How to find a practice location to apply your skills

Enhanced services are granting eye care professionals the opportunity to use a greater range of clinical skills and help more patients with eye conditions.

Local optical committees (LOCs) are growing in stature under the new commissioning landscape and securing new enhanced services, also known as shared care schemes, each year.

While in the past eye health provision has been deemed something of a Cinderella service in the NHS, representative group LOCSU is setting out to make optical practices in England the first port of call for eye health.

Setting up a glaucoma or cataract clinic can also help secure extra income for the practice at a time when the NHS eye examination fee is showing few signs of reaching its true worth.