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The AOP responds to the Government’s Living with Covid strategy in England

6 March 2022

As the Government’s Living with Covid strategy for England came  into force on  24 February, Adam Sampson, Chief Executive of the Association of Optometrists said: “Two years on from the start of the pandemic, we all have to find a way to navigate the realities of living with COVID. As a key part of primary care delivery, we believe applying a degree of caution is more than justified. This is in order to continue to protect patients and optometric practice staff as we enter the new phase of clinical delivery post relaxation of COVID rules. Protecting patients, especially the most vulnerable will remain at the forefront of delivering high quality, safe patient eye care.

For further details read here

Buckinghamshire LOC Latest News

Cessation of Bucks Ophthalmology Out of Hours cover for MKUK / BLMK

Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust (BHT) has asked us to remind practitioners that, effective from 4th November 2024, BHT and specifically Eye Casualty at Stoke Mandeville will no longer accept any urgent or out of hours referrals from Milton Keynes University Hospital (A&E or Urgent Care Services), or any other emergency / out of hours referrals …

6 November 2024

Cataract Post-op Portal

As of June 2024, patients attending for cataract surgery at BHT will be given a printed letter to take their optometrist when attending the post-op refraction appointment. The letter will have their unique PIN code and a link to the secure Medisight Portal. This is to enable BHT to collect post-op visual acuity and refractive …

2 July 2024

AGM 2024 Update

The nominal date and time for our AGM was 8.00 pm on 18th April.  Like last year, no physical meeting was held;  instead, AGM papers were posted on our website and all on our database were given the opportunity to pose questions, nominate committee members and vote for resolutions, online. Three existing committee members, Ahmed …

10 May 2024

Buckinghamshire Community Ophthalmology Service Update

The Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust (BHT) Community Ophthalmology Service has now been running for 6 months, having taken over provision of this service from Operose Health. All patients transferred from Operose to the new BHT Community Ophthalmology Service (COS) who were due an appointment up to now have been offered a face to face appointment. …

9 May 2024

AGM 2024

The 2024 AGM of Buckinghamshire Local Optical Committee will be at 8.00pm on the evening of 18th April. Like last year, we won’t be holding a physical meeting; instead you will have the opportunity to pose questions, nominate and vote for committee members, and vote for the resolutions, online. Papers will be posted on this …

7 April 2024

New general ophthalmic services (GOS) fees for 2024/25

From 1 April 2024, there is new guidance setting out fees for general ophthalmic services, including: ​NHS sight test fee and NHS domiciliary fees NHS optical voucher values continuing education and training payment for 2023, payable in 2024 grant payable to supervisors of pre-registration trainees You can read the guidance here in full. The new fee structure has been updated in …

5 April 2024

Bucks EeRS – activation of Summary Care Records on REGO

Bucks practitioners using EeRS will have seen an upgrade feature on the REGO referral system which will allow a patient’s summary care record to be attached to your referral. Hospital consultants have requested this feature, to provide better care and treatment of your patients and to speed up the triage process of referrals. As with …

18 January 2024

Important Update: Buckinghamshire Community Ophthalmology Service

We are pleased to advise that we are now starting to book clinics for the Buckinghamshire Healthcare Community Ophthalmology service. As a result of the delays to the commencement of the new service, we are partnering with an Independent Sector provider (18 Weeks Support) to assist with some concentrated initial activity for those patients that …

23 October 2023

Covid and Flu Jabs

A Joint Statement from the College, AOP, FODO and ABDO can be found HERE advising that the Flu and COVID autumn vaccine programmes are being brought forward as a precautionary measure following the identification of a new COVID-19 variant. The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation has advised that frontline healthcare workers should be offered a COVID-19 booster vaccine in autumn …

25 September 2023

NHSBSA Provider Assurance Ophthalmic – email address changes

The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) Provider Assurance Ophthalmic team administers GOS contract management, GOS 4 pre-authorisation for adults and Post Payment Verification for ICBs. The email addresses for ophthalmic providers to use for these services have changed.  Further details and the new email addresses here

24 July 2023

LOCSU Latest news

OFNC Meeting with Minister of State for Care

Representatives from OFNC met recently with the Minister, Stephen Kinnock MP and officials from DHSC and NHSE.

19 November 2024

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