Eye Health

The Association of Optometrists (AOP) has produced information leaflets designed to help patients recognise and treat eye conditions. The leaflets form part of the Association of Optometrists patient resources – a suite of more than 10 leaflets and videos on eye health including sight-threatening conditions such as age-related macular degeneration and glaucoma.

Moorfields Eye Hospital also produced patient information leaflets for a wide range of eye conditions.

The College of Optometrists has published a series of new videos which show various eye conditions from the patient's point of view. You can view the videos here.

Latest waiting times for cataract first outpatient appointment and cataract surgery

In conjunction with ophthalmology services, the CCG will be providing current waiting times for cataract services, so that patients and referrers to the service have up to date information. These waiting times will be updated monthly.

Cataract surgery waiting times

The information below is based on eye care provider’s local data, which is sent to the CCG.

Provider	Clinic type	Average number of weeks from referral received to date of first outpatient appointment	Number of weeks to cataract surgery after first outpatient appointment
SWBH - Birmingham Midland Eye Centre	Cataract	17 days	44 weeks
Midland Eye	Cataract	1-2 weeks	8 weeks
Optegra	Cataract	2 weeks	1 week
Spa Medica	Cataract	8 weeks	5 weeks
University Hospitals Birmingham - Queen Elizabeth Hospital	Cataract	200 days	52 weeks
University Hospitals Birmingham - Good Hope Hospital	Cataract	Limited availability	52 weeks
University Hospitals Birmingham - Solihull Hospital	Cataract	Limited availability	52 weeks
University Hospitals Birmingham - Heartlands Hospital	Cataract	Limited availability	52 weeks
Ramsey - Westbourne Centre	Cataract	10 days	8 weeks

*Current waiting times for February 2021

Community Medical Ophthalmology Service

Patients registered at a GP practice in Birmingham and Solihull CCG can access the community medical ophthalmology service, being provided by Health Harmonie from a range of location across the area:

Birmingham South & West - Lordswood Medical Group, 54 Lordswood Road, Harborne, Birmingham, B17 9DB
Birmingham East & North - Hawthorn Surgery, 331 Birmingham Road, Sutton Coldfield, B72 1DL
Solihull & Central Birmingham - Sparkhill Primary Care Centre, 856 Stratford Rd, Sparkhill, Birmingham, B11 4BW
Solihull (Monkspath Surgery) - 27 Farmhouse Way, Shirley, Solihull B90 4EH.

HealthHarmonie can see a range of eye conditions within the community. They will endeavor to see all patients within 14 days of referral and will offer the patient a choice of time and location that is convenient for them. If HealthHarmonie receives a referral for a patient that they are unable to see within the community, they will onward refer the patient to an appropriate provider within 24 hours of its receipt.

COVID-19 Urgent Eyecare Service (CUES)

Patients registered at a GP practice in Birmingham and Solihull CCG, Sandwell and West Birmingham CCG, Dudley CCG, Walsall CCG and Wolverhampton CCG, can access CUES, being provided by Primary Eyecare Services Ltd.

Access to the service is restricted to telephone booking only

This is an NHS-funded service available for patients with recent onset and urgent eye symptoms. Typical presenting symptoms will be a red or painful eye, foreign body, sudden change in vision or flashes and floaters.

The aim of the service is to provide safe consultations and care via remote or video consultation in order to minimise the need for patient travel and to reduce the risk of infection and transmission.
Face to Face assessment only when needed.
It is for people of all ages – adults and children
Children under 16 years must be accompanied at their appointment by an adult if a face to face appointment is required.
Patients will be referred to the new service by their GP, pharmacist or optician where appropriate
Patients can self-refer into the service. Find a practice in Birmingham and Solihull and the surrounding areas, which is participating in CUES.

Consultation outcomes

The practitioner manages the condition and offers the patient advice and/or prescribes/recommends medication. Management may include a minor clinical procedure e.g. foreign body removal. A remote follow-up consultation may be necessary.
Referral to eye casualty at the local hospital eye service.
The condition (and subsequent referral) is non-urgent and is safely delayed until following the pandemic. A further appointment is recommended e.g. 4-6 months.
The practitioner has concerns that the patient may have a systemic conditionand makes a referral to their GP.
Patient referred non-urgently for further investigation and/or treatment in line with local referral pathways and protocols. Managing the patient expectations relating to appointment availability in the current pandemic.
Where appropriate patients given advice on self-care.

For more information:

New System and assurance framework for eye health system and assurance framework for eye-health (SAFE) – Emergency and Urgent Care

The Clinical Council for Eye Health Commissioning (CCEHC) has published its Emergency and urgent care framework.

This new framework complements the Systems and Assurance Framework for Eye-health (SAFE) on cataract, glaucoma and AMD published in April 2018. It aims at promoting the right commissioning at the system level, so that there is consistency, improved levels of communication and greater integration between services. A strategic systems approach by commissioners is necessary for all these areas to ensure patients are managed by the right person in the right place at the right time.

Read the Birmingham and Solihull eye health sight loss evidence base

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