I must doff my imaginary cap to the Easee team and its founder Yves Prevoo. Not only did they have the conviction to present its online refraction technology to the crowds at 100% Optical last weekend, but Prevoo gave a CPD lecture on how it could be used in the future and the research projects the company had been involved with in mainland Europe.
The way online refraction is viewed by some quarters of the optical industry, Prevoo could have been forgiven for thinking they would have been bombarded with rotten fruit.
It was a slick presentation, with the data on the refraction accuracy and guide of how the system had been used in post-op cataract monitoring. It was also the first time someone had made a convincing argument that online remote refraction could be part of a care ecosystem instead of a platform used by internet retailers churning out revalidations of prescriptions.
When talking to Prevoo afterwards about the progression of Easee and regulation, something he said about his dealings with the General Optical Council struck me as odd, because he said the GOC had not engaged with him or the company at all.
Admittedly, Prevoo didn’t say how he had approached the GOC, but no engagement seemed odd, especially as other companies in the same boat of exploring the boundaries of regulation, like Brillen UK, have previously said it approached the GOC to ensure its model of using optometrists based overseas to provide sight tests and refractions to patients in the UK was workable.
The consultation on possible reform of the Opticians Act is the most important process to happen to the profession in decades, but it’s one that should have taken place a decade ago. Every single member of the profession needs to have their say in the consultation to shape how the GOC approaches policy.