Sarah Cant
Director of Policy and Strategy, The College of Optometrists
The Government’s 10 Year Health Plan for England rightly prioritises preventative, community-based care to improve patients’ outcomes and cut waiting times.
The College of Optometrists welcomes the Government’s 10 Year Health Plan. Ophthalmology is the NHS’s busiest outpatient specialty, with nearly 9 million appointments annually and long hospital wait lists that lead to unnecessary sight loss. Bringing more eye care earlier and closer to home is vital.
Role of optometrists in the community
Optometrists — eye care professionals who perform eye tests, prescribe glasses and diagnose and manage a variety of eye conditions — are well-placed to deliver the aims of the 10 Year Health Plan. High street optical practices often offer extended hours and weekend access in the heart of communities — already meeting the Government’s aims for neighbourhood health services.
In some parts of England, people can directly access enhanced primary eye care services at their local optical practices. These include urgent care for sudden (acute) eye conditions, pre and post-cataract care and glaucoma referral, filtering and management. These services support earlier intervention and avoid unnecessary GP and hospital appointments.
Today, 70% of eye problems presenting
to emergency departments could be
managed in primary eye care.
Need for urgent eye care services
Evidence from evaluations of existing community-based urgent eye care schemes found that, up to 97% of acute eye cases are resolved by optometrists without hospital referral. Today, 70% of eye problems presenting to emergency departments could be managed in primary eye care.
However, despite their proven benefits, these urgent eye care services are not yet available across England. Even where services exist, public awareness that they can visit their optometrist for urgent care is limited.
England eye care must catch up
To make the ambitions of the Government’s Health Plan a reality in England, enhanced community eye care services must be expanded, funded and rolled out across every region. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland already have far greater availability of enhanced services within optical practices and much higher public awareness of the role of community optometrists.
To achieve the same for England, commissioners need to recognise the pivotal role optometrists will play in achieving the Health Plan’s goals. They should build on this existing delivery of high-quality eye care closer to home — to reduce pressure on hospitals and avoid unnecessary sight loss.
