Presenters at the lecture (from left): Mr Fernando, Consultant Ophthalmologist and Clinical Director, Mr V Shankar, Consultant Ophthalmologist, Mr V P David, Consultant Ophthalmologist, Mr Hanif Patel, Ophthalmic Medical Photographer, Mr M Alarbi, Associate Specialist in Ophthalmology, Catie Reeves, Specialist Optometrist, Deborah Armstrong, Specialist Optometrist and Aftab Ahmed, Specialist Optometrist.
Optometrists from across East Lancashire attended a lecture hosted by the Ophthalmology Service at East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust on Wednesday, to learn more about OCT, Ocular Coherence Tomography.
Hanif Patel, Ophthalmic Photographer, Mr Alarbi, Associate Specialist in Ophthalmology, Mr David and Mr Shankar, both Consultant Ophthalmologists, held a lecture at the Royal Blackburn Hospital site open to optometrists from the area to explain OCT scanning. Specialist Optometrists Catie Reeves, Deborah Armstrong and Aftab Ahmed presented cases where OCT had proved invaluable to patient care.
An Optical Coherence Tomography scan creates a cross-section view of the eye, allowing an optometrist to see the structure inside. More advanced than traditional imaging methods, OCT scanning is useful for detecting sight-threatening conditions, like macular degeneration or glaucoma, that don’t tend to have any symptoms until they start to have an impact on a person’s vision. The non-invasive imaging test is not only more advanced, but is also a safer way for ophthalmologists to access the detailed images of the eye that they need.
As OCT scans become more widely available in the area, in community optical practices and high street opticians the Ophthalmology Service invited staff to the lecture to explain how to interpret the images. Attendees were asked to pay a fee to attend, which has been donated to ELHT&Me, the hospital’s charity. The money will be spent improving patient experience within the Ophthalmology Department, beyond standard NHS funding.
“This event reinforces the strong relationship the local optometrists enjoy with the clinicians at the hospital for the benefit of providing an excellent service to the people of East Lancashire”, said Hanif Patel, Ophthalmic Photographer who delivered one of the lectures.
“We are delighted that the Ophthalmology Service have used their initiative to raise charitable funds in this way”, said Denise Gee, Fundraising Manager at ELHT&Me.
“The money raised from attendees at the event will make a real difference to the department and we encourage staff to ‘think outside the box’ with ways to fundraise.”
“More information about the hospital charity and the work that we do is on our website – www.elht.nhs.uk/charity, and at @ELHTandMe on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.”
