One has to assume that it has been the spare time on everyone’s hands during lockdown that has provided the oxygen to the fire of debate about the future of NHS sight care provision. What normally riles people up only for a few weeks has lasted a good couple of months.
There have been the usual cries of the time now being right to ‘ditch the NHS sight test’ and ‘let the multiples have it,’ but what works for one practice, won’t work for all.
Those that have moved away from NHS care tend to be incredibly successful and highly specialised, with loyal patients in affluent areas. It’s understandable that the owners of these practices will be the most vociferous but it’s important for them to remember that NHS services will have been a fundamental part of their success. Turning their back on the NHS will, hopefully at least, be a decision that provides an internal moral wrangling.
For many independents, NHS testing and care provision is critical to their businesses, but it’s also critical for patients. Logistically, a multiple having a sole contract would make sense, but their coverage would mean many patients wouldn’t be able to access eye care as easily – in some cases, unable to access them at all.
And let’s just say you have moved away from the NHS and spent years building a reputation based on clinical excellence and a menu of pricey diagnostic tests. How are you going to feel when a multiple comes along with its own eye testing marketing communications that don’t align with yours? Those £150 eye exams, thorough as they are, might be that little bit harder to justify.