Enhanced Services – North Essex

The aim of the service is to provide a patient focused, high quality Glaucoma Referral Service, to provide improved access to service closer to the patients home, as timely as possible and cost effective to North East Essex. The aims of the service will be to ensure that patients are seen in the most appropriate setting, whilst providing choice of provider.

The aim of a glaucoma referral refinement pathway is to reduce unnecessary referrals to the hospital eye service, reducing patient anxiety and increasing capacity within the overburdened hospital glaucoma clinics. This will provide a more cost effective service with a greater number of patients managed within the primary care setting. The referral refinement pathway would allow accredited optometrists to repeat diagnostic tests to confirm the risk of disease and thus improve the accuracy of referrals and deflect unnecessary referrals.

The Post Operatice Cataract Services enables patients to have their post operative care locally and combined with their refraction, helping avoid extra appointments.

The purpose of establishing a Minor Eye Conditions’ Service (MECS) is to allow the assessment and management of recent onset minor eye conditions within the primary care setting. The aim is to provide high-quality eye care to patients, with quick access to advice and treatment from  suitably qualified clinicians in a safe, convenient and appropriate environment.

The aim of the service is to use the skills of primary care optometrists to assess, manage and prioritise patients presenting with an eye condition, improving eyecare services for patients in North East Essex. Where patient referral to secondary care is required, this will be within agreed protocols to a suitable specialist with appropriate urgency.

A MECS examination will provide a timely assessment of the needs of a patient presenting with an eye condition. This will be undertaken by a number of accredited optometrists within suitably equipped premises who will manage the patient appropriately and safely. Management will be maintained within the primary care setting for as many patients as possible, thus avoiding unnecessary referrals to hospital services. Where referral to secondary care is required it will be to a suitable specialist with appropriate urgency.

Patients can be referred or sign-posted to the service by their GP, Pharmacist, A&E or Optometrist or they can self-refer.

The service is for both adults and children; there is no age limit for the service. Children under 16 who attend the service must be accompanied to their appointment by a responsible adult.

The practices below are able to offer paediatric services.

This is a pilot service