As the voice of the profession, we work closely with our members, partners across the eye care sector and policymakers to improve public policy so key challenges facing ophthalmology services across the UK are recognised and addressed.
Since our last roundup, we:
- Collaborated with organisations across the eye care sector to launch the UK Eye Care Data Hub. We hope the resource will prove useful for commissioners across the UK as they plan their eye care services. The tool estimates the current multidisciplinary eye care workforce and how these numbers will change based on current trends. It also contains prevalence data for many eye conditions, utilising the more comprehensive (and continually evolving) database that the College has developed.
- Welcomed NHS England’s focus on giving local systems more control over financial spend from April 2026, which we have long argued for. In our response to NHS’s annual planning guidance for 2025/26, we pointed to the fact that in ophthalmology spending on cataract services has hugely increased, particularly because of rising independent sector activity, while funding for services that support clinically higher-risk eye patients, such as complex glaucoma and wet AMD, have been insufficient. A rebalancing of this activity so we ensure best use of limited resources and do more to prevent irreversible sight loss is essential.
- Raised concerns about the stalled rollout of electronic patient records in Wales. We wrote jointly to Jeremy Miles MS, the Welsh Government’s Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, and Sarah Murphy MS, Minister for Mental Health and Wellbeing, to emphasise the importance of resolving this issue to enable more efficient, integrated eye care services and implementation of the National Clinical Strategy for Ophthalmology. Their response stressed that the College would be involved in future discussions around the rollout.
- Welcomed the government’s focus on tackling backlogs but stressed that follow-up appointments require priority, in our response to NHS England’s new elective reform plan.
- Explored the growing importance of artificial intelligence (AI) in ophthalmology, and the role the College will play in this area, in an article published in Open Access Government. This reflects many points in on our 2024 position statement, which outlined that AI tools should be adopted via an iterative process, with ophthalmology services conducting regular audits, quality assurance and inclusive patient engagement to ensure safe, equitable and effective implementation.
- Called for more accessible eye care services for people with learning disabilities, in a joint letter led by charity SeeAbility sent to Care Minister Stephen Kinnock MP. This forms part of our ongoing representations relating to the 10 Year Health Plan for England, for which we also met government officials to discuss priorities this month.