{"id":25215,"date":"2025-12-08T15:28:54","date_gmt":"2025-12-08T04:58:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.flinders.edu.au\/fit\/?p=25215"},"modified":"2025-12-09T09:51:25","modified_gmt":"2025-12-08T23:21:25","slug":"in-touch-with-cassandra-haines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.flinders.edu.au\/fit\/2025\/12\/08\/in-touch-with-cassandra-haines\/","title":{"rendered":"In Touch With… Cassandra Haines"},"content":{"rendered":"

What is your role here at Flinders?<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I am a lecturer and researcher in optometry at Flinders University, with a focus on paediatric vision and public health. My role includes teaching within the optometry program, supervising students, and leading research that aims to improve eye care for children and communities.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What initially drew you to the practice of optometry, and what keeps\u00a0you\u00a0motivated throughout\u00a0your PhD?<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I was drawn to optometry\u00a0due to\u00a0its\u00a0blend of science with\u00a0health care, and practical problem solving in a way that makes a real difference in people\u2019s daily\u00a0lives.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Prior to beginning my PhD I worked\u00a0as a clinician in private practice.\u00a0I saw\u00a0numerous\u00a0children who presented too late for effective treatment of amblyopia, or \u201clazy eye.\u201d It was frustrating to know that earlier detection could have dramatically improved their outcomes, yet without a universal pre-school vision screening program in South Australia, many children were simply missed.\u00a0Children can be\u00a0very poor\u00a0historians, they\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0know they see the world differently to others, and eye conditions can go undiagnosed.\u00a0I find it\u00a0frustrating\u00a0in South Australia we still have children with avoidable blindness, which has led me to research in this space.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Through my research at Flinders, we found that\u202f17% of children screened in year 3 in SA had an undiagnosed eye condition, and\u202f1.3%\u00a0required\u00a0urgent referral for suspected amblyopia. These findings highlight that too many children start school without their best\u00a0possible vision\u00a0for learning. Poor vision can put them behind not only in literacy but also in broader cognitive and social development.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Screening and diagnosing vision impairments early is key to improving health outcomes for our children.\u00a0This intersection between clinical observations and real-world public health impact\u00a0keeps\u00a0me motivated through my PhD.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Tell us about your policy advocacy work for universal eye testing for\u00a0pre-school\u00a0aged children.<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Alongside other leaders in the South Australian eye health sector, I have launched\u00a0a proposal calling for government support to introduce universal pre-school vision screening. The proposal is backed by\u00a0Flinders University,\u00a0Optometry Australia, the Royal\u00a0Australian\u00a0and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists, Orthoptics Australia,\u00a0and\u00a0Vision 2020.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Vision screening is an evidence based, cost effective way to detect potentially sight threatening childhood eye conditions and ensure\u00a0timely\u00a0follow up. While Queensland, Western Australia, and New South Wales all have comprehensive screening programs, around\u202f60 percent of children in South Australia currently\u00a0miss out on\u00a0these vital checks. Our advocacy aims to close this gap and ensure every child has an equal start when they begin school.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

You can still join the voices for change, as a university researcher, academic, student, parent, glasses-wearer or simply concerned community member through our Optometry Australia do-gooder campaign<\/a>.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What has been your career highlight to date?<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A major highlight has been leading the\u202f<\/span>Children\u2019s Eye Screening South Australia (CESSA)<\/span><\/b>\u202fstudy in South Australian schools. The project brought together clinicians, researchers, university students, educators, and communities, and showed how\u00a0large scale\u00a0screening can\u00a0identify\u00a0children who would otherwise be missed. We have now screened more than 1000 children,\u00a0identifying\u00a0significant numbers with previously undetected vision problems.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I also hope my biggest\u00a0achievement\u00a0is still ahead. My son will start kindergarten in 2028, and with government support and cross sector collaboration, an in-school vision screening program\u00a0in SA\u00a0could realistically be in place by then. I would love to see him and all four-year-olds in the state receive\u00a0equitable, early vision checks.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What do you enjoy about working at Flinders?<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I enjoy the supportive and collaborative culture at Flinders. There is\u00a0a strong sense\u00a0of purpose within the optometry program, and I value working with colleagues who share a commitment to improving community eye health. The students contribute great energy and curiosity, which makes teaching genuinely enjoyable.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Tell us about your ideal weekend.<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

You\u2019ll\u00a0find me at the beach,\u00a0likely running\u00a0after a toddler and my\u00a0Groodle.\u00a0Of course,\u00a0wearing sunglasses and a hat for good eye health!<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What is your role here at Flinders?\u00a0 I am a lecturer and researcher in optometry at Flinders University, with a focus on paediatric vision and public […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5570,"featured_media":25217,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15040,57368],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25215","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-college-of-nursing-and-health-sciences","category-in-touch-with"],"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.flinders.edu.au\/fit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25215","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.flinders.edu.au\/fit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.flinders.edu.au\/fit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.flinders.edu.au\/fit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5570"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.flinders.edu.au\/fit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25215"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.flinders.edu.au\/fit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25215\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.flinders.edu.au\/fit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25217"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.flinders.edu.au\/fit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25215"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.flinders.edu.au\/fit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25215"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.flinders.edu.au\/fit\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25215"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}