College submits response to the government’s consultation on the NHS’s 10-Year Health Plan

The College of Optometrists calls for urgent transformation of eye care services to end avoidable sight loss

College submits response to the government’s consultation on the NHS’s 10-Year Health Plan for England

NHS figures show that ophthalmology is currently one of the largest contributors to the NHS backlog*, and demand for eye care services is predicted to rise by a further 30-40% in the next 10 to 15 years**.

The College of Optometrists is calling for the government to implement the proposed three big shifts for the NHS in England – hospital to community, analogue to digital, sickness to prevention – in the first phase of the plan to help end the eye health crisis in England and create an eye care service that’s fit for the future.

In the College’s response to the Department of Health and Social Care’s public consultation to help shape the NHS’s 10-Year Health Plan for England, it advocates for transforming access to, and delivery of, NHS eye care services across England to ensure patients receive the eye care they need, at the right time and in the right place.

Hospital to community: Rolling out and enabling access to NHS funded enhanced primary eye care services nationally will allow hospitals to focus on the most serious eye conditions and emergencies.

Analogue to digital: Prioritising and investing in better connections between primary and secondary eye care will improve patient outcomes, reduce referrals and avoid the need for repeat diagnostic tests.

Sickness to prevention: Encouraging regular eye examinations with an optometrist as an important healthy lifestyle behaviour will help preserve sight and keep people living independently for longer, benefitting individuals, the NHS and the wider economy

Optimising the full skills and competences of optometrists to benefit patients, the NHS and the economy

There are over 14,000 optometrists registered as health professionals in England, and they are a key part of the NHS workforce. The College of Optometrists is calling for optometrists to be established as the first point of contact for patients with an eye concern, instead of GPs, in addition to the vital sight testing and eye examination services they already provide.

Optometrists working in primary care have the core clinical skills required to provide routine, enhanced and shared eye care services closer to home. Many optometrists also have additional higher qualifications, including the ability to prescribe medications, and can safely manage patients with more complex needs within primary care, working closely with secondary care colleagues.

In addition to expanding the scope of eye care delivered in the community across England, making optometrists the first point of contact for primary eye care will help tackle the current eye care postcode lottery, reduce health inequalities, free up NHS hospital eye care teams to treat patients in need of more complex or urgent care, and ensure patients receive the right care at the care time. This would also help prevent delays to treatment which could result in avoidable sight loss.

Reducing the prevalence of eye conditions by 1% year could save the UK economy £3 billion by the end of the decade. By 2050, these savings are expected to be £9.5 billion***.

Dr Gillian Rudduck MOptom, President of The College of Optometrists, commented: “This is a critical moment to shape future NHS eye care services delivery to ensure we end the ongoing eye health crisis in England. Optometrists have the necessary clinical skills to provide more NHS services than they are currently commissioned to perform, and our current health system in England isn’t using their skills to their full potential.

“By implementing the government’s three big shifts for the NHS in England and prioritising eye care services in the first phase of the 10-Year Health Plan, optometrists can help cut the long waiting times for hospital eye care, reduce the reliance on local GPs, and help preserve people’s sight and independence for longer.”