Steve Clark, Domiciliary Optometrist, FODO member and Domiciliary Eye Care Committee

Domiciliary eye care is the most challenging area of eye care in which I have ever worked but also the most rewarding.

People who are unable to visit their eye care provider unaccompanied due to poor health, are often at greater risk of eye conditions like cataract, glaucoma and macular degeneration. But we can do so much to improve the wellbeing and enjoyment of life for people who often have multiple needs.

We go to patients when patients need us. We help correct vision and identify pathology, which helps reduce the risk of falls.

With technological innovation, we can take mobile retinal photographs and perform other advanced diagnostic tests at home, helping pick up eye diseases that would otherwise go undetected. This national service in all four nations is a sight-saver and life-saver for many, and it is an honour to work in it.

We struggled to reach some care home patients during the pandemic owing to tight lockdowns, which has made us more determined to ensure that everyone who now needs help gets it. Meeting the needs of the most vulnerable is a service that must be protected and built upon to tackle inequalities in access to essential eye care.

We want to do this in the years ahead, providing more enhanced eye care at home, and are committed to working with health systems across the UK to develop sustainable models of home care.