NHS Education for Scotland Optometry accredited to deliver professional certification in low vision

NHS Education for Scotland Optometry (NES Optometry) has been accredited to deliver the College of Optometrists’ professional certificate in low vision – the first non-university provider to do so.

The accreditation has come after NES Optometry was commissioned by the Scottish Government to develop a training programme for optometrists and dispensing opticians to deliver a national low vision service for Scotland.

The certificate will feature online skills demonstrations, lectures and quizzes, as well as a practical assessment.

The remote aspects of the qualification have been developed in order to ensure accessibility for optometrists working in remote and rural areas of Scotland.
NES Optometry will use its regional Teach and Treat centres for practical elements of the course.

NES Optometry programme directors, Dr Kathy Morrison and Dr Lesley Rousselet, said that the Scottish Government is “keen to progress work around expanding and enhancing the roles and services provided by practitioners within primary eye care” and that it “understands that it is vital to support developments with good quality training and education.”

Commissioning NES Optometry to provide the professional certificate in low vision is part of its commitment to establishing a national low vision service, they said, and will “enable more consistent service provision across Scotland.”

Lizzy Ostler, director of education at The College of Optometrists, said that the course “will enhance low vision services across Scotland and give patients even better access to a wider range of eye healthcare closer to home.”

She added that the accreditation is “a genuine marker of the quality of the provision on offer” from NES Optometry.

Information on how to apply will be published in due course, the College of Optometrists said.