Vision Express eye photo: useful or a gimmick

nedmundo

No ones trying to make extra money out of offering this extra service. All they're trying to do is offer an optional extra service and get it to pay for itself, rather than subsidising it from expensive spectacle sales.

Isn't that how it should be?

I bet your heart bleeds for dentists who make money from people with bad teeth and doctors who make money from peoples poor health as well. Get real! Everything has to be funded somehow.

optometrist

its good to have but not necessary.
The camera will only capture what the optometrist will see.
It is very useful for existing problems at the back of your eyes so it can be documented and then kept in the records so it can be compared to future findings. That is why diabetics have their eyes photographed.
Having said that, if there is a problem at the back of the eye, or something there that needs monitoring, then the patient is usually referred to the Hospital Eye service where all sorts of tests are performed FREE!

Having said all this, it is very good to have and if you compare the cost of that to say a hair cut, or dental costs, having your nails done etc etc i would rather have my eyes photographed, especially because i have seen some of the very poor standards of optometrist and practices.

I used to work for specsavers and all they were interested in were sales. They are not as caring as they make out. If i tested a patient who did not need new glasses (no change in their prescription) I was cross examined by the manager (who used to work in the shoe shop a few doors away) who had no optical, medical or management qualifications what so ever, as to why that patient was allowed to walk away without spending alot of money on glasses super dupa x-ray mega zoom expensively coated lenses!!!

If you have a problem with your glasses and you go back to the store, you will be dealt with the 'manager' who has no optical training, no optical qualifications, and you have to be dealt with by them. They will not let you speak to the optometrist because they would rather have the optometrist testing eyes and recommending glasses than to be spending half an hour with you trying to work out why you are getting double vision with your new varifocals!!!

Its basically a way to get money from you.
Mind you if the government paid more for a sight test then it wouldnt be like this.
An eye test is £20 on average. compare this to anyother service. This optometrist has been to university, done 12-18 months of professional training, had to pass more exams and the cost of his service is £20. and can save your life as certain life threatening problems can be detected.
Go get your nails done, or your haircut and how much is that and how much training did that person have? and will it save your life?

optometrist

Atomised wrote: »

It's a Dentists job to treat bad teeth , an optician doesn't treat a person with certain eye diseases which are looked after by Opthamologists so it is a pointless comparison.
I wouldn't visit my optician for eye treatments , just glasses or contact lenses.

And some sensitivity wouldn't go amiss as losing part , or all , of your sight is a damn more serious than losing teeth.

Eye diseases are only detected by the optometrist.
How would you know if you have an eye disease?
Your GP wont know....any probs with your eyes he/she will advise you to go for an eye examination. Yes its an eye examination, not just a 'sight test'.
Your sight is examined to see if you need glasses etc.... but also ophthalmoscopy is performed which is examination at the back of the eye to DETECT any disorders.
Once something has been detected THEN you will be referred for an ophthalmological opinion where they will DIAGNOSE any problems and then TREAT if necessary.

But these days optometrists are under way too much pressure to sell glasses.
I used to work for specsavers and it was not in their interest to for me to discover that the patient has got swelling of the optic nerve which is a result of swelling in the brain which upon detecting, I will need to send that patient to the eye hospital for ophthalmological and/or neurological opinion. The patient is very grateful but specsavers were not because all they wanted was a sale!!!!!

I have worked for all the multiples but they were they were ther WORST

nedmundo

Atomised wrote: »

It's a Dentists job to treat bad teeth , an optician doesn't treat a person with certain eye diseases which are looked after by Opthamologists so it is a pointless comparison.
I wouldn't visit my optician for eye treatments , just glasses or contact lenses.

And some sensitivity wouldn't go amiss as losing part , or all , of your sight is a damn more serious than losing teeth.

It's an Opticians job to detect eye disease and then refer on to the Ophthalmologist as appropriate. How else would the patient get to see the Ophthalmologist?

jack_spratt_2

optometrist wrote: »

Eye diseases are only detected by the optometrist.
How would you know if you have an eye disease?
Your GP wont know....any probs with your eyes he/she will advise you to go for an eye examination. Yes its an eye examination, not just a 'sight test'.
Your sight is examined to see if you need glasses etc.... but also ophthalmoscopy is performed which is examination at the back of the eye to DETECT any disorders.
Once something has been detected THEN you will be referred for an ophthalmological opinion where they will DIAGNOSE any problems and then TREAT if necessary.

But these days optometrists are under way too much pressure to sell glasses.
I used to work for specsavers and it was not in their interest to for me to discover that the patient has got swelling of the optic nerve which is a result of swelling in the brain which upon detecting, I will need to send that patient to the eye hospital for ophthalmological and/or neurological opinion. The patient is very grateful but specsavers were not because all they wanted was a sale!!!!!

I have worked for all the multiples but they were they were ther WORST

I know this is an old thread but just felt I must comment on your post !!

I think you are doing your profession a disservice !! I am sure some branches of specsavers may run on the lines you have quoted but my experience as a customer has been different ! one time I had a problem and walked into a specsavers branch and was examined at no cost ( I do pay for eye tests) and was referred to my doctor immediately!!

Another time I had an eye test a problem was spotted and then again I was referred to the hospital

The main aim of opticians is to sell spectacles it is a business and it was the governments intention to open the market to allow opticians to compete !!bye and large whether you pay for an eye test or not I think you get a reasonable service
regarding the digital photograph of the back of the eyes it is more common now and if it helps the optician along with the standard tests £10 is a cheap price to pay to protect your eyesight

pmduk

I have to say that my glaucoma was originally suspected by a specsavers optician using equipment provided by them. Another optician had examined me the previous year but didn't possess the visual field test equipment. I'm eternally grateful to him, it still took various ophthalmologists 2 years to confirm the diagnosis