Devolvement of responsibility for eye health care alongside other health care services has allowed the Scottish and Welsh administrations to develop their own strategies within the auspices of the NHS.
While by no means perfect, there are few that would argue they are making a better fist of it than the structure in England allows, which at best delivers an inconsistent approach from one NHS Trust to another dependent on the priorities of the local CCG.
On posing this question to a certain politician the answer was that it is easier for Scotland and Wales as they have relatively small populations. The implied logic that people who live in countries that have relatively large populations should expect inferior eye care is nonsense. Indeed eye care in some parts of England is arguably at least as good as in Scotland and Wales, but surely that just serves to emphasise that England deserves a national strategy just as much as Scotland and Wales.
In business it is normal to look for best practice and copy it or use it as the basis for further improvement.
What is it about politicians in Westminster that they steadfastly refuse to learn from Scotland and Wales?
On a different note, I am delighted that there has been such great interest in Eye Promise. As the number of Eye Promise practices grows so will awareness grow from the communities that are early adopters into regional awareness, and in time, national awareness.