Frequently Asked Questions

Sed ut perspiciatis unde omnis iste natus error sit voluptatem accusantium doloremque laudantium totam.
Staat uw vraag er niet tussen, stuur dan een e-mail naar

Why Focus on Vision?

Focus on Vision endeavours to offer an affordable solution to hundreds of millions of children and adults in developing countries who need eye correction but have no access or means to obtain them. Our Focusspec® glasses

To reach the goal of providing a solution, Focus on Vision cooperates with many different organisations, be it NGO’s, Ministries of Health, Foundations, Social Ventures, Charities, etc.

Why is it a problem if you do not have glasses?
  • It is a social problem. Without glasses you are handicapped. If you cannot read, you will have trouble in keeping up in school and therefore children are often being seen as not very intelligent.
  • It is an economic problem.
    • Without (reading) glasses people cannot carry out their job, which is their family income, because their eye sight is getting worse.
    • The poorest people often have to do the worst and heaviest jobs and for that they need good eye sight because their lives may depend on it.
    • Children have to (daily) accompany their parents which will be at the expense of their own personal development.
  • It can grow out to become a bigger medical problem. Without glasses you can go blind.
What is so unique about Focusspec® ?

With its patented worm wheel Focusspec® allows the user to adjust the power of the lens to suit his or her need to focus. It is based upon the Alvarez principle, invented by Dr. Luis Alvarez who won the Nobel prize for Physics in 1968.

There are two versions; plus glasses for farsightedness (hyperopia (url naar Wikipedia) and minus glasses for near sightedness (myopia (url naar Wikipedia).

As the power of the lenses is continuously variable (from +0.5 dpt (url naar Wikipedia, dioptre) to +4.5 and from -1.0dpt to -5.0dpt respectively) through use of the worm wheel.

Focusspec® are a unique and affordable solution for approx. 80% of the people who need vision correction. Hundreds of millions of people can be helped.

Is Focusspec® the best solution?

No, the best solution is to provide integral eye care to all and to treat all types of Low Vision problems. However, it will take billions of dollars and decades before we have trained the necessary eye care professionals (ophthalmologists and optometrists ao). In this light, Focusspec® is a very attractive stop gap solution for many.

Collecting used pairs of glasses also works doesn’t it?

Recycling glasses is a great initiative, however, especially for people with farsightedness the chance that your prescription glasses work for someone else is very small. Testing, documenting and cleaning of collected glasses take up a lot of time and energy and you still need an eye specialist with the right measuring equipment for accurate correction.

With Focusspec® you do not an eye specialist, studies (url naar research pagina) have demonstrated that both adults and children can adjust the Focusspec® to their need.

How is it possible to go blind if you need glasses but do not have them?

Failing to correct eye defects with glasses in time can in some cases cause blindness. See the WHO website below with the conclusions of the study in question.
"Refractive error blindness", World Health Organization 2001