July 2018 - 22

Vision Quest

After technology aided her failing eyesight, Harriette Buckman looks to help others
BY PAUL LINXWILER

Harriette Buckman loves to play
bridge, but in her late 70s, the former
ACBL president began struggling with
deteriorating eyesight, the result of
age-related macular degeneration.
Her vision problems soon turned her
favorite pastime into an increasingly
frustrating experience. In early 2017,
however, Buckman found out about
a new device that helps people with
a variety of optical diseases see the
world around them. Now 83, Buckman
describes the impact of her recently
acquired device - the eSight 3 - as
nothing less than "a miracle." And
because she knows firsthand that the
instrument actually works, Buckman is
determined to raise funds to help others who might not be able to afford one
for themselves. The reason: the model
costs about $10,000, making it out of
reach for many.
In the United States alone, as many
as 11 million people are affected by
age-related macular degeneration, a
number that is expected to double over
the next 30 years as the number of seniors in the U.S. continues to climb.
In 2015, the Canadian company
eSight unveiled its product (of the
same name) to allow people with seri-

The hand-held control device that is
attached to the visor.

22 Bridge Bulletin July 2018

Harriette Buckman models the eSight 3

What the eSight device looks like
before the visor is in place.

ous visual impairments to see. Not
only does it help those with macular
degeneration, but also from cataracts,
diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, retinal
detachment and many more visionrelated diseases.
Buckman, who lives in Sarasota FL,
says that a friend saw an article in the
New York Times about eSight, and she
immediately checked out their website
to schedule an appointment with one
of the company's "ambassadors" - the
term the company uses because many
of eSight's employees are visually
impaired people who use the product
themselves - to see if she was a candidate to benefit from use of the device.
"I went in for my evaluation in
March of 2017, but it turned out my
vision wasn't sufficiently bad for the
product to be much help. But by July
of that year - at the Summer NABC in
Toronto - my vision had dramatically
deteriorated. I scheduled another appointment (they were located across
the street from where the tournament
was being held!), and they told me that
I had definitely become a candidate for
the product.
"I was shocked at how much my eyesight had changed in just four months.
They took me to an examination room

to read an eye chart, and I struggled to
read the second line. I then tried the
eSight device for the first time, and I
was able to read to the bottom line of
the chart. I started crying."
The device is similar to a virtual-reality headset. Buckman demonstrated
by first donning a pair of glasses that
look similar to regular eye wear, but
are actually special electronic glasses.
A wrap-around visor surmounts the
glasses, making the wearer resemble
the character Lt. Geordi La Forge from
"Star Trek: The Next Generation."
"Lots of people call me 'The Star
Trek lady,'" says Buckman.
The visor presents the user with a
computer-like screen of options, much
like a TV remote control. The user can
control various functions, including
zoom (most useful at the bridge table),
contrast and focus. A hand-held controller attached to the visor allows the
user to change the variety of settings.
Users meet regularly with the eSight
ambassadors to make sure everything
is OK. The only complaint Buckman
has relates to the life of the rechargeable battery for the unit.
"It lasts about three and a half hours,
similar to the length of the time for a
single session."
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of July 2018
