Moorfields Eye Hospital has won an HSJ Partnership Award for Most Effective Contribution to Patient Safety for the virtual A&E service it launched during the pandemic.

It was rolled out within 48 hours of the first lockdown and over 26,000 patients have used the service since, with 78% receiving required treatment without attending in person.

Gordon Hay, service director for A&E at Moorfields, said: ‘The virtual eye A&E platform has revolutionised the way we receive emergency patients, and has been so successful that we will keep it running on a long-term basis.’

Moorfields noted that a study published in eClinicalMedicine found the virtual A&E service delivered safety levels comparable to in-person triages.