News & Views

Ali Rivett joins the RCOphth from the British Society for Rheumatology (BSR), where he oversaw a period of sustained improvement and growth, helping to support an increasingly diverse, multidisciplinary membership across the UK and overseas.

The Royal College of Ophthalmologists President, Professor Bernie Chang, joined the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Eye Health and Visual Impairment to deliver a presentation on the findings of the College’s 2022 workforce census. Joining Parliamentarians and sector leaders, Professor Chang detailed the extent of the workforce shortages in ophthalmology and the event also saw presentations from the College of Optometrists, the Association of Optometrists, and Guys and St Thomas’ Hospital about workforce challenges and solutions in their areas.

The government has responded to a report by the Health and Social Care Select Committee, agreeing that if medical school places are to be expanded ‘there would need to be the appropriate number of specialty training places subsequently made available for graduates’. With the upcoming Long Term Workforce Plan in England expected to announce increases to medical school places, this clarity is important in potentially paving the way for a much-needed expansion in ophthalmology specialty training places.

Dr Abdus Samad Ansari, Academic Clinical Fellow at King’s College London, is investigating the role of mitochondrial dysfunction and healthy ageing within the eye. Mitochondria are the powerhouse of cells, creating energy to maintain life. Their disruption, through depletion or variation in function, is thought to be involved in the susceptibility of an individual to develop glaucoma. Utilising the TwinsUK Cohort, Dr Ansari will be one of the first to examine mitochondrial dysfunction in a healthy population over time.

The Royal College of Ophthalmologists (RCOphth) and the ophthalmology department at King’s Mill district general hospital (DGH) collaborated on a case study detailing how King’s Mill developed its patient initiated follow up (PIFU) offering in general ophthalmology, and the impact it has had on unit capacity and patient outcomes, as part of a wider set of actions.

This is the first episode of Eye to Eye, the podcast of The Royal College of Ophthalmologists. The first episode launches with two interviews recorded at the RCOphth Annual Congress in May and a special message from the Chair of the Ophthalmologists in Training Group, welcoming new trainees. We'll be hearing from Fahd Quhill, Consultant Ophthalmologist from Sheffield on his research into laser pointer retinal injuries followed by an interview with Jeff Hogg, a registrar from Newcastle who tells us about his work analysing prescribing trends in glaucoma.

The Royal College of Ophthalmologists (RCOphth) has today published the results of its 2022 workforce census, highlighting the scale of staff shortages in NHS ophthalmology services and how they will continue to worsen over the coming years without immediate action. The report also finds increasing concerns regarding the impact of independent sector providers (private companies undertaking NHS-funded services) delivering NHS ophthalmology care.

Ophthalmologists affected by taxation on NHS pensions will be pleased by the government’s announcement of changes to the Lifetime and Annual Allowance, directly aimed at preventing more NHS doctors retiring early or reducing hours. The government also reconfirmed it will shortly be publishing its long term NHS workforce plan.