Offering something different

Can you tell us what makes Scope’s products unique?

Scope aims to bring the most innovative and unique products to market and so we take pride in our quality ingredients, preservative-free formulations and longer shelf life products that provide patients value for money. We are very invested in new product development and are always on the look-out for products that can bring something different to the eye care market.

What is the latest product that you have released and why does it stand out from the crowd?

Optase Protect is our most recently launched product and we responded quickly to the current environment to get this launched into the market. Optase Protect is a triple action, anti-bacterial, anti-viral and anti-fungal spray that controls daily germs living on the eyelids and surrounding skin. It is preservative-free, pH balanced and contains highly pure, naturally occurring, hypochlorous acid that kills 99.9999% of germs.

Scope aims to come out of the COVID-19 lockdown stronger and better than before. We are thinking of more innovative ways to collaborate with our partners and help them through any struggles that they may be facing

How did the outbreak of coronavirus impact Scope and how did the company respond to support patients and customers/practices?

Lockdown impacted the eye care industry as a whole and Scope are trying to find ways to work with our partners and patients to ensure that we can help them through this time. The company launched two products during lockdown: Optase Allergy Eye Drops and Optase Protect. Optase Protect came at a perfect time as the current pandemic has brought hygiene and cleanliness to the forefront of everyone’s minds and the product offers an anti-bacterial, anti-viral and anti-fungal solution.

Scope also wanted to recognise the hard work and dedication of the NHS in the UK and the HSE in Ireland, so over the course of lockdown we gave away over 4000 products free of charge to healthcare workers.

What are the company’s main ambitions for the next 12 months?

Scope aimed to come out of the COVID-19 lockdown stronger and better than before. We are thinking of more innovative ways to collaborate with our partners and help them through any struggles that they may be facing.

Our new product development and research and development function has expanded rapidly at Scope, and currently we have multiple projects in the works across many product classifications and specialty areas. It is an exciting time at Scope, where the products and services we are developing are aligning perfectly with our overall vision as a company.

Are there any new products in development or set to launch later this year that customers should be aware of?

Scope launched a very exciting product in August, called Hycosan Shield. We are very excited about this product as it is so unique and innovative, containing a brand-new molecule to the eye care category. This product is the first to market in the UK containing this molecule.

The formulation of the product is a single ingredient, water-free, preservative-free and phosphate-free formulation and it has the ability to completely replace the lipid layer - something that isn’t currently available in the market.

How do you think COVID-19 has impacted the eye care profession? What do you think may be the key changes we could see?

COVID-19 has had a huge impact on the eye care industry, changing the way that we practise every day. Clinics have been adjusted to allow for social distancing and cleaning after each patient, and this has in turn decreased the number of patients who can be seen each day.

We need to be flexible in our approach and perhaps consider more digital alternatives going forward, such as virtual clinics, not only to reduce contact time but to make our clinics run more efficiently.

In terms of the industry as a whole, there have been several meetings and events that have been cancelled, meaning that lots of professionals were struggling to meet CET targets for the year. Scope has tried to help with this by offering online CET content for professionals.

Scope: The Facts

1. Scope was founded in 2009 and is a family run business. The Freyne family have been working in the healthcare sector for over 80 years
2. As well as the eye care products at Scope, we also have a very successful business in Ireland outside of eye care that focuses on a few different specialty areas with innovative products