News & Views

On 22 September, the new Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Dr Therese Coffey, set out the Government’s plan to improve patient experience of the NHS in England, outlining a range of measures relating to backlogs, workforce challenges, and digitisation of the NHS. RCOphth Policy Advisor David Murray summarises the key implications for NHS ophthalmology services.

RCOphth has published an analysis highlighting key trends in cataract surgery in England. This includes changes in the number of procedures performed in each region by NHS and independent sector providers.

The way that eye care services are designed and commissioned legally changed in England in July 2022.

Earlier this month, the first-ever Holyrood Eye Health Day was held in the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh. This was a great opportunity to highlight the challenges facing ophthalmology services in Scotland to Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) and the Scottish Government.

To support the College’s work to address the challenges to long term sustainable patient care created by the growing role of independent sector providers, we are inviting members to join working groups on the cataract referral process and the postoperative pathway.

Mel Hingorani is RCOphth Honorary Secretary and Joint Clinical Lead of the National Eye Care Recovery and Transformation Programme (NECRTP) and is a consultant ophthalmologist at Moorfields Eye Hospital. In this article, she reflects in her College capacity on what has been achieved by the programme so far and what still needs to happen.

With public satisfaction in the NHS falling amid rising waiting times and staff shortages, RCOphth President Professor Bernie Chang outlines the urgent need to increase ophthalmology workforce capacity alongside investing in recovery services.