Program areas at Macular Degeneration Association
The Macular Degeneration Association (MDA) created informative and necessary educational programs for those affected by macular degeneration and diabetic macular edema. These programs not only provide information for the person who has been affected by either of these eye diseases but will bring precautionary measures to their family members and helpful information for their caregivers. All programs feature experts in the field of retina, providing information about risk factors, genetic predisposition, proper diagnosis, new treatment options, research information, clinical trials and new drug advances. Participants are given a chance to interact with the doctor and ask questions. They are also able to share their challenges and successes with the other attendees.
Macular Degeneration Association has created a state-of-the-art website to provide an extensive number of resources and information to help those affected by macular degeneration and additional diseases that can affect macular degeneration. This website includes educational videos that are produced for patients, family members and caregivers. The website is ADA-compliant and is accessible to people with vision disabilities. There is also a feature for those who speak Spanish to convert English to Spanish. We continue to include up-to-date information on all eye diseases, new treatment options, research information, clinical trials and new drug advances. Our user-friendly website provides the user with friendly navigation, accessibility tools and information for patients, professionals, caregivers and families. This website has an average of 600,000 hits annually.
The Macular Degeneration Association produces newsletters quarterly. The information provided is for those who have age-related macular degeneration, diabetic eye disease, glaucoma and cataracts. The newsletter provides educational information, new research, new drug therapies, clinical trials and treatments. The newsletters go out to 48,600 doctors, patients, families and caregivers. Brochures were designed and provided to doctors to help their patients navigate macular degeneration and find resources that can help. We have a very robust social media following including 17,111 followers on Facebook, 6,602 on Twitter, 4,800 on Linked In and 361 on Pinterest.