Comment: Positive power of the press

Is the profession missing a trick in not picking up on positive stories in the media?With so many bodies purporting to be the voice of the profession are they not missing an open goal by failing to capitalise on this good press?

It may just be coincidence or the papers looking for heart-warming stories to counteract the blizzard of bad news around at the moment but there seems to be a surfeit of positive optician stories in the media.We are all used to the occasional ‘trip to the optician saved my life’ type tales in the press which crop up from time to time but in the last week that trickle has turned into a steady flow.
A young girl in Prestatyn had a brain abscess discovered after her optician noticed unusual optic nerves. A teenager in Peterlee was found to have leukaemia after a pre-reg referred him when he saw huge amounts of retinal bleeding on a fundus image.
While the previous two patients had been feeling unwell, in Bromsgrove a 60-year-old visited her local Specsavers unaware that she had a problem. The optometrist there discovered that she had in fact suffered a stroke and narrowly missed going blind.

Despite the discovery of life saving illnesses, these stories are good news indeed both for the patient and the optical profession.
Even in economic downturns people value their health and what better persuader is there for a visit to the optician than saving your life.
Perhaps the best story of all was brain tumour victim Jonny Cunliffe who has helped a cancer charity make a film raising the awareness of cancer among young people. No prizes for guessing where his condition was first highlighted – at his optician.