate of 42%. Think of all of the potential blindness that we have helped to identify and prevent.
• Work through your District and Zone structure to educate clubs and Lions about the work of the foundation and the need to support it financially. Yes, there are many other entities competing for dollars but this is your entity. We would not be involved if we did not believe that we are making a difference in the lives of others. So speak up and ask.
• Promote our Life Membership Program. For $ 100 you or a fellow Lion, Family Member, or Friend can become a Life Member and receive the Life Member Pin.
DIABETES is the leading cause of BLINDNESS and DIABETIC RETINOPATHY is the reason
Your Multiple District is on the cutting edge of screening programs to help prevent blindness and your Diabetic Retinopathy Foundation has screened over 10,000 individuals since the award of the LCIF Sight First Grant in January 2016. Through careful monitoring of our funds and successful price negotiations we have been able to purchase 8 Professional Grade DRS retina cameras, insure and maintain them. These cameras are in constant use every week throughout your Multiple District.
The grant is now closed and we can no longer look to LCIF for funds to continue this valuable work. This resolution will establish The Florida Lions Diabetic Retinopathy Foundation as a recognized MD entity, enabling us to raise funds at District Meetings, Conferences and Conventions just as the other recognized entities are allowed to do.
As you can imagine, the cost of maintaining this program is significant, in excess of $ 15,000 per year to insure, purchase maintenance contracts, pay for cloud transmission of the images to a retina specialist for reading and interpretation, to name a few costs.
Diabetes and Sight Loss
Diabetes steals sight, takes human limbs, and claims lives! As other diseases dominate the media, diabetes is like a thief in the night. It silently robs millions of people of their ability to live life fully and free from the agony that accompanies this dreaded disease. Diabetic Retinopathy is one of the leading causes of new adult blindness in America. Our program detects this disease as well as many cases of macular degeneration and other retinal disorders.
People with diabetes are at risk of losing their sight due to Diabetic Retinopathy. It is the leading cause of vision loss in working age adults in industrialized countries. 74% of people who have diabetes for 10 years or longer will develop some form of diabetic retinopathy. All people with diabetes, both Type 1 and Type 2 are at risk. That's why everyone with diabetes should get a comprehensive dilated eye exam at least once a year.
Lion Larry Feldhusen from Inglis-Yankeetown Lions Club doing a Retinopathy Retina Screening in Gainesville
Lions Diabetic Retinopathy Screening Program
With these statistics in mind, the Florida Lions Diabetic Retinopathy Foundation is developing a new Diabetic Retinopathy Screening program and needs your help. The Lions Diabetes Awareness Foundation of MD 35, who does the Blood Glucose Screening, has joined with the just formed Florida Lions Diabetic Retinopathy Foundation to include Diabetic Retinopathy Screening. This program is designed to screen people throughout Florida and the Bahamas of Multiple District 35 who are in high-risk categories for Diabetic Retinopathy. These screenings are free and made possible through your Club donations, individual donations, and a grant from our Lions Clubs International Foundation through SightFirst.
Diabetic Retinopathy Screenings are completed through the use of a non-mydriatic camera with digital imaging capability which photographs the retina. These digital images (computer photos) of the retina are reviewed by a physician, specializing in diseases of the retina, who volunteer their services throughout Multiple District 35. Those participants whose photographs exhibit symptoms of retinal diseases are encouraged to seek care from the care ophthalmology physician of their choice.
Lions wishing to join us in our fight against the effects of vision loss should contact the Florida Lions Diabetic Retinopathy Foundation. You can contact Lion Norma Callahan at (386) 479-9896 or email her at lionsretinascreening@yahoo.com if you have any questions.or click here to be redirected to our Lions Diabetic Retinopathy Screening volunteer sign up page.
