To celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s 70 years as head of state, Optician joined forces with Specsavers to introduce a new Jubilee Vision Award for the 2022 Optician Awards. Entrants – students, trainees and those working within a retail optical environment for less than two years – were asked to spell out how they would like their career to develop over the next 10 years and their blueprint for how the optical profession and business should develop.
Vision Express optometrist Esha Dutta is the proud winner of the award, collecting her trophy at the glitzy annual awards night at the Hilton on London’s Park Lane last November. ‘I had a fantastic time at the awards ceremony. I was very surprised to win but my husband was not; he said he knew I’d win,’ says Dutta. The judging panel praised the optometrist’s ‘impressive personal journey, showing a good understanding of the sector’. One judge said her entry was ‘a blueprint for the passion all professionals should demonstrate.’
Drive to learn
The Canadian started her career as a part-time optical assistant, before being promoted to supervisor and receiving training in glasses and fittings. ‘I realised quickly that I had a good rapport with my patients and most importantly, trusted my judgement. I decided to delve further into the workings of the eye and achieved my dispensing optician certificate alongside my part-time job,’ she says.
Driven by a desire to understand ‘the movement of eyes’ and to expand her clinical knowledge, Dutta immersed herself in the ‘world of vision therapy and visual rehabilitation’, working with patients with ocular motor dysfunctions. Her employer at Perspective Optometry in Vancouver, Canada, observed Dutta’s drive and funded her studies in general binocular dysfunction and learning-related visual problems, enabling her to qualify as a vision therapist. ‘My quest to know and be better brought me to Cardiff University to undergo my optometry and vision sciences degree,’ says Dutta. ‘Although I have only been qualified for less than two years, graduating in 2019, this fantastic journey took 10 years. I hope in the next 10 years I find myself with a much more diverse and clinical career.’
Dutta’s ambitions and goals include furthering her studies in medical retina, dry eye and independent prescribing. She also plans to add laser and surgical techniques to her list of endeavours. ‘Frankly, I’d love to venture into cataracts and Yag laser,’ she says. Through Cardiff University, Dutta, undertook an exchange programme at Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, living in Kyoto for three months in 2018 and attending clinics within the ophthalmology department. ‘It was such an amazing experience to witness a different approach and perspective of optometry,’ she says.
Drawing a comparison between optometry in the UK and the US and Canada, Dutta says: ‘The American system of optometry is very similar to the Canadian way. I feel it is definitely more advanced. Optometrists are known as doctors of optometry and can write prescriptions and diagnose ocular conditions. This approach puts less strain on GPs and hospital staff, as patients are cared for immediately instead of waiting for referrals or an IP optometrist, which is the norm in the UK.’
The profession, Dutta believes, is seen in a ‘somewhat negative light’ in the UK. ‘Many patients with ocular issues consult a GP or pharmacist before seeing their optometrist. Many patients I have seen personally did not know that we could assess their eye health along with their refractive state,’ she says.
At the heart of eye care
While the profession saw ‘many struggles and wins’ during the pandemic, Dutta believes it also addressed how the profession could be improved as it required optometrists to bring an enhanced level of primary care. ‘Practitioners who did not have higher qualifications may have lacked the ability to properly assess certain symptoms during remote care,’ she says.
Dutta says the profession should focus on building the foundation of eye health: ‘Optometrists need to be at the heart of primary eye care. Independent prescribing, medical retina and other courses should be taught at university. The NHS should have a better connection with local optometrists to support patient eye health and ophthalmologists should encourage patients to attend their examinations with optometrists.’
Dutta notes that it does not help that contact lenses and glasses are bought online. ‘Medical devices like contact lenses need a professional, but this falls on the shoulders of the regulators who allow this within our government,’ she adds.
On a positive note, the optometrist believes the profession is changing: ‘I have big hopes that our profession can keep up and, ultimately, rebrand the negative stereotypes that we occasionally encounter. We, as a profession, can do better and as individuals, we need to be better.’