Workplace: A hospital perspective

A s the optical industry evolves following the pandemic and heightened demand due to the NHS backlog, Optician talks to the professionals on the ground. Eye hospitals and clinics discuss workplace challenges, understand workplace challenges, professional opportunities and differences from high street optical practices, including working relationships across primary and secondary care.

Practitioners highlight that the main pandemic workplace challenges revolved around needing to develop alternative solutions to support patients, such as introducing remote consultations, adapting communication with face masks through increased verbal affirmations, as well as improved flexibility overall.

Dr Clare O’Donnell, head of optometry and eye sciences at Optegra Eye Health Care, says: ‘This included our virtual clinics, which were very popular with patients, so much so that we have carried on with these in parts of our service delivery. Naturally, with social distancing measures and temperature testing/screening, there were changes to diaries and workflow in order to keep everyone safe, and, of course, the impact on resourcing when colleagues were unable to work posed additional challenges.’