High Street optical practices can be a force for reform, health minister Alistair Burt said following a meeting with leaders from the optical sector.

Minister of State for Community and Social Care, Alistair Burt, had a positive meeting with the leaders from the optical sector last month and said that practices could help the NHS to deliver reforms set out in the Five Year Forward View.

Mr Burt said that optometrists and opticians were well positioned to play a wider role in transforming health delivery with other primary care professionals and could help reduce the pressure on GPs and hospital care, such as A&E.

“There is no doubt that some of the best examples I have seen so far from the Vanguards sites are where they are getting other professions involved in delivering care in the community to support general practice.

“I sincerely hope that eye care and ophthalmology will feature in the new model of care within some of the Vanguard sites.

“I recognise that optical practices could play a wider role in delivering care closer to patients and that they can take some of the pressure away from GPs.”

Mr Burt told leaders from the optical sector that he understood the importance of connecting optical practices to the rest of the NHS.

Optical leaders explained to the health minister that, in their view, the IT bid submitted by the sector to NHS England was critical to the secure sharing of patient records and that out-of-hospital care was dependent on this connectivity.

The Minister, who is responsible for primary care commissioning policy, along with ophthalmic and dentistry services and the GP contract, revealed he is looking forward to continuing to work with the optical profession.

Responding on behalf of the Optical Confederation and LOCSU, Tony Garrett said: “This was a very positive meeting. We were pleased to have had such a productive and encouraging meeting with the minister. We welcome his interest in the sector and look forward to working with him.”

The Optical Confederation is joining with leading organisations from the sight loss sector and Lord Low of Dalston, CBE to host a parliamentary reception on Tuesday 12 January. The event aims to encourage MPs to support local NHS eye services and promote social inclusion for visually impaired people.

Almost two million adults and young people in the UK are living with a serious sight problem – on average 3,000 people in every parliamentary constituency. MPs and decision makers attending the reception will learn that this number could double by 2050 unless decisive action is taken now to modernise and integrate eye services across the NHS estate.

The cost of eye disease and sight loss in the UK is estimated at almost £22 billion a year. Failure to invest in early detection and treatment could lead to increased spending in health, education, social care and training.

Responding to recent comments by the Minister of State for Community and Social Care, Alistair Burt MP, the Optical Confederation will aim to show the role the optical sector can play in supporting NHS reform and delivering more care in the community to support patients and ease capacity challenges in GP and hospital services.

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The General Optical Council (GOC) has released figures showing that 98 per cent of all registrants met their Continuing Education and Training (CET) requirements for the 2013-15 cycle.

Just 412 registrants out of 21,158 face removal from the register for not meeting their requirements, including 255 optometrists and 157 dispensing opticians. 75 of those registrants had already told the GOC they intend to retire or come off the register.

In line with GOC rules some registrants may be able to demonstrate exceptional circumstances for not meeting their CET target, meaning the number of registrants removed is likely to be even lower than 412.

A further 12 contact lens opticians face losing their specialty registration, although they will be able to continue practising as dispensing opticians.

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New research reveals 90 per cent of optometrists are seeing an increase in eye health problems compared to only five years ago. The research has also unveiled an alarming, self-acknowledged gap in GP’s skills when it comes to diagnosing and treating eye conditions.

The Vision of Britain report, commissioned by Optegra Eye Health Care, shows that more than a quarter of British adults (26 per cent) turn to their GP rather than an optometrist for help if they have an eye problem. However, more than three in 10 GPs (32 per cent) say they feel ‘de-skilled’ in diagnosing eye conditions, reflecting the immense pressures and workload on these doctors. In addition 44 per cent say that they feel less confident in identifying eye conditions than other parts of the body, such as ears, heart and lungs. Two in five GPs (40 per cent) surveyed for Vision of Britain say they need more, or refresher, training on all eye conditions. And a further 40 per cent say they would refer eye problems to a specialist more quickly than other parts of the body.

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