ABDO welcomes the launch of the 10 Year Health Plan

ABDO welcomes the launch of the 10 Year Health Plan

The Association of British Dispensing Opticians (ABDO) welcomes the launch of the Government’s 10 Year Health Plan to deliver on the aim of “bringing care closer to home”. 

The Plan looks to change how patients will access the NHS through the creation of Neighbourhood Health Centres and the use of technology such as an expansion of the “NHS App”. The Plan also supports a prevention-led approach that includes “door to door outreach” and early health monitoring to reduce long-term sickness and backs the use of ‘community based professionals’.

 ABDO CEO, commented, “high street optical practices already provide excellent health care close to home. The dispensing opticians and optometrists who work in these practices stand ready to relieve the strain on overstretched ophthalmology departments and reduce the number of patients who lose their sight while they wait for an appointment. This will require investment in technology and appropriate funding but the net benefit for patients and taxpayers will be substantial. It is time to back the neighbourhood health centres that already exist in the form of high street optical practices.”

The key investment which the Prime Minister and Health Secretary will outline today include £29 billion in new funding of which £2.2 billion is targeted at deprived areas.

Max Halford, clinical and policy director, said, “We welcome the news that the Darzi recommendation to shift services from hospital out to the community is included in the 10 year plan and must ensure that this translates to patients being seen at their high street opticians for a wider health care approach including earlier detection and long term monitoring of eye conditions.

We have thousands of “hubs” across the UK— they are the high street practices our patients attend everyday — staffed by highly trained staff ready to offer more care to their patients. The blocker in the past has always been outdated funding models which don’t support primary care alongside the lack of a digital infrastructure so it is welcomed that both these issues are addressed in the plan, however with strong national leadership these challenges can be overcome.”

ABDO will be working closely with sector partners to study the full details of the plan and the effect this could have on the delivery of eye care across the UK.

Full details of the plan are available here.

Details of the Darzi report are available here.