Providing accessible services in the far north of Scotland poses challenges familiar to practices in the far south west of England.
Wick, a former Viking town built on fishing and agricultural trade, has for years been host to just one practice – a branch of Scottish group Duncan and Todd Opticians, but this situation is set to change within two months, as we shall see.
Huge catchment area
The area’s sparse rural population means that customers travel for as much as 80 miles to visit the opticians, according to Duncan and Todd’s practice manager, Margaret Mackie. The widespread customer base compelled the Wick practice to choose its frame ranges carefully and offer a flexible service.
She said: ‘As we test such a diverse age group we try to offer a varied range of frames both designer and own brand. We see a broad spectrum of patients across all age groups and we are mindful of this when choosing our ranges of frames. No matter where I have worked, patients are looking for various styles and at different price points. The Wick practice can’t stock every frame or style, so a careful understanding of stock management is an important part of my role.’
In terms of providing clinical services she said that ‘recruitment can be tricky’ – as is often the case in more remote areas of the country. To compensate, experience and diary management was essential, she added.
‘Due to our remote geographic location and limited support,’ Mackie said, ‘the optometrist needs to be flexible. Diary management is a key consideration because we still need to keep spaces for unexpected patient needs and emergencies. We rely on experience and accurate decision making at short notice.
‘Frame reps are reluctant to travel so far north. We rely on our other branches [there are 20 branches of Duncan and Todd] when new ranges become available and use our discretion when ordering online or via an extranet. We also call upon these branches as well as the support of head office when we need reassurance or confirmation on anything. Our ties to the local hospital eye department ensure we can cross-refer and allows them to see patients with any sudden onset of symptoms.’
[CaptionComponent="2288"]Competition arriving
From May this year, Duncan and Todd will face competition. Tony Caffrey, dispensing director of Specsavers’ Dundee store is about to become one of the partners for a Specsavers opening in Wick. The multiple had provided peripatetic services for nine years in the Highlands and Islands before deciding to open the new branch.
Caffrey said: ‘There was so much demand in the two to three days we spent in Wick and the two to three days in Thurso that it made sense to open a store in that area. For people who live in remote communities, it is a real shot in the arm when a well-known and trusted brand comes to their neck of the woods.’
He explained that before Specsavers opened a store in Lerwick in the Shetlands, people had to wait up to three months to have a sight test, while patients in Wick faced a delay of six to eight weeks. ‘It’s not like having a store in the high street, where you can just pop back in the next day,’ he added.
[CaptionComponent="2289"]Fun Facts
• Wick boasts the world’s shortest street, Ebenezer Place (pictured), measuring 2.06 metres, barely one doorway wide.
• The Vikings gave Wick its name from the old Norse ‘vik’ meant ‘bay’.
• Alan Stevenson, the uncle of Treasure Island author Robert Louis Stevenson, built the Noss Head Lighthouse in Wick.
• Wick had the busiest herring port in mid-19th century Europe.
• The Wick Carnegie Library preserves a crocodile, a 1909 gift from Unionist MP, Sir Arthur Bignold.
Who’s in town
Total: 1 (two from May)
Independents: 0
Group: 1 (two from May)
Average costs
Eye examinations in Wick, Caithness, are free through NHS Scotland.
Population
Estimated total pop – 317,849
Highland generally has an older population profile than Scotland with a slightly higher percentage of children, but 49.8% of population is above 45 years, compared with the national average 45.3%.
Community eye care
The frequency of primary eye examinations is determined by age or clinical conditions. Under 16s and 60+ patients are tested annually, and 16-59 year olds every two years.
Patients with glaucoma are checked annually, as are patients with ocular hypertension and diabetes.
Health and affluence
RNIB sight loss data tool on NHS Highland:
•10,630 people recorded living with some degree of sight loss in 2011, or 3.32% of the population. National Average for Scotland is 2.95%
• Average house price in Caithness: £109,442 (Rightmove)
• Number of NHS sight tests by NHS Highland during 2012/13: 107,190
• Expenditure on problems of vision per person: £36.28 (£42.21 Scottish average
• Proportion of overall budget spent on vision: 2.7%.
