28 May 2026
A joint sector webinar will be held in late June to consider the role of primary care optometry in the glaucoma pathway.
Due to be held on 30 June, the webinar, Glaucoma Care Reimagined: Empowering Primary Care Optometry, will bring together the College of Optometrists, the Local Optical Committee Support Unit (LOCSU), the AOP, the Association for Eye Care Providers (FODO), and the Association of British Dispensing Opticians (ABDO).
The webinar has been designed for optometrists, dispensing opticians, local optical committee chairs and practice owners.
The event highlights: “The NHS Ten-Year Health Plan signals a decisive shift of care from hospital to the community. Primary eye care, present in every community, is central to making that shift real for people affected by glaucoma.”
During the webinar, panellists are set to discuss new local commissioning and pathway developments, the policy and funding landscape, and equipment and infrastructure decisions for practices.
Also on the agenda will be the clinical protocol underpinning community glaucoma care and the contribution of dispensing opticians and the whole practice team to adherence and improved patient outcomes.
Speakers are set to include Dr Gillian Rudduck, president of The College of Optometrists, and clinical adviser for the College, Daniel Hardiman-McCartney.
The AOP’s Dr Peter Hampson will form part of the panel, along with Harjit Sandhu from FODO and Zoe Richmond from LOCSU.
Organisers have encouraged attendees to pre-submit questions and join the live Q&A.
This follows the release of NHS England’s Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) Best Practice Guidance for Glaucoma Services which was welcomed last week in a joint statement by optical sector bodies who described the publication as setting a “positive direction” for shared care and fair funding of the enhanced clinical roles involved for primary eye care providers.
The webinar will be held on 30 June between 7.30pm-8.45pm, find out more online.
Comments (2)
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Dave C3 weeks ago
Why not just do what Scotland has done?
A network of community glaucoma specialist optometrists have been mobilised across Scotland, taking low risk glaucoma care patients away from HES
The specialist optometrists have IP certification & an honours level vocational qualification in glaucoma care.
It takes ages, so you’d better get cracking!
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Dave C3 weeks ago
...[to add to above]
I think there is a collective arrogance from the larger optometry representative organisations about what it takes to provide a meaningful level of glaucoma care within the community, such that this genuinely reduces strain on secondary. Its not just about competence, but having the clinical governance in place to manage risk, ensuring seamless communication & building sustainable pathways which live beyond the initial flurry of keen beans!
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