Jeremy Diamond: Sleeping with the enemy?

Turning through the history books, the origins of optometry and ophthalmology as professions in the UK have little common ground: they are separated by centuries. Optometry can be traced back to the 17th century with the charter of the Worshipful Company of Spectacle Makers, but it was not until the beginning of the 19th century that ophthalmology began to be recognised as a speciality in its own right with the foundation of the first specialist eye hospital in London – later to become known as Moorfields.

Since then, both professions have seen rapid expansion largely in isolation from each other despite sharing a common denominator in the mid to late 19th century: the ophthalmoscope, arguably the greatest singular invention in eye care.