News that optical practices are becoming the first port of call when members of the public experience an eye problem, was a nice way to fend off the post-holiday back-to-work blues.
For the first time since the General Optical Council began its public perception research in 2015, optometrists have eked out a percentage advantage over GP practices. Admittedly, it’s a slender advantage of 3% (36% and 33% respectively), but it’s important to grab hold of these small wins. After all, only 19% said they’d go to an optometrist first in 2015.
As deputy editor Mike Hale alluded to last week, there’s a lot of mysterious detail in statistics and how they’re collected. For instance, those who chose not to visit an optician first were asked to list the reasons for not doing so, but I think knowing the reasons why more people chose to visit an optical practice first would be equally revealing, if not more so.
While it’s good to remedy things that aren’t going so well, there’s a lot to be said for tapping into and maintaining positivity.
While the pace at which public perception has changed may be best described as ‘glacial’, just like the melting glaciers, speeds have accelerated in recent years. With no hard data to work from, we’re left to speculate slightly as to the reasons why.
Visibility of the sector’s sterling work during the lockdown and restricted movement periods of the pandemic has, in all likelihood, raised the profile of high street optometry significantly. Public facing campaigns from the AOP and ABDO will have cemented the efforts of the industry during this time, but the role of the multiples and their media campaigns cannot be overlooked.
Much of their multi-channel communication in recent years has focused on eye health and how each brand is advancing the level of care on offer with new technology. This resonates with the public and, regardless of your feelings towards corporate optometry, you have to admit that the profile of care is being raised, which can benefit every type of practice.