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Stakeholder Insights on Childhood Myopia

Summary of the Impact:

This research represents the first large-scale international study investigating how parents, teachers, coaches, and optometrists perceive and respond to the rising public health challenge of childhood myopia. Collecting over 500 responses globally, the project has created one of the world’s most comprehensive datasets on stakeholder awareness, behaviour, and confidence in supporting children’s eye health. Led by the Centre for Eye Research Ireland at TU Dublin, the project has already prompted behaviour change among parents and teachers, strengthened awareness within schools and sports communities, and positioned childhood myopia as a societal issue rather than solely a clinical one. Early findings have shaped public engagement, informed planned school-based interventions, and generated interest from professional bodies. The research supports TU Dublin’s strategic aims related to health, wellbeing, education, and inclusive research engagement.

Research Description:

This research forms part of a doctoral project examining lifestyle influences on childhood visual development, with a particular focus on myopia. Using a mixed-methods design, the project explored how stakeholders perceive risk factors such as outdoor time, screen use, and physical activity. The survey was piloted with representatives across all groups before large-scale dissemination through schools, social media, teachers’ networks, coaches, community organisations, and optometry groups. Over 500 participants completed the survey, making it one of the largest datasets on stakeholder beliefs and myopia internationally.

Quantitative findings show:

  • 41 percent of parents reported children spend under one hour outdoors on weekdays.
  • Screen time above 5 hours per day increases significantly at weekends.
  • 95 percent of teachers/coaches had never received guidance on supporting children with myopia.
  • Awareness of the outdoor time–myopia link was low across groups.

Thematic analysis of open responses showed high demand for reliable information and easy-to-implement strategies to support children. A second phase of qualitative focus groups is scheduled for Autumn 2025 to explore how stakeholders interpret eye health messages, what barriers they face, and what supports they require. Outputs will include peer-reviewed publications, a public-facing RTE Brainstorm article, conference papers, and community engagement tools.

Description of the Impact:

The research is generating meaningful change across education, public health, and community settings.

Awareness Raising:

  • The survey has helped position childhood myopia as a public health and community issue. Promotion via sports clubs, Local Sports Partnerships, schools, and national networks raised awareness among thousands of parents and educators. Respondents frequently reported learning new information about children’s eye health.

 Behaviour Influence:

  • Forty-four percent of respondents who provided written feedback reported intentions to modify behaviour, including increasing outdoor time, reducing screen exposure, or initiating discussions with families. Teachers described plans to incorporate more outdoor activity within lessons. This reflects an early but significant shift in behaviour prompted directly by the research.

 Capacity Building:

  • The project has strengthened the capacity of parents, educators, and coaches to support visual health. Many participants reported becoming more conscious of their role in influencing children’s visual habits. The study also supports capacity building in applied health research through PhD training and stakeholder-engaged methodologies.
  • Collectively, these impact strands show how the research has progressed beyond data collection to actively influence understanding, behaviour, and practice across education, public health, and community contexts. Together, they illustrate a clear progression from stakeholder-informed research to raised awareness, early shifts in behaviour, and the co-design of future school-based interventions.

 Institutional and Sectoral Impact:

  • The research enhances TU Dublin’s leadership in child eye health and public engagement. As one of the first studies globally to gather multi-stakeholder perspectives on myopia, it provides a transferable model for public health interventions related to other paediatric conditions.

Policy Pathway:

  • Although policy change is not yet evident, the foundation has been laid. Findings may inform future school-based guidelines, teacher training modules, and community health campaigns. Engagement with Optometry Ireland and the FAI Grassroots Department demonstrates sectoral interest in evidence-based recommendations.

SDG Goals Contribution:

  • SDG 3 – Good Health & Wellbeing
    • Targets 3.8: Promoting early intervention and reducing preventable visual impairment. Indicators 3.8.1: Coverage of essential health services
  •  SDG 4 – Quality Education 
    • Targets 4.1–4.7: Supporting inclusive school environments and integrating eye health into educational settings.
  •  SDG 10 – Reduced Inequalities 
    • Target 10.2: Ensuring equitable access to health information and support across communities. Indicator 10.2.1.

Evidence and Sources:

  • 500+ survey responses across three stakeholder groups.
  • Quantitative data and qualitative thematic analysis using NVivo.
  • Dissemination through schools, sports networks, teacher associations, and optometry groups. This was done through direct email outreach which involved direct outreach to primary and post-primary schools listed on Department of Education databases, as well as youth sports clubs and community groups identified through publicly available directories.
  • Public outreach through blogs, newsletters, and upcoming RTE Brainstorm article.
  • Conference presentation scheduled at the European Academy of Optomtery and Optics Conference in Riga in May 2026.
  • Engagement from national organisations including Optometry Ireland and FAI Grassroots.

Testimonials:

“I wasn’t aware of the links – now I’ll be encouraging more outdoor time in class.” - Teacher Respondent

“The survey really made me think about how much time my child spends outdoors during the week and how it might affect their eyes, it’s something I’ll definitely be more mindful of now.” - Sean Gallagher, Parent

“Learning more from the results of the survey would definitely help me when thinking about how I design my classes, and I’d definitely make changes in the layout or the type of classes if it could help children’s eyesight.” - Dan Monahan, Teacher and Coach