Police eyesight requirements?

Bruciebonus

Just another quick question about joining the police.....
Im applying to the MOD police force and noticed their eyesight requirements are 6/18 unaided and 6/6 aided.
I dont think ill have a problem with the aided part as my latest eye test put my aided vision at 6/5(which i think is better than 20/20 but feel free to correct me!)The problem however could be my unaided vision which i think is pretty bad(i find it difficult to do day to day tasks without my contacts in or glasses on)
Can anyone offer any advice please???

wishiwasarichgirl

best bet would be to call your optician and ask them if they have a record of what your unaided VA was at your last test.

Do you know what your prescription is or what strength your lenses are?

Bruciebonus

cheers ill ring them tomorrow
got my prescription here an its -5.00 sph in both eyes,cyl -1,.50 in both eyes and axis 180right/10left
dont mean anything to me but hopefully it will to someone!

wishiwasarichgirl

I can't tell from your prescription exactly what you would see without it but I have to say I wouldn't get your hopes up if each eye has to see 6/18 unaided, with that rx it's unlikely you'll manage it. If you only need 6/18 binocularly (with both eyes together) then there is more of a chance, as binocular vision is generally better than monocular.
Without an eye test or results from a recent one you won't know for sure.

Bruciebonus

thanks wishiwasarchgirl thats what i was expecting ......i think it needs to be 6/18 in each individual eye as well as together

sophieschoice

If you've set your heart on joining, it may be worthwhile deferring your application and having laser treatment.

hothothot_3

Id advise you to carefully make sure before putting an application in. Eyesight is a common reason for rejection -cannot recommend enough the advice about Lasik treatment. http://www.eye-directory.co.uk/eye_correction/news.htm
Police Restrictions on laser eye surgery lifted

Occupations enhanced with Laser eye surgery
The UK’s police services have always held strict policies concerning refractive surgery, due to the necessity for its members to meet set standards of visual acuity. Now however, these restrictions are lifting with the growing acceptance within the forces of the benefits of laser eye treatment. It is now acceptable for officers to opt for treatment if required and is now actually deemed necessary for new recruits whose applications into the police may be jeopardised by poor uncorrected vision which falls short of the requirements.
Optimax has seen a significant rise in officers opting for treatment and continues to receive feedback on how treatment has enhanced their occupation and performance.
David Lyndsey is a police officer in the Met who underwent LASIK at Optimax in June. Click here to read his story.

Bruciebonus

thanks sopieschoice and hothothot......ive spent the last couple of hours reseaching laser eye surgery and am still mulling it over.....

Thriftysolo

Bit late to this, but the best way to know whether you will be able to see 6/18 (if your optometrist does not have that information) is to download a snellen eye test chart from i-see.org (or elsewhere), and check for yourself. Print out the classic 3 page eye chart, and put it up on the wall. Then stand 6 feet away from the chart. If you can read the 15ft line (this chart does not have a 18ft line) with each eye then you should pass the test.

If you are indeed considering eye surgery then I would strongly recommend that you choose either LASEK or PRK rather than LASIK, as there are some concerns building about the long term safety of LASIK. For more info on this, go to LASIKDISASTER.com -- note this is a site for people damaged by the LASIK procedure, so will be biased against it to some degree, but it is still a useful resource if you are considering getting LASIK done.

All tthe best.

Craig