New Community Ophthalmology service – went live on Saturday 1 December 2018
07 December 2018
Message from Dr Anita Bhatia, Clinical Director for Community Ophthalmology
Dear colleague,
The new service will provide a single point of triage for Community Ophthalmology referrals. This will be available to book directly via ERS. This ERS service name is Evolutio (NGU) – Community Ophthalmology (Eye) Service – BHRCCGs.
Some important things to note:
- This is a Single Point of Access for all Ophthalmology referrals with the exception of same/next day emergencies, cancer and wet AMD referrals
- This is a Triage, and Assessment and Treatment service.
- GPs as well as opticians can refer directly into this service
- All referrals will be clinically triaged by a central team of GOC registered optometrists with consultant oversight.
- The patients will be contacted within 48 hours
- The patient will either be seen at a local optician, or a community service site by accredited optometrists.
- The community ophthalmology provider will see a wide variety of eye problems such as blurred vision, red eye, field defects, chronic poor vision, glaucoma, chalazion. Download the full list of locations from the GP Intranet. The locations list can also be found in the download area below.
- Patients who walk into any of the community locations will be assessed and, if appropriate, referred directly into the triage service by the optician.
- The provider will not see under 18's, 2ww cancer, sudden loss of vision, eye trauma. The list of what the service will see and what is excluded can also downloaded below.
- Evolutio have a clinical advice line open from 8am to 8pm. You can call 0333 015 6677, Monday to Friday.
- You must attach the correct referral form when making the e-referral via ERS. This can also be downloaded below.
- All these forms and details of the services can be found on your respective intranets:
Other points to note:
- If it is more appropriate for patients to be treated within secondary care, the Community Ophthalmology service will manage these referrals and directly book the patient an appointment at their preferred hospital, as indicated on the referral form. Following triage, a letter is sent inviting the patient to contact the service for a patient choice discussion.
- Evolutio will be running clinics from the various locations across our three boroughs. A list of confirmed optician locations is available to download from the GP intranets. The list is constantly increasing as more optician practices come on board. Download the latest list
- A patient leaflet has been developed for the service. You can download this from the GP intranet, and it is also attached.
How to contact the provider
If you need more information about the services, you can contact Evolutio by:
- telephone: 020 3780 7860 (9am to 5.30pm, Monday to Friday)
- the Clinical Advice Line: 0333 015 6677 (8am to 8pm, Monday to Friday)
- email using NHS mail: LCHevolutio@nhs.net
Practice engagement
As part of the new service, we will be providing you with regular communications about the service and where it will be provided from. This will be published on our GP intranets, included in our GP newsletters or directly by email as appropriate.
We would also like to offer you the opportunity for us to visit your practice to discuss the service further if you wish.
Yours sincerely,
Dr Anita Bhatia
Clinical lead for Community Ophthalomology
BHR CCGs
Sab Jenner
Programme manager - Planner Care
BHR CCGs
sabjenner@nhs.net
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