MEC ImpactReport 2023 flipbook - Flipbook - Page 15
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New options for patients
Given the benefits to patients,
parents and Moorfields Eye
Hospital, Dr Dahlmann-Noor
saw this improvement in eye
care and treatment being
delivered in the community as
a real success story to come
out of the pandemic. In order
to keep it going, she applied
for a charity innovation grant
to review the success of this
initiative, formalise the advice
and guidance given to GPs
into treatment pathways,
and then look to implement
these pathways as widely as
possible.
All consultants and associate
specialists in the children’s
service across all network
sites developed the original
recommendations, which
Annegret then took forward.
Annegret engaged with a wide
range of key stakeholders, and
turned the agreed guidance
into clear and standardised
treatment advice and
pathways for GPs to follow.
Integrating the views and
needs of such a wide range
of people and organisations
initially proved quite tricky,
but the results have now
been widely endorsed and
were just recently published
by the North-Central London
Clinical Advisory Group. This
means that clear guidance and
treatment pathways are now
in place and available for GPs
in this area to refer to.
Expanding eye health support
The hope is that with this new guidance GPs will feel more confident and empowered to treat
more children’s eye conditions directly in the community. This means better outcomes for children
without the hassle and disruptions of coming to hospital when it is unnecessary, and leaves more
time for the experts at Moorfields to focus on giving children with complex eye health needs the
best possible care.
It took a while, but I think it’s amazing that we managed
to see this through and get it out there. Once we’d cracked
that initial hurdle of reaching a consensus, everyone started
saying how useful it was… if this can be useful for GPs and
other healthcare providers, and help give them more confidence
in seeing and treating children with eye health problems in the
community, then the effort will all have been worth it!
Annegret Dahlmann-Noor, Consultant ophthalmologist and
then director of the children’s service at Moorfields
What’s next?
With North-Central London on board, the next step is to engage
with other healthcare centres in London, with the aim of further
improving this new guidance and seeing it taken up by all six of
the Integrated Care Boards that cover the London area. Annegret
is also hoping they can repeat the process to create similar
guidance for optometrists, who have different supporting needs
from GPs given they are already eye specialists!