Eye Health Care Charity of the Month

Advancing eyecare through pioneering research

Every six minutes, someone in the UK starts to lose their sight. Already, more than two million people across the country live with sight loss – with that number set to double over the next 30 years.

Moorfields Eye Charity raises money for research, innovation and improvement at Moorfields Eye Hospital and the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology (IoO). It supports research breakthroughs, leading education, state-of-the-art equipment, and innovative new approaches to service delivery that benefit patients with sight loss at Moorfields Eye Hospital and worldwide.

“At Moorfields Eye Charity, our mission is to fund pioneering research and innovations at Moorfields Eye Hospital and the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology – driving our understanding of eye diseases forward,” says Robert Dufton, chief executive. “We help to translate scientific breakthroughs into practical solutions that save sight and empower eye health professionals – including dispensing opticians – to deliver the best possible care.”

By supporting pioneering work at Moorfields Eye Hospital and the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, the charity drives progress in understanding and managing complex eye diseases like diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, and macular degeneration. This investment in exploring the intricacies of eye conditions advances scientific knowledge and brings new treatments, empowering dispensing opticians to serve their patients better over the long term.

The charity’s six-year strategy from 2021-27 focuses on advancements in eyecare through pioneering research, first-rate education, patient-centric clinical solutions and supporting staff wellbeing and development. At the heart of the strategy is Oriel, the world-leading centre for advancing eye health opening in 2027 – a partnership between Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, the UCL IoO and Moorfields Eye Charity.

What’s being funded

Moorfields Eye Charity has been instrumental in propelling advancements in understanding many leading eye conditions, including glaucoma, macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy. Through significant investments, the charity has driven innovations in earlier diagnosis, advanced monitoring, and new treatments to slow disease progression and save people’s sight.

The knowledge gained from charity-backed research provides tangible hope for maintaining vision in the face of threats from glaucoma, macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and related conditions. This creates a foundation to translate the latest medical breakthroughs into practical solutions that address immediate and long-term patient needs.

Insights from funded research can help inform dispensing opticians’ training and practices. This pipeline of leading-edge knowledge empowers practitioners to deliver unparalleled patient care at the forefront of ophthalmic innovation. Moorfields Eye Charity is currently funding research to enhance care pathways, including the possibility for expedited optometry-administered laser therapy that could help catch glaucoma early. An optometrist-delivered service has the potential to allow more patients to access the treatment. More information can be found here.

How the charity helps patients

Moorfields Eye Charity is leading the way in improving vision care by funding research and patient care innovations. These efforts have far-reaching impacts on the patient’s experience and the care they receive from health professionals. One focus is enhancing care within hospital eye clinics, including exploring new technologies such as artificial intelligence (Moorfields has access to large amounts of data and eye scans) and training programmes supporting healthcare staff. The charity also supports the development of smartphone apps to assist those managing chronic eye diseases.

Dispensing opticians can use insights from research and new techniques to provide more effective, personalised care for their patients and communities.

The charity’s partnership with Moorfields and UCL is unique, and the highly collaborative working environment within Oriel, the new global eye centre, will turn discoveries into practical treatments faster than ever before, benefitting patients at Moorfields across the UK and worldwide.

Education and training support

The charity is helping the UK’s brightest minds pioneer ophthalmology innovations that will transform patient outcomes through clinical and research training investments, including early career researchers. From clinician PhD projects addressing unmet patient needs to travel fellowships gaining a global perspective on ocular oncology, the charity is committed to developing expertise in eyecare.

Ultimately, this benefits the work of dispensing opticians and the lives of their patients. Moorfields’ and UCL’s knowledge sharing helps dispensing opticians stay abreast of the latest advancements.

Shaping policy

Moorfields Eye Charity has set its sights on influencing investment in eye research and campaigns for change to national policy as a member of the Association of Medical Research Charities. This has been successful in seeing significant recent funding for early career researchers. It also partners with organisations such as Diabetes UK, Fight for Sight, and the National Institute for Health and Care Research, which has significantly improved the eye health sector.

Conclusion

Moorfields Eye Charity’s unique role supporting the world-leading partnership of Moorfields and UCL is enabling them to make great strides in research, innovation and improvements, which is having a far-reaching impact. The charity’s work helps empower eye health professionals to provide up-to-date, high-quality care to their patients by investing in advances in eye research, expertise development, and knowledge dissemination. Together, we move towards a future where innovations, big and small, add up to hope and transform lives affected by sight loss.

Find out more about the charity’s work at www.moorfieldseyecharity.org.uk

To get involved with  fundraising, email Holly Hollis, the charity’s fundraising officer, at holly.hollis@nhs.net