All professionals need to be stimulated and engaged in their work, which may mean learning more about it – or acting in a way that has a large impact.
One of the biggest rewards in my career so far happened when I was doing voluntary work in Ghana. I supplied a 10-year-old boy with his first pair of spectacles. He was -10.00D right and left, and couldn’t do much outside of the house. A pair of spectacles let him see across the road for the first time, and he could now go and help his father as a shepherd. We all need to make a difference.
Sixty-four years ago when the Opticians Act was written, the idea of an ophthalmic optician prescribing drugs, removing a foreign body from someone’s eye, performing a post-cataract assessment, even recommending eye drops let alone supplying them or suggesting dietary supplements, were all things that would have been frowned upon. Today, they are routine and an appropriate use of an optometrist’s time and skills set.
Dispensing opticians are as diverse in their skills set as they are in their socio-economic groups – but their skills should not be limited. A Level 6 registered ophthalmic nurse can embark on a course that gives them appropriate supervised training and qualifications to photograph and monitor aspects of the posterior eye.
Dispensing opticians have a Level 6 qualification and have more than enough understanding and knowledge to undertake this training – but as yet there is no developed pathway despite an appetite amongst our members to seek such training.
I am fully supportive of members who have such an appetite to be able to access this – and any other suitable training – to enable us to better serve our patients.
So long as we are suitably trained, competent and safe, I don’t think there should be restrictions on limits of practice.