Practitioners must ensure they offer aftercare advice to all patients, however long they have been wearing contact lenses, following research which shows less than half received care advice at their last appointment.
The General Optical Council (GOC) has published research, carried out by BMG, which looks at the views and habits of over 2,000 contact lens wearers. The study showed that only 43 per cent of wearers saw contact lenses as a healthcare product, the same percentage saw them as a lifestyle product and 12 per cent as a cosmetic product.
Alistair Bridge, GOC director of strategy said the research highlighted the need for coordinated activity across the sector to ensure the public understands that contact lenses are a healthcare product and require diligent care. ‘We want patients to receive and follow appropriate advice from their optician to ensure they are wearing their lenses safely and protecting their eyes,’ he said.
When asked only 48 per cent of patients said they were offered aftercare advice at their last check-up, those wearing lenses longest were least likely to have received advice.
The research tested awareness and compliance with good practice in looking after contact lenses through a series of dos and don’ts. 77 per cent reported usually buying in-store compared with 21 per cent who most often bought online. Many bought from a mix of the two with 42 per cent of those who bought online buying from a website linked to a high street store. Around one third bought from online only outlets.
Bridge said awareness needed to raised among the public by the profession and practitioners needed to offer aftercare regardless of where the lenses had been bought.
‘It is also important that registrants remember the need to provide aftercare advice to their patients, especially those who may have worn lenses for a long time and might have slipped into bad habits.’
The research was carried out by BMG, an independent agency, and is available on the GOC website.
