In focus: Post-pandemic manifesto

Eye care provision in England needs to move away from the current ‘fractured way of working’ and should be structured on a national level, according to a new manifesto for eye health.

A post-Covid-19 manifesto that proposes ‘radical change’ to how eye care is delivered has been launched by the Association for Independent Optometrists and Dispensing Opticians (AIO).

The optical body said that the NHS would be left ‘stretched, exhausted and ill-equipped’ to deal with a backlog of patient cases after the pandemic and that optometrists were well-placed to help relieve pressure.

It said that the current arrangement between NHS England and primary care optometry was ‘broken,’ which it explained was evidenced by ‘an anachronistic, inappropriate and unrealistic’ General Ophthalmic Services contract (GOS) and fee.