Ophthalmology and OMPs
Efficient intravitreal injections – The How to Guide
Efficient intravitreal injections – The How to Guide
Guidance from the National Eye Care Recovery and Transformation Programme
The licence for some of the common intravitreal drugs is for administration by an ophthalmologist, several policy documents have recommended that intravitreal injections can be
delivered by non-medical HCPs provided certain conditions are met
The RCOphth state that training nurses to perform intravitreal injections offers a solution to increased pressure on retinal services and issued a statement in 20139
indicating that The College considered it reasonable for nonmedical HCPs to administer intravitreal drugs so long as certainstipulations are met.
Creating a large pool of suitably trained HCP staff is important as this allows the service to run effectively, with appropriate cover for sickness and leave as well as ensuring that there are sufficient staff to provide additional sessions if required. It also reduces the frequency with which individual injectors are delivering high volume repetitive procedures and frees up medical clinical staff for other clinical activity such as outpatient clinics and surgery.
The report also includes recommending the “optometry first model which better utilises optometrists”.
