Academic research is essential to delivering high-quality, equitable eye care. It underpins clinical excellence, drives innovation, and helps ensure ophthalmology continues to meet the needs of patients and the NHS. Research is a core part of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists’ work and purpose.
Research improves outcomes for patients by strengthening the evidence base for earlier diagnosis, safer surgery, more effective treatments, and better long-term visual outcomes. It also supports service improvement through clinical trials, health services research, audit, and surveillance.
A strong academic base is vital to innovation in our specialty, including advances in medical retina, glaucoma, corneal disease, genetics, digital imaging, and artificial intelligence. High-quality research also informs clinical guidelines and quality standards, and provides the data needed by policymakers, commissioners, and regulators to make informed decisions about service design and resource allocation.
Eye health inequalities remain persistent, and in many settings are widening. Research plays an important role in identifying unmet need, understanding variation in access and outcomes, and designing interventions that reduce avoidable sight loss.
The College recognises the importance of developing and sustaining a future workforce that is confident and capable in research. Academic ophthalmology and research-active clinical services are complementary: both are needed to generate evidence and to translate it into routine care. This includes supporting clear academic pathways and opportunities for protected research time, and encouraging the development of clinician scientists who can lead and translate innovation into everyday care. The Wellcome Trust is funding a number of doctoral programmes across medicine and we very much hope that some of this much-needed funding is allocated to ophthalmology research, in addition to support from other funding bodies.
Research should not be limited to a small academic minority. Every ophthalmologist can contribute: by participating in studies, supporting surveillance and audit, applying evidence in practice, and helping to build a culture where research is valued as part of everyday clinical work.
The Royal College of Ophthalmologists is committed to advancing academic ophthalmology and strengthening research engagement across the profession, for the benefit of patients, the NHS and society.