Specsavers enhanced eye care services see 1.4m patients in a year

Newly-released figures from Specsavers have shown that more than 1.4 million people in the UK received care through its enhanced eye care services between April 2024 and the end of March this year.

This marked an increase of 152,000 patients receiving community-based eye health support, Grant Duncan, director of professional development at Specsavers, highlighted.

With the Government’s 10-year plan for the NHS in England calling for a move in care from hospital to community settings, Duncan said: “Enhanced eye care programmes demonstrate how our sector can deliver that ambition.”

Specsavers is continuing to call for an expansion of NHS-funded eye care services through more consistent commissioning across England.

The group highlighted that, in the past year, more than 1000 of its optometrists achieved accreditations from the Wales Optometry Postgraduate Education Centre.

Additionally, nearly 280 Specsavers optometrists enrolled in professional certificate programmes, and more than 100 began independent prescribing courses.

Duncan said: “These qualifications equip the optometrist community with critical skills to care for even more patients.”

With registration for Specsavers’ Professional Advancement Conference open, Duncan added: “Everyone, wherever they work, can join us on this journey of continuing professional development.”