Eye test cost differences

nedmundo

The fact is that there is a cost to providing an eye exam which works out as at least £2 per minute. The NHS pays just over £21, which doesn't pay for a lot of time. In this instance, and in the case of discounted or free eye exams, there is a shortfall that has be funded by other means - in these cases sales of spectacles and other optical appliances. This means there will be a pressure to achieve certain levels of productivity to make a practice economically viable. It also means that there will pressures in terms of appointment time, investment in equipment and further training.

The practices that are charging more - are charging a realistic figure to actually cover their costs of providing their services. This means less pressure on time and productivity and more comprehensive eye examinations using equipment that just isn't viable in the types of practice mentioned above. This can translate into less presurised advice and fairer pricing with glasses.

So yes - on the face of it, it can seem that there is a gulf in charges, but in practice, charging the higher fee allows a practice to offer the patient a much more detailed and less rushed experience. If all practices charged the same fees - which type of eyecare would you prefer to have?

For some practices - giving free examinations away is the only way they have of attracting custom. In other words, they have no other USP and give patients no other reason to go there other than because it's 'free'.

You get what you pay for in life and patients are frequently surprised with the difference in experience and healthcare, once they experienced it.

GlasweJen

nedmundo wrote: »

The fact is that there is a cost to providing an eye exam which works out as at least £2 per minute. The NHS pays just over £21, which doesn't pay for a lot of time. In this instance, and in the case of discounted or free eye exams, there is a shortfall that has be funded by other means - in these cases sales of spectacles and other optical appliances. This means there will be a pressure to achieve certain levels of productivity to make a practice economically viable. It also means that there will pressures in terms of appointment time, investment in equipment and further training.

The practices that are charging more - are charging a realistic figure to actually cover their costs of providing their services. This means less pressure on time and productivity and more comprehensive eye examinations using equipment that just isn't viable in the types of practice mentioned above. This can translate into less presurised advice and fairer pricing with glasses.

So yes - on the face of it, it can seem that there is a gulf in charges, but in practice, charging the higher fee allows a practice to offer the patient a much more detailed and less rushed experience. If all practices charged the same fees - which type of eyecare would you prefer to have?

For some practices - giving free examinations away is the only way they have of attracting custom. In other words, they have no other USP and give patients no other reason to go there other than because it's 'free'.

You get what you pay for in life and patients are frequently surprised with the difference in experience and healthcare, once they experienced it.

I did my pre-reg in an independent that was subsequently bought up by a chain. I'll agree there was some differences implemented when the chain came in, we no longer gave photos and a report away with the patient - just the prescription. We stopped charging for repairs but were encouraged to sell a new frame part rather than repair a damaged leg for example.

There were operational differences, the chain provided little gauges for measuring heights and scored us on their use during a mystery shop so our dispensing ruler sat in a drawer unless you ran into problems.

They also implemented a training regime and gave heavy bonuses for each person who had completed this very basic set of 4 or 5 "courses" so everyone was traipsed to Glasgow for a week at a time to learn how the chain wanted the phone answered. It went from personalised service to cookie cutter service but still good service and nothing much changed about our sight tests - we just got a new (better) visual fields machine so that we could administer Estermanns for the DVLA.

I don't know if this is how the chain takes over in Scotland. At the time we were getting £37/£40/£45 from the NHS for a primary test and £21.50 for a supplementary test.