Dr. Michelle L. Wertelet is pictured at her optometry practice, Focus on Eyecare, in Moon Township.

“We offer proven strageties that have been shown to slow the change in prescription by up to 70% for some pediatric patients with myopia.” ~ Dr. Michelle Wertelet, Owner, Focus on Eyecare

Last year, Dr. Michelle Wertelet, optometrist, opened an eyecare practice with the goal of providing quality eyecare to patients of all ages. The practice, Focus on Eyecare, is located at 1005 Beaver Grade Road in Moon Township, right across from the township municipal building.

Focus on Eyecare is currently taking new patients.

Over the past 17 years, Dr. Wertelet has specialized in treating pediatric patients. Now, she is treating patients of all ages. From children struggling in school due to myopia, to seniors whose quality of life has been diminished by glaucoma, Dr. Wertelet works with patients to find the best treatments and vision assistance available.

“I opened Focus on Eyecare so I can spend time with my patients and get to know their visual and ocular health needs,” she says. “Our goal is to provide care for the whole family, with a special focus on pediatric patients.”

Focus on Eyecare provides diagnosis, treatment and management for a wide variety of diseases and disorders of the eye. They offer both comprehensive examinations and contact lens examinations. For those needing prescription eyewear, the practice can make glasses in-house the same day, provided the proper lenses are in stock. The practice stocks a selection of designer eyewear that provides the perfect fit, and style, for every face.

To make scheduling easy and efficient, patients can book appointments online through the practice’s website or even communicate via text message. Patients can also order contact lenses directly through the practice’s website.

Dr. Wertelet’s practice offers some services that are not available at all optometry practices. For children who are struggling with reading, the practice offers a special reading acceleration program, or RAP. The program, which trains the eyes to make accurate eye movements, has been shown to help children improve reading speed, fluency and comprehension in as little as six weeks.

“The eyes make small (saccadic) eye movements while reading,” says Dr. Wertelet. “If saccadic movements are inaccurate, reading fluency and comprehension can be decreased. RAP helps fix this problem.”

Another service the practice provides is management of myopia (nearsightedness). Once identified, Focus on Eyecare not only tracks a child’s myopia, but also employs a number of techniques that have been shown to slow its progression. These include Orthokeratology, which involves using specialty contact lenses that temporarily reshape the cornea, and low-dose atropine drops. Focus on Eyecare also utilizes MiSight One Day lenses, which is FDA approved for myopia management.

To monitor a child’s myopia, the practice keeps measures of the axial length and refraction of the eye.

“Using these strategies, we can slow the change in prescription by up to 70% for some patients,” says Dr. Wertelet.

In order to provide the best possible care, Focus on Eyecare also utilizes the latest technologies, including optomap retinal imaging and a digital phoropter, which allows the practice to efficiently evaluate different prescriptions. Other technologies the practice provides include corneal topography and dry eye evaluations. For those bothered by the common “puff of air” glaucoma test, the practice has other ways of testing for glaucoma.

Dr. Wertelet graduated from Pennsylvania College of Optometry in 2005 and completed her residency in pediatrics and binocular vision at University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Optometry. As an assistant professor at UAB, she taught future eye doctors and participated in clinical research. She has been a Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry since 2007 and practiced in Western Pennsylvania for 15 years

Dr. Wertelet is a diplomate of the American Board of Optometry and passed the first-ever board certification test offered to optometrists in 2011. She is also a current board member and past president of the Western Pennsylvania Optometric Society. Dr. Wertelet continues to serve on many committees through the American Board of Optometry. Dr. Wertelet lives with her husband and two young sons in Robinson Township, where she is a regular coach and volunteer at Archangel Gabriel School. Focus on Eyecare is located at 1005 Beaver Grade Road, Suite G10, in Moon Township. For more, visit www.focusoneyecare. com or call (412) 308-9111.