Murray is rocking her new contact lenses.When it comes to our children’s eyecare, we, as parents, take it very seriously. Birmingham is fortunate to have so many eyecare options, but how in the world do you choose the best fit for your family? Thankfully a local mom, Jennifer Drake, is here with Birmingham Mom Collective (BMC) to tell her story and why she loves UAB Callahan Eye!

Welcome, Jennifer! Please share with us a little bit about your family and what led you to seek care at Callahan.

My husband, Peter, and I live in Homewood with our three children: Paul (15), Anne Michael (11), and Murray (9).

In 2020, our youngest child, Murray, began squinting a lot and complaining that she could not see the board in class. I decided to make her an appointment for an eye exam. We always use UAB for our family’s health needs whenever possible. We know how fortunate we are to have such phenomenal providers just down the street.

How did Callahan address your family’s needs?

We made an appointment for Murray with Dr. Patel, who is a pediatric ophthalmologist at Callahan. Murray was given a full examination to assess her complete eye health and address her vision complaints. She was prescribed eyeglasses for nearsightedness. We continued to see Dr. Patel for regularly scheduled exams.

In January 2022, Murray’s exam showed a significant increase in her nearsightedness. Her vision had declined far more than what is typical in a year. Dr. Patel scheduled additional tests and confirmed that there were no new issues or diseases causing the problem. Slowing the progression was the main course of action.

What did the treatment process include to slow down the progression?

Dr. Patel prescribed Murray Atropine Compounded Drops. These drops help slow the progression of myopia (nearsightedness). Our next appointment showed that the drops were successfully keeping Murray’s eyeglass prescription the same!

However, Murray was frustrated with her glasses because they were a hindrance when playing softball and riding her bike because they didn’t fit well with helmets. Dr. Patel then referred us to an optometrist at Callahan.

Murray was fit for MiSight contacts (child-friendly disposable contacts). The MiSight contacts not only gave her an alternative to glasses, but wearing these particular contacts also treated her myopia like the drops did. They helped slow and stop the progression.

What were the results after wearing MiSight contacts for a while?

Murray is thrilled with her contacts and finds them very comfortable and easy to wear. And most importantly, at our last visit, the prescription for her left eye had not increased at all, and her right eye had improved!

We were able to get a lesser prescription for the contact for her right eye. The drops and then the contacts are helping us maintain her current nearsightedness level so that she does not continue to see significant decreases in her vision year after year. Plus, having one eye even improve in vision is more than we hoped for!

Would you recommend other families to go see Callahan? Why?

Absolutely. Callahan offers the most comprehensive eye care, top-notch customer service, convenience, and compassion.

The doctors are so thorough and knowledgeable about not just the anatomy and care of the eye, but other things that matter to moms and dads like quality of life, short-term implications for a child, and long-term plans for best outcomes. We always receive the best customer service whether on-site or calling on the phone.

The nurses, receptionists, and technicians are friendly, helpful, and great with kids as well as stressed moms! It takes a gigantic amount of patience to teach a nine year old how to take contacts in and out.

We have been to various Callahan locations: Downtown, Cahaba River, Gardendale, and Children’s South, depending on where our doctor would be and what appointment time worked best for me. The customer service and physicians’ level of care is consistently high regardless of where we were seen.

We are just really thankful that the team at Callahan took such great care of Murray, listening to our requests and concerns. They have helped us end up in a great place in her eye care journey. There are many great options in Birmingham, but I can’t imagine another place that would have catered to our specific needs and wants like UAB Callahan Eye.