It was nice to see optometry get a brief mention recently across mainstream media by Labour shadow secretary for health, Wes Streeting, who used eye care as an example of where resources were wasted.
Speaking on LBC radio, Streeting said all optical practices should have the ability to refer directly to ophthalmology departments, which would save time and money for GPs and the NHS. All very admirable, but I feel it was a bit of a tap-in, because many optometrists do refer directly already, and all do in Wales.
Not only that, but direct referral pathways from community optometrists to ophthalmology services for all urgent and elective eye consultations are already part of NHS strategy and are scheduled to be introduced in September this year.
Now, being scheduled isn’t the same as being implemented, and with the fires currently burning inside the NHS, this could quite easily fall by the wayside. There’s another big stumbling block, which was highlighted by FODO – NHS e-referrals. FODO believes the September date might be difficult to achieve, given the state of the systems already in place. The organisation says it is working with sector partners and NHS England to develop and fund sustainable IT connectivity between primary and secondary eye care. I wonder how realistic FODO thinks securing that funding will be, because the newsletter where Streeting’s appearance was mentioned was followed up with a story with the headline ‘NHS underfunding is putting primary care at risk in England.’
The way the current NHS pay disputes are being handled by the government speaks volumes on its attitude to funding, with any pay increases having to come out of an investment pot that has already been allocated. There won’t be any more coming.
If opinion polls are to be believed, the NHS will be handled by a Labour government by 2025, and although the party has been light on detail on healthcare policies, reform of the NHS has already been floated to test public opinion.
If Wes Streeting is at the helm of healthcare in Labour, I hope he has bigger plans than what’s already in the pipeline.