Briefing issued on sight loss

Details of how the first ever Public Health Indicator for preventable sight loss will be measured have been welcomed by the optical sector following the release of a new briefing.

The indicator, introduced from April next year as part of the Public Health Outcomes Framework in England, will monitor the major causes of preventable sight loss in adults (News 27.01.12). Public Health England, the organisation responsible for the framework, confirmed plans to assess how many people are certified as sight impaired and severely sight impaired. It will also monitor how many have lost their vision from glaucoma, age-related macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy.