Getting an intelligent second opinion

The assessment of patients to decide on the likelihood of them either having or likely to develop chronic open angle glaucoma (COAG) must take into account a great many risk factors and clinical measurements and signs. For this reason, protocols are in place to minimise the ever-present risk of false positive and negatives in the referral process from primary to secondary care. Never has this been more important than in these cash-strapped times.

As we discussed recently (Optician 27.04.18), national guidelines exist, variously in the regions, to ensure that initial assessment is in some way standardised. There are also a range of further refinement or double check processes, again varying between regions, that are aimed at reducing unnecessary referral, though do, however, introduce a second tier of assessment that is not ideal for many cases.