Parental perspectives on factors influencing eyeglass wear compliance in preschoolers from low-income families in San Francisco.

Purpose: To investigate factors associated with spectacle wear among low-income preschoolers who receive glasses through the See Well to Learn (SWTL) program.

Methods: Qualitative study of parental perceptions of factors contributing to compliance during a longitudinal study of eyeglass wear utilizing thematic analysis of a series of three scripted phone calls during the 2017-2018 school year. Participants were parents of 164 children ages 3-5, from 51 Head Start preschools in the greater San Francisco region.

Results: A total of 470 scripted parental telephone calls were successfully completed during the study period. Six major themes affecting glasses compliance in this group were identified including: (1) awareness of need and noted visual improvement; (2) continuous efforts to improve compliance by working with parent; (3) collaborative efforts between home and school such as parent-teacher encouragement; (4) child comfort and eyewear preferences; (5) the importance of two functional pairs of eyewear to achieve full-time wear; and (6) coordination of care offered by the SWTL program.

Conclusions: This study offers insight into factors contributing to child eyewear compliance during critical years of vision development. These findings offer lessons to improve compliance and identify a need to adjust California's current policies on vision coverage for children.