Eye care everywhere
A new vision for eye care professionals and their patients
The NHS in England must transform to survive. To achieve a sustainable NHS, the Government has proposed three big shifts: from hospital to community, analogue to digital, and sickness to prevention.
Within the 10-Year Health Plan, eye care is cited as an example of how those shifts can be achieved.
Optometry, working alongside our colleagues across primary care, is the foundation of the health system and the front door to the NHS.
It’s often where the patient starts their journey, to get advice and treatment for any eye care problem, and a referral to more specialised care where needed.
In England alone, 6,000 optical practices offer vision testing, the early detection of eye health and wider health conditions such as diabetes, sometimes offering lifestyle advice as well as some outpatient services.
But optometrists are qualified and equipped to do far more NHS work than they carry out. This highly trained, highly skilled, workforce currently has untapped impact for patients. That must change if the Government’s health ambitions are to be realised.
Our eye care everywhere campaign sets out the case for a fully resourced eye care service, delivered in the community.
Our proposal, to make enhanced eye care services available to all, not only those in certain postcodes, supports the Government in its aims to:
- Deliver faster access to eye care, closer to home
- Cut waiting lists
- Reduce pressure on A&E, hospital eye services and GPs
- Achieve savings for the NHS
- Support prevention through the early detection of sight threatening disease.
Optometry has a critical role to play in creating an NHS fit for the future, but the Government need to take action now.
What we are calling for
A framework mandated from the centre for community eye care, where:
- Every area of England must offer eye care services beyond the sight test, ensuring all patients have access to clinical experts close to where they live
- An enhanced eye care offer that builds on the existing general ophthalmic services (GOS) framework
- Dedicated funding and investment, ensuring long term sustainability and opportunity to grow eye health services in the future.