Future of profession discussed at roundtable

Key sector organisations attended a roundtable meeting held by The College of Optometrists in London last week to discuss how to prepare the profession for future developments.

The meeting discussed findings from recent reports Foresight and Optical Workforce Survey (OWS) which looked into how the profession will be touched by technologies and changes in the workforce.

Event participants included representatives from organisations involved in each report including the Optical Confederation and General Optical Council, as well as others who will have a significant part to play in the future of the profession.

Julia Manning, chief executive of Foresight author 2020health, said: ‘The health professions need to consider the impact that technology is having on public access to information, diagnostics, understanding and behaviour. It presents an unprecedented opportunity to upskill and signpost the public, for people to actively participate in their health and wellbeing and enable professionals to deal with health needs that truly require their specialist skills.’