On 20 January, Leicester South MP, Shockat Adam, presented a bill in Parliament to improve NHS eye treatment across England. The bill focusses on a condition called glaucoma which can cause blindness and affects 700,000 people across the country. People of African / Caribbean origin are four times more likely to have the disease than those of European origin.

Eye treatment postcode lottery

Glaucoma causes gradual sight loss and as a result many people don’t notice its early stages. But regular sight tests routinely pick it up. Due to differences in detection and diagnosis practice across the NHS, detection has become a post code lottery. Some areas have NHS glaucoma testing in the community through high street optometrists. But others rely on over stretched hospitals.

Adam’s bill would introduce a uniform national approach to glaucoma testing using qualified high street optical practices. This would take the pressure off hospital ophthalmology departments. The same model already exists in Wales and Scotland and could save England’s NHS £12m annually.

Before becoming an Independent MP, Adam was an optometrist. He has spoken of how the relatively unhurried nature of eye tests gave him ample opportunity to hear the concerns of members of the public.

Speaking about the eye treatment bill, Adam said:

I was delighted to present my bill to the House of Commons with the health minister attending to hear my arguments. I was even more delighted to see it passed its first reading unanimously.

We must end the post code lottery in glaucoma care and introduce a community led approach for testing and diagnosis that would help boost the numbers getting their eyes tested and lead to earlier treatments that would save people’s sight – this Bill will achieve that.

With an ageing population and the number of glaucoma cases expected to rise by more than 40% over the next 20 years, tackling it early is the best way to save people’s sight as well as save the NHS money.

Featured image via the Canary

By The Canary

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