Archive for April, 2007

Glaucoma co-management: CHANGES

Published April 30th, 2007 by Karen French.

12 months ago I started a new position at Hinchingbrooke Hospital as an ‘optometrist with a special interest in glaucoma’.  This post was created specifically with a view to setting up and administering a glaucoma community co-management scheme.  Glaucoma co-management is not a new idea and several schemes currently operate around the country.  However it […]

Optrafair 2007

Published April 20th, 2007 by David.

 
So, with Optrafair 2007 looming on the horizon larger than ever and it being described as “the definitive meeting place for the UK optical industry and the ideal setting for exhibitors to showcase their latest products and services to a large and receptive audience.” I am very much loooking forward to it.

We have been visiting […]

Emmetropisation: Sins of the mother?

Published April 19th, 2007 by Jane Macnaughton.

For years I have made a conscious effort to discuss the importance of regular eye examinations for children.  I have spent a significant amount of my clinical career within the hospital eye service, working closely with orthoptic departments and latterly have developed a specific interest in paediatric low vision.
So, when I received a letter from […]

Specs on the Net

Published April 16th, 2007 by Peter Chapman.

It has been 3 years now since spectacles were sold directly to the public over the Internet by Glasses Direct.  But why do I make a fuss?  Am I angry that my qualifications are devalued?  That my business is threatened?  Or am I just merely irritated, as like most good ideas: why did I did […]

Prescribing near magnification & acuity reserve

Published April 12th, 2007 by Jane Macnaughton.

As a low vision practitioner I am amazed at how many different ways practitioners calculate the amount of magnification patients require prior to demonstrating low vision aids. With that in mind I have covered one of two of these here with some comments based upon practical experience in the clinic.
1. Using the charts
There is […]

Keratometry Quick Tip

Published April 10th, 2007 by Bhavisha Barchha.

This is a quick tip my supervisor taught me at work.
I previously had problems aligning the keratometer on a patients’ cornea - and she taught me the ‘pen-light technique’ - so thought I would share it with anyone who hadn’t heard it yet.
If you shine a pen-torch through the eyepiece of the keratometer, then the reflections of […]

Eye tumours - Improving our Differential Diagnosis

Published April 2nd, 2007 by Jane Macnaughton.

At the recent Optometry Tomorrow conference hosted by the College of Optometrists in Newcastle last month, I had the pleasure of listening to Professor Bertil Damato, Director of the Ocular Oncology Service at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital, give the annual George Giles Memorial Lecture, ‘Prospects for change in the treatment of uveal melanoma.’
Professor Damato […]

Struck off the Register: No April Fool

Published April 1st, 2007 by Jane Macnaughton.

Here in the UK the first three-year cycle of compulsory CET has ended and the retention deadline to remain on the General Optical Council (GOC) Optician’s Register has now passed.
Under the rules, registrants were required to return the application form with appropriate payment by mid-March to remain on the Register. Following the end of the […]