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ESPRIT.COM/EYEWEAR | ET17424-531 V ision N o w A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014

A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014 · single lens add profile of 1.50D. “With excellent optical clarity, at any distance, our new lens is a great opportunity for independents

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Page 1: A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014 · single lens add profile of 1.50D. “With excellent optical clarity, at any distance, our new lens is a great opportunity for independents

E S P R I T. C O M / E Y E W E A R | E T 1 74 2 4 - 5 3 1

Vision NowA National Eyecare Group PublicationAUGUST 2014

Page 2: A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014 · single lens add profile of 1.50D. “With excellent optical clarity, at any distance, our new lens is a great opportunity for independents
Page 3: A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014 · single lens add profile of 1.50D. “With excellent optical clarity, at any distance, our new lens is a great opportunity for independents

NowVisionIn the world of journalism, August istraditionally a quiet month for news andis often termed, ‘silly season’. But in theworld of eyewear and eyecare, certainnews stories have been continuing to makewaves over the past couple of months.

Even if you are oblivious to the current craze for wearabletechnology, from ‘smart’ glasses to 3D and augmented realityspecs, the news that Alcon has teamed up with Google tocommercially develop a ‘smart’ contact lens to continuouslymeasure glucose levels in tears, using a wireless chip andminiaturised glucose sensor, must surely have piqued yourinterest (see news page 2).

Though this, and other similar technology, have been in thepipeline for some time, and there is a long way to go beforesuch ‘medical devices’ are available to the man or womanon the street, it does herald a new era in ‘digital’ eyewearand eyecare that will undoubtedly impact the High Streetpractitioner in one way or another. It will be interesting to seehow this potential new sector develops.

If you’re looking for some good, old-fashioned marketing tipsfor your practice, then turn to page 14 for this month’s ShopTalk brought to you by Eyespace MD, Jayne Abel. When you’rebusy in practice it can often be hard to find the headspace tothink about things like your practice displays, but they arecrucial to your image and can be fantastic marketing tools,as Jayne reminds us. Further business guidance can be foundon page 16 as Andy Clark outlines a planning model to helpmembers get the right work/life balance.

The latest eyewear launches from NEG’s PreferredSuppliers are in focus in our product profile spread on page20, while this month’s Style Spotlight by Joan Gradyshowcases some stunning choices for children. And if youdo find yourself twiddling your thumbs a bit this month,because most of your patients are off on holiday, then whynot plan how your practice team can support this year’sWorld Sight Day Challenge (page 25).

Happy holidays!

Yours, Nicky Collinson @eyestoriesEditorVision Now

Comment

The Editor welcomes letters, articles and other contributions forpublication in the magazine and reserves the right to amend them.Any such contribution, whether it bears the author’s name, initials orpseudonym, is accepted on the understanding that its author isresponsible for the opinions expressed in it and that its publicationdoes not imply that such opinions are those of The PK NationalEyecare Group Ltd. Articles submitted for publication should beoriginal, unpublished work and are accepted on the basis that theywill not be published in any other journal. Acceptance of materialfor publication is not a guarantee that it will be included in anyparticular issue.Copyright © 2014 for Peekay Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved. Nopart of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any formor by any means, including photocopying and recording, without thewritten permission of the publishers. Such written permission shouldalso be obtained before any part of this publication is stored in aretrieval system of any nature.

Vision Now magazine is published by Peekay Publishing Ltd for The PK NationalEyecare Group Ltd, the UK's largest purchasing group for independent opticians.

EDITOR Nicky Collinson BA (Hons)

[email protected]

EDITORIAL PA Sharon [email protected]

FASHION EDITOR Joan [email protected]

BUSINESS EDITOR Philip Mullins FBDO

[email protected]

DESIGNER Rosslyn Argent BA (Hons)

PUBLISHER Michael C Wheeler FCOptom DipCLP FSMC FAAO

The PK National Eyecare Group LimitedManaging Director: Michael DauntClermont House, Cranbrook, Kent, TN17 3DNTel: 01580 713698 Fax: 01580 713450

P&P Litho LtdUnit 4, Mount Road Ind. Estate,Mount Road, Feltham, Middlesex, TW13 6ARTel: 020 8893 3900 E-mail: [email protected]

CONTENTSNews

2 OFNC rejects GOS fees increase5 GOC approves illegal practice strategy7 NEG members enjoy Wimbledon hospitality9 New eye mask released by B+L

11 Summer rental scheme from Heidelberg

13 Developing thoughts Are you prepared?

14 Shop Talk Shaking things up by Jayne Abel

16 Practice managementA business design for life

19 Domiciliary eyecareKeeping up to standard

20 Product profileEyewear stock-take

23 World Sight Day 2014Strength in numbers

25 WCSM perspectivesFighting visual impairment at home and overseas

26 Style spotlightChildren’s eyewear: original and fun

28 Suppliers’ directory

Page 4: A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014 · single lens add profile of 1.50D. “With excellent optical clarity, at any distance, our new lens is a great opportunity for independents

NEWS2

The Optometric Fees Negotiating Committee (OFNC) has rejected thegovernment’s recently announced one per cent increase in fees forservices provided under the GOS contract, but has welcomed an increasedoffer of 2.5 per cent on grants. Following the negotiations with the OFNC,the government last month offered a 2.5 per cent increase on grants forCET and the training of pre-registration optometrists. The OFNC welcomedthis increase. However, no progress has been made on the IT proposals putforward by the OFNC, and the bid for funding that would enable properinvestment in IT.

Claire Slade, chair of the OFNCsaid: “We all understand theneed for tough choices intough times, no one better thanoptometrists and opticians. Wedo this on a daily basis tosurvive and continue to serveour patients. However, wecould not in all conscienceaccept the government’s offerof one per cent on fees in ayear when so many practicesare struggling. I now hand overmy role as the chair of theOFNC to my colleague, Mike

George, who I know will continue the ongoing battle for fair fees forcommunity optical practices.”

New Biotrue ONEday for Presbyopia from Bausch + Lomb is said to offerhigh levels of comfort thanks to a patented Hypergel material and three zone multifocaldesign. Designed for the emerging presbyopemarket, it features asingle lens add profile of1.50D. “With excellentoptical clarity, at anydistance, our new lensis a great opportunity for independents toencourage their existinglens and spectaclewearers looking to beliberated from theirglasses,” said JoseCortesia, Bausch +Lomb Vision Caremarketing manager. “The UV block, and ease of fitting, is an addedattraction to dispensing Biotrue ONEday for Presbyopia.

“Research shows that 70 per cent of presbyopes cite the need for goodnear and intermediate vision as a priority for their work, particularly forsmartphone and iPad use,” Jose continued. “The reduced blink rate when

NEWSusing these devices can be an issue for contact lens comfort but the newlens mimics the effect of the tear film lipid layer, matching the cornea’swater content all day. We believe this new lens ensures that presbyopesstay in contact lenses and other new wearers will be attracted to themodality.” Trial sets, posters and point-of-sale, plus customer letters for thepatient database to promote the lens, are all now available.

CooperVision has been awarded the accolade of runner-up in the HealthiestWorkplace category at this year’s Britain’s Healthiest Company Awards, acollaboration between the Sunday Telegraph, PruHealth with Vitality andconsulting firm, Mercer. With 88 companies and over 27,000 employeestaking part, CooperVision was recognised at an awards ceremony lastmonth for its outstanding commitment to the wellbeing of its employeesthrough its distinctive ‘Wellness’ programme. CooperVision manufacturingHR director, Andrew Brown, said: “We are thrilled to be named runner-up inthe Healthiest Workplace category at this year’s awards and it’s fantastic toknow that our Wellness programme is having such a positive impact on our employees.”

Alcon has entered intoan agreement with adivision of Google toin-license its ‘smartlens’ technology for allocular medical uses.The agreement withGoogle [x], a teamwithin Google thatfinds new solutions to“big global problems”,provides Alcon with theopportunity to developand commercialise the technology, whichinvolves non-invasive sensors, microchips and other miniaturisedelectronics embedded within contact lenses.

“Alcon and Google have a deep and common passion for innovation,” saidJeff George, division head of Alcon. “By combining Alcon’s leadership in eyecare and expertise in contact lenses and intraocular lenses with Google’sinnovative ‘smart lens’ technology and groundbreaking speed in research,we aim to unlock a new frontier to jointly address the unmet medical needsof millions of eyecare patients around the world.”

1 Optometric Fees Negotiating Committee

2 Bausch + Lomb

Claire Slade

3 CooperVision

4 Alcon

New option for presbyopes

Bringing smart lens technology to market

Jumping for joy at CooperVision HQ

Page 5: A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014 · single lens add profile of 1.50D. “With excellent optical clarity, at any distance, our new lens is a great opportunity for independents
Page 6: A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014 · single lens add profile of 1.50D. “With excellent optical clarity, at any distance, our new lens is a great opportunity for independents

OCT isn’t everything...

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Page 7: A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014 · single lens add profile of 1.50D. “With excellent optical clarity, at any distance, our new lens is a great opportunity for independents

The new Eye Education app from Johnson & Johnson Vision Care allowspractitioners to access accredited 10 minute bite-size learning in a coupleof taps via their smartphone or tablet device. Marcella McParland, Johnson& Johnson Vision Care director, professional affairs, UK & Ireland, said: “Weknow that eyecare professionals are increasingly digitally-minded, withmost of them already using mobile devices in both their professional andpersonal lives. We also know that they are busier than ever, often jugglingmultiple patient and practice demands with the need to completemandatory CET. This new Eye Education app is the smart way to obtainthose all-important CET points.”

Carrera and Jimmy Choo have launched an exclusive capsule collection ofCarrera by Jimmy Choo sunglasses for men, following the success of theirwomen’s capsule collection of sunglasses launched last year. This marksJimmy Choo’s first foray into men’s eyewear. Carrera’s latest best-seller,the Carrera 6000, with its distinctive shaped temples, will be presented inthree finishes, combining high performance in a fashion forward aesthetic.The extraordinary work in The Optyl material allows the use of silks, which are injected into the sunglasses, featuring contrasting colours andcamouflage prints with hidden burlesque silhouettes. The capsule collectionwill be featured in the new Jimmy Choo autumn/winter 2014 men’scampaign starring British actor and Game of Thrones star, Kit Harington.

Inspirational Warwickshire fundraiser, Debbie White, 49, has helped toorganise a golf day for the past 20 years for a charity close to her heart.

NEWS 5

The 20th Fight for Sight golf day, held at Stoneleigh Deer Park Golf Club on2 July, raised nearly £18,000 for the charity with more than 27 teams takingpart, including ex-snooker player and sports commentator, Willie Thorne.

Debbie, who has lived with Usher syndrome for the past 40 years, has beeninvolved with the Warwickshire Fight for Sight committee for the past twodecades, raising nearly £300k for the charity. To mark this milestone, sheset herself a personal challenge in 2013 and pledged to raise £20k. To dateshe has raised more than £24k, which she revealed whilst golfers enjoyedthe dinner and auction. Debbie said: “I would like to thank everyone for theamount of support and generosity people have shown over the years. Here’sto supporting Fight for Sight and creating a future everyone can see.”

The General Optical Council has officially approved a new strategy fortackling illegal practice in the optical sector. The strategy covers all types of illegal practice prohibited by the Opticians Act 1989, frommisrepresentation of title to online contact lens sales that do not complywith UK law. The GOC will now take a proactive, multi-pronged approach toreducing public harm by raising awareness among contact lens wearers ofthe need to follow aftercare advice and have regular check-ups, promotinga code of practice for online contact lens suppliers, acting on complaints inline with its prosecution protocol and strengthening its collaboration withother bodies with a role in enforcement and promoting public health.

Shamir is offering independent opticians the opportunity to win severalgreat prizes with all Glacier Plus coated lenses. Shamir Glacier Plus is anadvanced substrate matched anti-reflection coating that is said to improveoptical performance and cosmetics by providing a low reflection rate,superior hydrophobic and anti-static properties, along with superiordurability. Shamir is so confident in the performance and longevity of thiscoating that it comes with a lifetime guarantee. All Shamir lens orders,including the Glacier Plus coating, received before 30 November will bedispatched with a scratch card and the opportunity to instantly win one ofseveral great prizes.

* Shamir celebrated its 10 millionth lens order by rewarding the spectaclelens wearer with a bottle of champagne. Mrs Clark is pictured with practiceowner Nigel Coley of NP Coley Opticians where she purchased her lenses.

5 Johnson & Johnson Vision Care

6 Safilo

7 Fight for Sight

Men’s capsule collection collaboration

Lucky 10 millionth lens customer

Debbie White with Willie Thorne

9 Shamir

8 General Optical Council

Page 8: A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014 · single lens add profile of 1.50D. “With excellent optical clarity, at any distance, our new lens is a great opportunity for independents

MODEL WEARS CAMEO TORNADO

0151 426 3907continental-eyewear.co.uk

SILMOPARISSEPTEMBER 26TH-29TH

Page 9: A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014 · single lens add profile of 1.50D. “With excellent optical clarity, at any distance, our new lens is a great opportunity for independents

NEG members, James Bull, David Bull and Kate Bull, all from DJ BullOptometrists in Burnham-on-Sea, Somerset, and Chrissy and Jeremy Davisfrom Davis Optometrists of Kettering, Northamptonshire, were among agroup of Rodenstock customers who enjoyed VIP hospitality at this year’sWimbledon tournament. Customers were treated to three top class days oftennis, including the women’s singles final and the epic five set men’s finalbetween Federer and Djokovic.

Host Damien Klevge, frame product manager at Rodenstock, said: “Ourguests were delighted to join us and be a part of such an excitingtournament. We have all been left with thrilling memories.” The company’sWimbledon Rewards Promotion continues until 30 September. Each pair ofsunglasses ordered is rewarded with points – the higher the value ofsunglasses, the higher the points. These can be redeemed for a range ofprizes at the end of the promotion.

Children are more afraid of living with blindness than dying from cancer,according to the Macular Society, which says children should be givenclearer warnings that smoking dramatically increases the risk of blindnessbecause that may be an effective way to put them off cigarettes. Around600 UK children start smoking every day, statistics say. The MacularSociety says they are being kept in the dark about the damage tobaccocould do to their sight. The Society is criticising the slow progress inimplementing an EU directive to put sight loss warnings on cigarettepackets, which was first agreed in 2012.

A recent survey of 10-year-olds found that 98 per cent did not know thatsmoking increases the risk of blindness. They ranked blindness as the‘most feared’ consequence of smoking, ahead of heart disease, stroke andeven lung cancer. The charity has launched its own campaign, ‘Is it real?’(www.is-it-real.org), using a series of unsettling videos created for viralsharing and will target one million children who use the schools’ rewardplatform, VivoMiles.com, and a further 1.6m through cinema advertising.

Parul Desai, consultant in public health and ophthalmology at MoorfieldsEye Hospital, is the first woman to be appointed to the prestigious role ofMaster of the Oxford Ophthalmological Congress. First established in 1909,the congress is one of the oldest and largest meetings of ophthalmologistsin the UK and Europe. Parul said: “It’s a wonderful honour and privilege todo this and to follow in the footsteps of an august body of people who have

NEWS 7

been masters before me. Iam both thrilled and alittle bit terrified at theprospect.” The mission ofthe congress, which datesback to its formation, is“for the cultivation of thespirit and good fellowshipand of unconventionality,the right of our youngestmember to rank with hisoldest colleague” and “thefrank, free and tolerantdiscussion of scientificmatters.” Parul believesthat it is this mission which remains the congress’s great strength and verymuch to the forefront of its activities today.

An Optrafair 2015 action group has been formed to build a fresh dynamismto the show. Led by show owner, the Federation of Manufacturing Opticians(FMO), the group is comprised of frame, lens, technology and IT companyexhibitors, plus decision makers who are experienced in the exhibitionworld. Examining both the exhibitor and visitor expectations andexperiences, the group is looking at marketing initiatives, the importance ofpre-show marketing and product launches. A greater emphasis onbusiness and allied fields are to be encouraged, plus a close examinationof the delivery of education.

“The enthusiasm and commitment of the group is exceptional and signalsthat Optrafair 2015 is going to open many eyes to new aspects of

business and clinical care,” saidOptrafair chairman, MalcolmPolley. The show launch on 17 September at the NECBirmingham, which is gearedtowards all exhibitors andpotential exhibitors, will exploremany of the new concepts.Guest speaker Simon Naudiwill present on advanced salestechniques and maximising acompany presence, regardlessof size, at the show. His book, The Gentle Art of FirmPersuasion, is a reference pointfor much of his sales planningand psychology. To reserve aplace email [email protected]

The Institute of Ophthalmology at University College London (UCL) andMoorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is set to be the first partnershipto offer a College of Optometrists higher qualification. The ProfessionalHigher Certificate in Glaucoma will be delivered as part of a PostgraduateCertificate in Advanced Clinical Optometry (Glaucoma). It is hoped that thefirst students will be admitted from January 2015. Jackie Martin, director ofeducation at the College of Optometrists, said: “The College’s growing rangeof higher qualifications opens up new opportunities to optometrists,practices and clinics and training providers. A partnership approach todelivering the qualifications is a great way to ensure the balance oftheoretical and practical skills, enabling more training providers to deliverthe qualifications and increase access for learners.”

10 Rodenstock

12 Moorfields Eye Hospital

From left, the Bulls with Damien Klevge, and Chrissy and Jeremy Davis

14 College of Optometrists

13 Federation of Manufacturing Opticians

Simon Naudi

11 Macular Society

Parul Desai

Page 10: A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014 · single lens add profile of 1.50D. “With excellent optical clarity, at any distance, our new lens is a great opportunity for independents

Introducing VSP® Vision CareUK’s New Independent Optometric andDispensing Optician Network

Discover how you can:

• Increase your revenue through greater patient fl ow

• Increase visibility through VSP’s marketing eff orts and referral process

• See more patients with money to spend specifi cally on eyecare

• Continue to provide the same personalised, high quality care

VSP has always been committed to innovation and providing the best products and services to help people see.

Find out how VSP Vision Care can help you grow your practice.

Visit vsp-uk.co.uk for more information.

©2014 Vision Service Plan. All rights reserved.VSP is a registered trademark of Vision Service Plan.

Page 11: A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014 · single lens add profile of 1.50D. “With excellent optical clarity, at any distance, our new lens is a great opportunity for independents

Research suggests that up to 20 per cent of the population experiencediscomfort when viewing certain patterns. This includes text, which canmove, flicker, merge and underline. Referred to as Meares-Irlen syndrome,sufferers may be labelled as underachievers with behavioural, attention ormotivational problems. The ReadEZ system has been developed byProfessor David Thomson and Thomson Software Solutions in collaborationwith Norville Optical. The software is already in use in over 500 practicesand schools. The system provides a simple, efficient and cost-effective wayof determining the preferred colour of tinted lenses and providing these ascoloured clip-ons for those who already wear spectacles, or as afocalspectacles and prescription lens spectacles.

Following the retirement of Stephen Remington, chair of the UK VisionStrategy England Implementation Group, two joint chairs have beenappointed: John Thompson, chair of the Lay Advisory Panel at the Collegeof Optometrists, and Peter Corbett, chief executive of the ThomasPocklington Trust. John Thompson said: “I am looking forward to workingwith partners in new and innovative ways to ensure the UK Vision Strategyis put into action across England. I believe the group can achievemeaningful and lasting change to improve the eye health and sight losspathway over the next four years.”

Susan Bowers will give her BritishContact Lens Association (BCLA)Presidential Address on 24 Septemberat the Royal College of Physicians,London. Her talk, ‘A vision of thefuture: children and contact lenses’,is approved for one CET point for CLOs in three competencies(communication, contact lenses andocular examination) and foroptometrists in four competencies(communication, contact lenses,ocular disease and binocular vision).Susan has chosen the subject ofprescribing contact lenses to childrenand young people and will discussthorny subjects such as: how many ofyour young myopes have increasingmyopia?; and is hypermetropic eyelength growth a dream, or a reality?

NEWS 9

The evening starts at 6.30pm with welcome drinks and is free for BCLAmembers, who can take one non-member guest each. Register atwww.bcla.org.uk

Essilor has committed to support Vision Aid Overseas (VAO) in its deploymentof a major three-year programme based in south central Ethiopia that isbeing co-funded by the UK Department for International Developmentthrough a Global Poverty Action Fund (GPAF) grant. The pledge is in line withthe Essilor Group’s strategy to meet the vision needs of people in everyregion of the world, and particularly the 2.5 billion people who need visioncorrection and currently do not have it. The VAO GPAF programme isfocused on providing access to eyecare to people living in five districts ofsouth-central Ethiopia where poverty and poor health are endemic. EssilorMD Mike Kirkley said: “We are delighted to be supporting this newprogramme undertaken by the Vision Aid Overseas organisation. We haveenjoyed a long-term relationship over many years, driven by our commongoal to help improve lives by improving sight.”

Soothing relief for meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD), dry eye symptoms,styes, tension headaches and sinus pain can be provided by the newBausch + Lomb Eye-ssential mask. The patented Thera Pearl technologydelivers a choice of hot or cold therapy, following freezing or microwavingfor the most appropriate treatment. When hot, the mask encourages bloodflow and healing, providing soothing relief from MGD, dry eye symptoms,styes and blepharitis. The mask’s ice therapy constricts blood flow andslows swelling relieving tension headaches, sinus pain, dry eyes, allergiesand puffy eyes.

Alleviating troublesome symptoms, sometimes with the help of medication,this re-usable mask is an attractive and easy to use option for manypatients, believes Bausch + Lomb OTC marketing manager, Valerie Steiner.“Our new Eye-ssential mask is a valuable extra tool in the armoury oftreatments for dry eye, blepharitis, MGD and puffy eyes. Patients whoreport tension headaches may also find relief through the use of the chilledmask,” said Valerie. The masks are supplied in packs of six in an attractivecounter-top display.

15 Norville Optical

18 Essilor

16 Vision 2020

Reading with greater ease

17 British Contact Lens Association

Susan Bowers, BCLA president

Soothing option for MGD and dry eye

19 Bausch + Lomb

Page 12: A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014 · single lens add profile of 1.50D. “With excellent optical clarity, at any distance, our new lens is a great opportunity for independents

THREE LABS

national coverage

THE INDEPENDENT LABS

supporting the

Independent

Optician

Lenstec Limited

Unit 8

Bedwas Business Centre

Caerphilly

Mid Glamorgan

CF83 8DU

Customer Services

Tel: 02920 883009

Fax: 02920 889798

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.lenstec.co.uk

Tant Laboratories Limited

17, Twyford Business Centre

London Road

Bishop’s Stortford

CM23 3YT

Customer Care Team

Tel: 01279 653785

Fax: 01279 755623

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.tantlabs.com

Rawdon Optical

1-5 Clayton Wood Court

Leeds

LS16 6QW

Customer Services

Tel: 01132 883094

Fax: 01132 883082

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.rawdonoptical.co.uk

SALES TEAM

Martin Burroughs Sales Director Mobile: 07860 840567 Email: [email protected]

Matthew Maguire Sales Manager Mobile: 07914 857464 Email: [email protected]

Craig Sandvig Sales Manager Mobile: 07814 824149 Email: [email protected]

Page 13: A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014 · single lens add profile of 1.50D. “With excellent optical clarity, at any distance, our new lens is a great opportunity for independents

Bollé is sponsoring the British Sailing Team as Official Supplier ofperformance sunglasses and prescription eyewear for a third term up untilMarch 2017. The company has worked in partnership with the BritishSailing Team since the Beijing 2008 cycle. Using the very latest opticaltechnology and polarisation, Bollé will provide team members – sailors,coaches and support staff – with eyewear from its Marine sunglassesrange, which offer either Polarised Offshore Blue lenses for all-day comfortin harsh sunlight or Polarised Inland Gold lenses to enhance contrast inlower light conditions.

Bollé optical specialist, Craig McNeil, worked with team members recentlyin Palma to consult on their eyewear needs. He said: “We are proud that theBritish Sailing Team has chosen to wear Bollé. Our lenses will help toenhance the vision of the team and offer them maximum protection fromthe challenges they face daily on the water – including harsh glare, lowlight and poor visibility from water droplets.” Our photograph shows LukePatience and Elliott Willis competing at the Sail for Gold Regatta 2014(courtesy of Paul Wyeth/RYA).

Pro-Optic is offering a summer time promotion with the launch of 12 newstyles in its Maggie Rouff collection. The frames are drawn from theParisian fashion designer, Maggy Rouff’s belief that ‘elegance is a way oflife’. With metal and acetate combinations, the classical frames have beendesigned to create an extravagant look, using the latest colours or discreettones. NEG members will receive two free pairs with orders of 12 frames,or five free pairs with orders of 20 frames, along with the usual memberbenefits. The 12+2 promotion is also available with the Free Form Eyewearcollection, which includes six new models for the summer.

Heidelberg Engineering has introduced a special summer rental pricingscheme for its Spectralis OCT to facilitate the technology’s introduction.“This is a gentle way to ease into OCT, during the summer months, whenthere is some time to learn about the technology,” said regional businessmanager, Tosh Vadhia. “This opportunity enables OCT to be profitable withfar fewer patients during the quietest time of the year. We know that manypractices will like the technology once it becomes an integral part of theeye examination, and for this reason practices can opt out of the rental

NEWS 11

scheme and purchase at any point.” On 26 September, clinical programmemanager, Chris Mody, will provide a foundation day’s instruction in usingOCT at the Heidelberg Academy in Hemel Hempstead. Email [email protected]

The Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use has recommendedthat Eylea (aflibercept solution for injection) be approved for the treatmentof visual impairment due to diabetic macular oedema (DMO). Eylea is anestablished treatment for other eye conditions that could offer patients withDMO significant visual benefits – from start of treatment, without the needfor strict monthly hospital visits (after a five monthly initial loading doses),potentially reducing the burden of treatment for patients already having tomanage their diabetes, said manufacturer Bayer. A final decision by theEuropean Commission is expected in the coming months.

Dr Sobha Sivaprasad, consultant ophthalmologist at Moorfields EyeHospital and King’s College Hospital London, said: “Early diagnosis andeffective treatment of visual impairment due to DMO is paramount toensure sight is saved, so having another treatment option available that hasshown significant visual gains will be good news for patients andophthalmologists.”

Norville is offeringthis display standand branded ballwith orders of sixmodels or more fromits Progear sportsprescription gogglesrange. Approved towear by the FootballAssociation, Progeargoggles are said to offer the idealprotection and comfortwhilst playing football and other sports. The head-strap model is available in threesizes: EG-S 1011 (sixyears+), EG-M 1021(nine years to teen)and EG-L 1031 (adult).

This goggle features soft nose pads and temples to increase protection,and the design includes a raised rear bevel to reduce the risk of the lensbeing knocked through. Norville recommends glazing with polycarbonateor Trivex lenses for best protection.

21 Pro-Optic

Sports goggles offer

23 Bayer Healthcare

24 Norville Optical

Easing into OCT

22 Heidelberg Engineering

Performance eyewear sponsorship

20 Bollé

Page 14: A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014 · single lens add profile of 1.50D. “With excellent optical clarity, at any distance, our new lens is a great opportunity for independents

EYEWEAR

P’8261 Glasses | www.porsche-design.com

For more information please contact 01474 325 555

Page 15: A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014 · single lens add profile of 1.50D. “With excellent optical clarity, at any distance, our new lens is a great opportunity for independents

PRACTICE MATTERS 13

● ● ● ●Developing thoughts Phil Mullins

pushes you up the search list, it gives new patients an insight into yourpractice. A good idea is to link your website with others, so make sureyou’re working with the SPECS network or the Essilor programme wherepatients use their sites to search for local opticians.

A big mistake on some optician sites is that they are too clinical, with longexplanations about AMD or glaucoma. You need to keep it simple and useimages and videos where possible; the site is to give the viewer anoverview of you and your practice and to encourage them to book anappointment with you – not to send them to sleep.

Diarise your practice promotions

Now you have your virtual shop window, you need to match your real frontwindow the same message. There really is no point in having a greatwebsite if your practice looks like the showcards haven’t been changedsince 1979 and it is being used as a fly cemetery. Plan a 12-monthprogramme of activity; and I don’t mean half price or BOGOF. Look at thecalendar; there will be certain obvious ideas, such as Christmas and Easterdisplays and so on, but in optics there are other markers, such as lateAugust early September back-to-school campaigns. As the nights draw inaround October, why not focus on progressives; July is getting ready forholidays, so daily wear contact lenses or sunglasses should be to the fore.Add in to this sports vision, driving and blue light and it won’t be long beforeyou have a series of six to eight-week campaigns.

Once you have your promotional calendar sorted you need to make sureyou have the materials you need; these could be from NEG Buddy whichcan take all the worry out of pulling the items together, or it might be a localgraphics company. Either way, get an expert to help you because it willmake a massive difference to your business. Make sure that your websiteand your window have the same message, and include it in your recallletters, newsletters and marketing postcards. Have POS in the practice thatsupports the message; most suppliers are more than willing to help youwhere they can, so make the most of it.

One thing you need to remember is that first impressions count, so yourwebsite and your front window need to look professional (no homemadeposters please), show that you are a quality practice and that you can betrusted with patients’ eyecare. So it’s worth taking the time to prepare yourprogramme, sort the materials and put it into action. And remember: youdon’t have to do everything yourself, you may have a member of staff whocan do a lot of the work for you. Simply sit down with them, plan yourmessage and then empower them to do the rest. But always bring in theexperts when you need to.

Over the years I’m afraid I’ve seen too many independent opticians ultimatelyfail because they didn’t spend enough time planning and preparing for therunning of their business and, instead, spent too long in the consultingroom doing the job. That’s not to say that the hands-on aspect isn’timportant, but it’s all about balance, spending time on your business aswell as in your business.

One of the main areas where practices don’t spend enough time and energyis attracting the next new patient. So often I have heard: “We don’t need toadvertise as we are fully booked for six weeks”; or “We rely on personalrecommendations”; or even worse: “We can’t afford to advertise”. Now allthree of these statements may have some truth about them, but what you have to remember when attracting new patients is that it doesn’t have to be all about promotions and offers. Price is one hook used bybusinesses to attract customers, but if you’re in the market where priceisn’t the overwhelming reason why someone would choose you, then don’tpush price.

The recent Which? report has independent opticians at the top for value formoney, which doesn’t have anything to do with cheap but everything to dowith a complete package of care. But if the diary is full, why does it matter?Well there are two issues here: first, the diary is full but full of what? If it’sexisting patients coming back for their NHS annual examination, thenyou’re going to lose money because many of them won’t dispense – andwe all know the NHS fee doesn’t cover costs. Secondly, the diary is full nowbut what about next year or the year after, or even in five years? If you havean ageing patient database then your practice has a limited lifespan unlessyou top up with new patients.

Getting your virtual habitat right

Now I’m not suggesting everyone goes out and spends thousands onadvertising in the local magazine or at the cinema or on the radio, becauselet’s face it, it will cost a lot of money and you are very unlikely to see agood return on investment (ROI). Instead, with a little planning and a gooduse of material already available, you can promote your practice to newpatients. Firstly, look at where potential new patients might see you. Themain touch-points are on the web and on the High Street, i.e. your ‘virtual’front window and your ‘real’ front window.

People’s first response to needing information is to go online – even if it’sjust to ask their fiends on Facebook or Twitter – so it’s imperative that youhave a good website. You don’t need to have an all-singing, all-dancing site,just a well laid out, easily navigable site with regular updates andinformation. A practice video can be a real asset on a site as it not only

ARE YOUPREPARED?

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SHOP TALK14

balls and rackets in June, colourful oversized baubles at Christmas andfunky wallpaper anytime. The department stores employ people to do thisprofessionally so look around, there really are ideas everywhere.

Inviting and inspired interiors

Once inside the practice, the lighting and general ambience is extremelyimportant; it has to feel inviting. It’s always a good idea to have thereception desk set a little further back so that customers can browse anddon’t feel like they have to speak to anyone immediately. Flowers onreception and a friendly face sporting fabulous eyewear are always awinner and help promote the merits of good frame selection. There shouldbe clear segments of eyewear for men, women, children and sunglasses.Don’t fall into the trap of putting all your budget frames at the front of thepractice; place them in a clearly designated area towards the back andmove the sunglasses to the front during prime season.

Don’t forget it can be quite daunting entering a practice with hundreds ofpairs of frames, so again make sure it’s visual and has a sense of branding.If you have a column system, display the frames in clear drops of the

In truth, I love the independent practice; the colour and variety of frames,the contact lenses neatly stacked, the beeps and shuffle of equipment, theclicks of the lenses, the sound of the frame heater and even the smell ofthe lens cleaner. After years of working in practices nationwide as areceptionist, contact lens fitter and optometrist I feel instantly at homewhen I walk into a practice. Combine this with the fact that I was meetingclose friends and lovely people, a reflection of the optical industry, I wassecretly very much looking forward to this particular meeting.

On arrival, the first thing that struck me was that it really was next to amajor multiple. They shared the same wall, something which must be toughon a day-to-day basis. I’ve worked in independents and multiples alike andthey both have their well-deserved merits. The golden rule is: don’t try tobe something you’re not, and be true to yourself. It’s your practice and youneed to create your own identity.

Window to world of opportunity

The ‘shop window’ really is the most important space in your practice andhere’s the good news: you can change it as often as you like, it’s all yoursand there are no rules. Potential customers walk by in their droves. Theymay be visiting the post office or getting a birthday card, it really doesn’tmatter, the footfall on a High Street is always there and you have anincredible opportunity to draw people in.

Although the practice in question had strong colourful signage and veryeffective, bespoke vertical banners outside, the shop window needed moreattention as there was a lack of considered product and point-of-sale in thewindow. It’s amazing what a difference a few super colourful posters andnice point-of-sale can make. One of the strengths of the independent is tobe able to offer a wide selection of the very latest brands, whether they bedesigner or lesser known. All good eyewear companies should providepoint-of-sale to help the independent practice achieve this, and atEyespace our sales managers are only too willing to help with a few ideas.

Multiples tend to use prescribed promotions and posters, which can beextremely effective, but are not always hugely flexible or tailored to thespecific practice’s client base. As an independent, you have the opportunityto put the latest designs, best sellers and most visual product in thewindow with a clear brand presence and change them around regularly.Sometimes it will be monthly, but even simple switches weekly keep itfresh and ever changing.

Make it your first job at the start of the week, or as soon as new productarrives, and get a feel for what works looking to the High Street and othersuccessful windows for inspiration. Think beach bags in summer, tennis

I recently had a telephone call from anindependent practice owner and closefamily friend. “Jayne, if it’s not too muchtrouble would you mind coming over tothe practice and having a look around,we’ve got a major multiple next doorand I want to shake things up a little bit?You’ve seen a lot of practices – I’d love topick your brains?” No pressure, I thought,and set a date in the diary.

“The ‘shop window’ really is themost important space in yourpractice and here’s the goodnews: you can change it as oftenas you like, it’s all yours and thereare no rules.”

SHAKING THINGS UP

Eyespace MD Jayne Abel

SHOP TALK

Eyespace director, John Walker, presents a bottle of champagne to Nicole Threlfall and HelenWoodcock of the Makerfield Eye Centre in Wigan after they won an Eyespace Facebook windowdisplay competition

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SHOP TALK 15

promotions, the most valuable asset a practice has is your customerdatabase. It turned out that the only contact the practice in question hadwith its customers was sending out reminders. We immediately set to workon a marketing plan, centred around collecting email addresses andactivating social media channels. Alongside the practice dispensing optician,we set up practice Twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts there and then.

One of the best things about social media and digital marketing (such asmass emails to customers) is that it is completely free and can be fitted inaround the routine of your practice. Whether it’s the use of Twitter to sendout a promotion to fill a quiet day, or letting people know if there is a freeappointment that day, these channels instantly add value to your businesswith no direct cost.

At the end of the day, we had certainly shaken things up a little. Thepractice team had undergone a huge injection of inspiration andenthusiasm and subsequently had a clear, well thought out direction for thefuture. It may seem basic, but are you doing all of these things? And canyou afford not to be?

individual brand and support this with brand headers and point-of-sale ifcounter space is available. If you have a complete wall of frames, you canmix it up a little bit more as long as you have clearly defined segments. I’veseen this work well in several practices and it can encourage customers topick up and try on frames that are more expensive. The key is to make itvisual and simple.

If you have glass cabinet displays, these provide lockable space fordesigner product and have a great deal of impact with additional lighting.If you have shelving, use display cards and blocks. Avoid full height framedisplays in the centre of the practice as these can serve as obstacles andmake theft easier. Think about changing the flooring; there’s nothing worsethan tired carpet to make a practice look old hat and it doesn't have to costa fortune to change. Ensure it’s well considered, not cluttered and as stylishas possible.

Dialing in to the database

And then finally after doing all of these things and talking about workable

5. Highlight the CTA and the importance of engaging with it to yourcontractors and performers via your newsletter, email network andwebsite, and consider organising a meeting for contractors and performers.LOCSU is happy to provide a speaker for local events

6. Make sure an LOC representative attends one of the planned LOCSUmeetings/webinars

7. Approach local patient groups, local Healthwatch, clinical commissioninggroups and other stakeholders from outside the eye health sector tohighlight the CTA and encourage them to participate in local events and to submit their views to NHS England

8. Make sure the LOC is well represented at any local CTA engagementevents organised by the AT/LEHN

9. Draw attention to local examples of community eye health services that demonstrate how services delivered by optical practices can help theNHS provide better, more accessible patient care

10. Complete the online questionnaire by 12 September and/or submit aresponse to your AT, using the LOCSU guidance

“The CTA is a huge opportunity for LOCs and optometrists and opticians to present the case to the NHS for the further development of localcommunity eye health services and an increased utilisation of the skills of opticians and optometrists in primary care,” said LOCSU MD, KartinaVenerus. “The results of the CTA will determine policy on futurecommissioning of community eye health services, and it is an opportunitywe cannot afford to miss.”

LOCSU and the Optical Confederation will submit a national response to the CTA with other stakeholders, however, they are encouraging LOCs towork with practices and practitioners to ensure the voice of optics is heard locally and that a strong and coherent response is articulated to NHS England.

How LOCs can get involved

1. Agree who will lead the work of the LOC on the CTA

2. Discuss the approach to working with the Area Team (AT) with the otherLOCs covered by the same AT

3. Discuss the CTA with your AT primary care team and the chair of theLocal Eye Health Network (LEHN) as soon as possible and suggest howyou can help the AT to communicate with contractors and other localstakeholders

4. Offer the LOC’s assistance to the AT to help organise a CTA stakeholderengagement event

The Local Optical Committee Support Unit (LOCSU) has issued a set of briefing notes to help LOCs formulate their response to the

‘NHS England Improving Eye Health and Reducing Sight Loss – a Call to Action’ (CTA) by the 12 September deadline.

Katrina Venerus, LOCSU MD

A CALL TO ACTIONWhat you can do

If you have other ideas on actions LOCs can take, [email protected] so that they can be shared with otherLOCs. If you have any other questions on the LOCSU briefing [email protected]. Find out more at www.locsu.co.uk

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16

what he didn’t have before he went to work on his business was securityand peace of mind.

Your dream business will reward you with ‘money and minutes’ and the waythat you spend them will deliver your plan for your lifestyle. One final thoughton life planning: you are going to invest a great deal of time and effortworking in and on your business so make sure that you are passionateabout it. “But what about the jobs I hate?” I hear you ask. The answer is togive them to someone else as fast as you can, but in the meantime find away to choose to be passionate about them too. Do what you love and lovewhat you do. If your business is to pay you the money and minutes, youneed consider fine-tuning your Leadership, Management, Team, Customerand Profit Plans. Here follows some top tips for each of them.

The Leadership Plan

Lead yourself first; take full responsibility for everything that happens andturn up every day energised, focused and ready to handle challengeswithout drama. Develop your self-image as a professional and a businessleader, and develop your business skills as much as, if not more than, yourprofessional ones. Spend your day doing the jobs that only you can do, thatmove you closer to your goals and are the most profitable use of your time.Stop doing the jobs that someone else could do, or that distract you fromyour goals or don’t make you profits.

Your team’s focus, drive and commitment to deliver for you will never begreater than the focus, drive and commitment that you have for them. Ifyour team’s attitudes are poor, if morale is low, if they never seem to dothings right, ask yourself which of these is true: did you go out of your wayto recruit a useless team? Or did you recruit people with the potential toshine and then somehow turn them off? Great leaders give others the creditfor success, accept the responsibility for the failures and share the spoilsof victory. Poor leaders take all the credit for success, blame others forfailures and focus on what they’re not getting.

Make people feel safe and secure. Demonstrate to your team that youknow exactly where the business is going, how you are going to get it thereand that you are a strong hand on the tiller through stormy seas. The bestway to be a respected boss is not to demand respect, command respect oreven earn respect; the most respected people are those who give respectto others first.

When we ask people why they started their own practice, they often saysomething like: “My last boss made lots of money and he was an idiot!”Whatever your reasons were, I’m pretty sure that you didn’t do it becauseyou wanted to work longer, work harder, worry more and earn less. Thoughfor some that’s what happened. If you would like an easier life and moremoney in the bank, this planner is an easy way to find out where yourbusiness is strong and where it could be improved.

Start by designing your life. Your bespoke business will support the life youwant to live. Brian’s children get eight weeks off school every summer so he has designed and built his business to allow him to enjoy all eight weeks away from his practice and take a four-week holiday without worrying about what is going on at work. Write down what it is that you actually want:

• What will you do when you go to work?

• How much time will you spend at work?

• What will you do when you are not at work?

• What will you do for fun?

• What adventures will you have?

• Where will you live?

• What sort of house will you live in?

• What things will you own?

• How much will you have invested?

• How will you continue to contribute to society?

Once you have designed your ideal life, you can start to plan the type ofenterprise that will deliver it. Simon has paid himself £750,000 over the lastthree years from his practice; he’s paid off his mortgage, invested a largesum in his pension and is now doing the thing that he is most passionateabout: looking after his patients. He says that he already had his dream job,

PRACTICE MANAGEMENT

Andy Clark

Plan for profit and for life

A business design

for life

Optometrist and businesscoach, Andy Clark, offersa planning model to sortout your work/life balance

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17PRACTICE MANAGEMENT

The Customer Plan

Know who you want to do business with and how to define your targetcustomers. Make sure that what they need and want matches up withsomething that you can deliver. You can create a Unique Value Propositionfor them that ensures they perceive you to be their very best option. Yourtarget customers are the most profitable customers, and there should be lots of them in your town.

Your tactical marketing plan should actively attract new target customersthat includes, but doesn’t exclusively rely on, word of mouth. Create thecustomer ‘Wow!’. Once they are through the door, forget trying to ‘exceedtheir expectations’, simply strive to delight them by crafting a ‘standard,system and attitude’ for a ‘Wow!’ moment at every step of the journey, somake every team member responsible for delivering a customer ‘Wow!’

When one of Debbie’s team delivers ‘Wow!’, she gives them a Wow Awardof a ‘cake break’; the winners get 30 extra minutes off during a workingday to go to the local coffee shop with a voucher for a coffee and cake.What they did to earn it is written on an A5 card and pinned with all of theothers on the ‘Wow!’ board in the staff room.

Train your team to deliver a detailed sales process that will make the mostof your opportunities without sacrificing customer delight. Keep themcoming back for more; stop patients straying to a competitor by keeping intouch with them with regular invitations and information by postcard andemail between eye exams.

The Profit Plan

The Profit Plan ensures that you are getting the very best return on yourefforts and that the money and minutes generated are used to secure thebusiness and the lifestyle that you designed. Make a plan: success is 20per cent planning and 80 per cent implementation. Decide where you want to be five years from now, in detail in all areas of the planner. Thenwork out what you have to do this year if you are going to achieve your five-year goals.

Then work out what you are going to do this quarter if you are going toachieve your 12-month goals, what you must do this month if you are goingto achieve your quarterly goals, and what you must do this week if you aregoing to achieve your monthly goals. Every day work out what you aregoing to do today to achieve your weekly goals. Schedule appointmentswith your business so you have time to focus on your plans, and do thework and keep them. If you don’t have time to do this, you are doing it wrong.

The Management Plan

There are two types of mangers: 1) ones who ‘Manage’ (with a big ‘M’), i.e.who efficiently and effectively orgainse people and things; and 2) ones who‘manage’ (with a small ‘m’), i.e. who strive against the odds to cope. Oncea Manager with a big M knows what the leader wants, there are only threethings they need to do:

1) Set the standard: define how success in a particular task will be measuredand give feedback on how well it is being achieved.

2) Define the system: document the non-negotiable steps or processes thatmust be undertaken if the standard is to be achieved.

3) Manage (big ‘M’) the attitudes of the people who are to undertake the task.

If you can’t get steps one and three right, no amount of step two systemsmanuals will help you. Big ‘M’ managers communicate the standards clearly,make sure that the staff have the right attitudes and keep systems manualsshort and to the point. Small ‘m’ managers offer vague standards, extensivesystems manuals that nobody reads and complain that the staff don’t dowhat is required of them, even when it so clearly documented and they hadsome training once.

Gail has three managers who are accountable for the day-to-day runningof her very busy practice. She meets with them collectively and individuallyevery Monday morning, she discusses their successes and challenges, andfocuses them on their goals for the coming week. Gail then focuses herefforts on supporting these three people, but actually spends most herweek with her horses. Gail earned over £200,000 last year.

The Team Plan

If you want people to work to get you where you want to go, then being onyour team must take them to where they want to be. Planning for anefficient happy team includes:

• Being the employer of choice for the best people

• Marketing your business to potential employees – this is not the sameas marketing to potential customers

• Defining the jobs that you want people to do

• Defining the specific attributes of the best people to do each job

• Recruiting the best people for the jobs

• Getting them to do what they are naturally best at

• Being very clear on what they are expected to achieve

• Constantly developing these people to make them even better at doingwhat you need them to do

• Sharing your plans and performance numbers

• Involving them in decision-making

• Giving them responsibility for solving problems that they can solve

• Protecting them from problems that they can’t influence

• Saying thank you and well done as often as you possibly can

• Correcting them instantly and respectfully in private if they slip up

• Removing consistent underperformers rapidly

As well as actively training his team to do what he needs them to do, Markinvests thousands of pounds a year on training them to do anything theywant to learn, whether it be speaking French, learning to play the piano orpainting watercolours. He has found that they are massively committed todelivering his goals because he is massively committed to helping them toachieve theirs.

Offer for NEG members

Andy Clark has logged more than 2,450 hours ofone-to-one business coaching with independentpractice owners around the world. He is offeringNEG members a free 60-minute telephoneplanning session designed specifically to helpmembers better match their business to theirlife. To book, visit www.practicebuilding.co.ukand click ‘Book a call’.

Page 20: A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014 · single lens add profile of 1.50D. “With excellent optical clarity, at any distance, our new lens is a great opportunity for independents

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DOMICILIARY EYECARE 19

the Care Quality Commission have published and implemented Quality andEssential Standards, reiterating exactly the same obligations, in order toprotect a vulnerable group. It is both the employer’s and employee’sresponsibility to work with all, and any, such regulations,” added Nick.

Guidelines for best practice

In addition to its update guidance for lone workers, the DEC has updatedthe domiciliary eyecare Code of Practice, which has been endorsed by theCollege of Optometrists and LOCSU. The new code provides guidelines forbest practice in the provision of domiciliary eyecare. It ensures that thepriority is always on what is in the best interests of the patient, and sets outa standard to which all providers should adhere to, to ensure patient choiceand personalised care.

Dawn commented: “We hope that the new code will not only act as abenchmark for providers but also give relatives, carers and health andsocial care professionals an indication as to what they should expect.Ultimately, we as a profession must ensure that the domiciliary patientreceives the same level of personalised care as they would receive on theHigh Street.”

The code will also be a source of reference for relatives and carers and willbe widely circulated to other health and social care professionals involvedin residential care. Dawn explained: “Ensuring that vulnerable people haveaccess to high-quality eyecare remains a high priority for the OpticalConfederation and the wider sector. Eye health at any age is precious; thisapplies as much to people who cannot get to a High Street practice asthose who can. The changing landscape of the NHS has presented anopportune time to review the Code of Practice, last updated in 2009,particularly as most domiciliary tests are conducted under the NHS.”

The new OC Code of Practice is available to download from the OpticalConfederation website at www.opticalconfederation.org.uk/activities/domiciliary-eye-care. The updated OC/College of Optometrists LoneWorking Guidance is available from the downloads section atwww.opticalconfederation.org.uk. Further advice is available from the OCDEC at [email protected], and useful informationcan be found at www.hse.gov.uk, www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk, www.cqc.org.uk,and www.nice.org.uk

The Optical Confederation (OC) and College of Optometrists have revisedtheir Lone Working Guidance for domiciliary eyecare providers; at the sametime, the OC has updated its Code of Practice for those operating in thisniche area of practice. The aim of both exercises is to ensure that bothpractitioner and patient are protected in challenging situations, and that thestandard of domiciliary eyecare is on a par with that provided in a HighStreet practice setting.

The Lone Working Guidance for domiciliary eyecare providers, firstpublished in 2009, was amended last month to reflect the changes in theNHS structure and other related guidance published since then. Loneworking carries a risk for which both employers and staff shareresponsibility, says the OC, whose guidance is intended to sit alongsideeach employer’s Health & Safety procedures. It outlines how to identifyrisks in the domiciliary setting and what actions to take to minimise them,in order to keep both the patient and provider safe at all times.

OC Domiciliary Eyecare Committee (DEC) chair, Dawn Roberts, said: “Thedomiciliary eyecare service provides essential care to a vulnerable patientgroup. Many opticians and optometrists provide this service unaccompaniedand staff will go alone to fit the completed spectacles. Ensuring thateyecare is provided in a personalised and confidential manner, as it wouldbe in the High Street, can present the domiciliary provider with differentrisks from those encountered in the High Street. This guidance aims to helpthe domiciliary provider to identify the risks and take the appropriateprecautions to ensure that the service is provided in the safest manner forthe practitioner, the patient and any staff providing aftercare.”

Nick Wingate, head of professional services at domiciliary eyecare provider,the Outside Clinic, told Vision Now: “Lone workers providing domiciliaryeyecare services away from the High Street can often overlook, or find ithard to keep on top of, the more fundamental current regulations such asthe General Optical Council Code of Conduct, especially with regards topatients within group care settings. Our legal obligation to respect andmaintain patients’ dignity and privacy, whilst protecting their confidentialinformation, as well as our professional registration and reputation, dependsupon us adhering to not only the spirit of this code, but the letter of it.

“In relation to the laws, regulations and guidance that govern the care settingswe work in, such as nursing and residential homes, NICE Guidelines and

Dawn Roberts, DEC chair

Patient and provider safety are paramount (courtesy of the Outside Clinic )

KEEPING UPTO STANDARD

Those working in thedomiciliary eyecare sectorcan now benefit from anupdated Lone WorkingGuidance document and arefreshed Code of Practice

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20

Zonda, the latest release in the Cameo range from Continental Eyewear, isa lightweight plastic, suitable for males and females, and available in black,purple and wine. The Zonda forms part of a lightweight collection of ‘geeky’plastics being launched over the next six months. It is available from stockfor immediate delivery.

‘For the discerning man’, Brulimar’s Nakamura NK09 embodies masculinesophistication. Made from renowned Mazzucchelli acetate for a robust andsmooth frame, a natural wood inlay adds warmth and colour at the sprung-hinge temple. Is it available in black and tortoiseshell and is targeted at the40 plus market.

Minimal model XL2062 Duo from Charmant’s LineArt collection is aclassically-shaped half-rim. The word ‘Duo’ refers to the marriage ofcontemporary femininity and superior comfort, realised by parallel lines onthe profile with dazzling Swarovski crystals and Excellence Titan,Charmant’s exclusive material. This frame is suitable for progressivelenses, and comes in a range of popular feminine colours, including lightbrown, red and white.

Graphic Allure is thename of this glamorousmodel in the latestEscada optical collectionfrom De Rigo – a refinedstyle marked by stylishdetails. A special gluingtechnique enables thecombination of clear andtortoiseshell acetates ina variety of shades onthe upper section. Thistrim is further enhancedby brushed metal inserts,creating a fashionable,urban chic effect. Itcomes in grey, beige,black, tortoiseshell andopal blue.

Model 301 from Dunelm Optical’s popular Retro collection hits all the rightnotes for this season. High jointed with a feline front to flatter all faceshapes, this lightweight plastic frame comes in an eye-catching electricmottled blue with navy accents, perfect for trendy teens through tofabulous 40-somethings.

PRODUCT PROFILE

Eyewear

Graphically alluring

Universal vintage appeal

Geeky and chic

A masculine model

Two for the price of one

School is out, holidays are in – so why not set

aside a quiet moment to evaluate your eyewear

stock whilst taking inspiration from these latest

launches from NEG’s Preferred Suppliers…

stock-take

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21PRODUCT PROFILE

Elegant in wood, Davidoff model 92016 for men offers a true designhighlight by way of elaborately designed birch and metal temples. A uniqueand exclusive dying process was used to achieve this ultra-smoothwoodgrain finish. The frame is available from Menrad in Bordeaux, black,grey and in black/structured brown.

Luxurious Zoffani 3069from International Eyewearfeatures temples thatflaunt a metal Celtic knotinspired twist, revealingthe interior colours of the tri-laminate material.The feline eye shape, in the popular size of 51,is versatile and designed to fit a large cross-section of wearers. Available inrich, mulled shades,Zoffani 3069 providesdecadent styling foreveryday glamour.

Men’s combination frame BB6608 by Basebox from Eyespace has a casualurban look. A graphic linear design graces the lightweight TR90 templesmatched with a clean-cut metal retro front. The style comes in black withstriking white detailing, or brown and charcoal, intensified by the sharp useof grey and bold orange. All Basebox frames come with a black and yellowzipped case.

New C-Zone from Orange Eyewear is a stand-out, colourful, ultra-lightweightcollection created by Dutch designer, Rob Maas. The on-trend collectionfuses together lightweight German stainless steel, Berlac paint as used byMercedes and BMW, and materials such as wood, silk and Ultem. A selectionof full-rimmed, rimless and supra styles come with fully adjustable end tipsfor added comfort.

Making a cool statement,Silhouette Style Shades is arange of sunglass eyepiecesthat easily clip on to anyprescription Silhouette rimlesseyewear. Available in five styleoptions (two unisex, onewomen’s and two men’s),Style Shades come with twonose bridge variations toprovide the perfect ‘sit and fit’.Weighing just 5.10g, TitanMinimal Art cult eyewearweighs less than 15.1g whenfitted with Style Shades.

New for summer 2014,Colorthin Calvin Kleinfrom Marchon featuresfive plastic and fourmetal styles in fivevivid colours. The range is Made-in-Italyand features memoryform, whilst offeringresistance to cracksand a featherweightfeel. They are 100 percent hypoallergenic andare said to easily adaptfrom -13° to 158°F. Inaddition, the templescan resist twisting ofup to 180°.

In a different zone

Putting others in the shade

Colour and plastic fantastic

A real smoothie

Everyday glamour

Casual and urbane

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Your gift – His vision for life.

To make a donation, request a kit with fun ideas or to learn more, visitwww.givingsight.org or call 020 7549 2080

World Sight Day is 9th OctoberkaT

Please make a personal, practice or comRaise funds in your practice or business during October

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Raise funds in your practice or business during October Sightcling forr www

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Raise funds in your practice or business during October.oc4s.co.ukwww

or to learn more, visit.givingsight.org or call 020 7549 2080

or to learn more, visit

us Follow and share your stories

orld Sight Day Wis an initiative of VISION 2020watch video

online us and share your

orld Sight Day is an initiative of VISION 2020 Optometry Giving Sight is a registered charity: Charity Number 1

Optometry Giving Sight is a registered charity: Charity Number 1

142250Optometry Giving Sight is a registered charity: Charity Number 1

SuppDay Challenge.

htorld Sigporting WDay Challenge.

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23WORLD SIGHT DAY 2014

invites the entire UK optical profession to take part. Visit www.oc4s.co.ukfor more details. “Each year more and more optometrists, students,practice staff and optical companies are choosing to invite their friends,family, customers and patients to take the challenge,” says Clive Miller,OGS CEO. “It’s easy and fun. Who wouldn’t make a small donation to helpgive people access to the eyecare they need?”

Manny (pictured) is the new face of the 2014 Challenge. He was one of thetens of thousands of women, children and men who lost everything whentropical cyclone Yolanda smashed into the Philippines last November. OGS was able to support the efforts of the Third World Eye Care Society from Canada, which mobilised volunteers and resources to visit the country in late January. More than 8,000 people received glasses as a result of their efforts.

To make or pledge a donation, register to fundraise or to find out more, visitgivingsight.org or call 020 7549 2080.

* In June, OGS UK named its National Charity Partner in the UK as Vision Carefor Homeless People, www.visioncarecharity.org

Optometry Giving Sight (OGS) is inviting all members of the global eyecarecommunity, and everybody who values good vision, to help create a worldwhere there is no more avoidable blindness, by taking the World Sight DayChallenge, throughout September and October 2014, with World Sight Daytaking place on Thursday 9 October.

Now in its seventh year, the World Sight Day Challenge is the largest annualglobal fundraising campaign to address avoidable blindness caused byuncorrected refractive error. The campaign has set a global fundraisingtarget of US$1m in 2014 and will once again build on the concept of‘strength in numbers’, with a colourful new aqua blue logo and materialsdesigned to encourage a feeling of cooperation and community spirit.

No more avoidable blindess

Held on the second Thursday of October to focus global attention onblindness and vision impairment, the event is coordinated by theInternational Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) as part of theVision 2020 Global Initiative. It is supported by eye health organisationsaround the world, including OGS, and is included on the official WorldHealth Organisation (WHO) calendar.

2014 is the first year of the WHO Global Action Plan (GAP) and IAPB isencouraging its members and partners to continue with the rolling themeUniversal Eye Health. This year, the call to action for World Sight Day is ‘Nomore avoidable blindness’ and will draw attention to the key interventionsthat are crucial for the success of GAP’s target – reducing avoidableblindness by 25 per cent by 2019.

OGS is the only global fundraising initiative that specifically targets theprevention of blindness and impaired vision due to uncorrected refractiveerror. It was established in 2003 by the World Council of Optometry, theBrien Holden Vision Institute and the IAPB as a means of mobilising supportfrom the global eyecare profession and industry to help eliminate thebacklog of people who are needlessly blind or vision impaired – currentlyestimated at more than 600 million worldwide. It is a registered charity inthe UK and in Ireland. OGS funds the development of sustainable eye andvision care projects in communities where these do not currently exist.These projects focus on local training and capacity building; infrastructuredevelopment and the delivery of accessible and affordable vision care services.

How you can get involved

Participating is easy: simply make a fundraising pledge, or a monthly orannual donation on, or before, World Sight Day. Optometry practices andoptical companies can also be creative and engage patients, customersand employees with fundraising events throughout the challenge period.Those who take part will be supported with a kit of materials, which includethe latest blue wristbands, with Platinum, Gold, Silver or Bronze AchievementAwards for the top fundraisers.

The ‘Cycle the World’ annual bike challenge, Optoms Cycling for Sight, is alsoreturning for its fourth year in support of the World Sight Day Challenge, and

How donations can help

• £30 can help provide a study kit to an optometry student

• £60 can help provide 20 people with access to an eye exam and glasses

• £200 can help to provide a child size trial frame for a community based vision centre

• £800 could pay a month’s salary for an optometrist to seeup to 40 patients a day

Manny (photo courtesy of Dr S. Upsdhyaya)

STRENGTHIN NUMBERS

REGISTER FOR THE2014 WORLD SIGHTDAY CHALLENGE ATWWW.GIVINGSIGHT.ORGAND BE PART OF THEGLOBAL CAMPAIGN TORAISE US$1M TOCOMBAT SIGHT LOSS

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ECHO is a single, cloud-based platform that allows you to communicate andengage with your patients, wherever they are thinking about their health: beforean appointment, in the waiting area, the consulting room or after the appointment,setting your practice apart from the competition.

We call these areas patient touch points and with ECHO you can communicateacross all the touch points, by sending visual presentations from one platform, whichis flexible enough to work from any PC, tablet or smartphone. ECHO integrates withemails, Twitter, Facebook and other leading media.

Available in the UK from PK National Eyecare Group Ltd www.nationaleyecare.co.uk 01580 713698

Before an appointment Waiting area Consulting room Post visit

CAN HELP

DO YOU HAVE

CLOUDED VISION?

by EYEMAGINATIONS

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WCSM PERSPECTIVES 25

WCSM Education Trust

TRAINING

team,” thinks Liz. “There’s always someone who’s had a really good dayand made a breakthrough on a diagnosis, and someone who’s had anabsolutely terrible day. There have been times when we’ve had to wadethrough two feet of water in the reception area to get up to our clinic with70 patients waiting to see us. That does bring the team together.”

Meanwhile, much remains to be done. “The next thing we’re very keen todo is put in an optical workshop so that the whole department becomesmuch more sustainable in its own right. We’re hoping that we’ll have thatdone by this time next year,” adds Liz.

Making connections

Back home, the Spectacle Makers’ Charity supports organisations such asthe British Wireless for the Blind Fund (BWBF), which for the past 85 yearshas worked to keep visually impaired people in touch with the world.“We’ve been very fortunate as a charity to be in receipt of substantialdonations each year from the Spectacle Makers,” says Simon Parsons, oneof the BWBF’s regional development managers. “It’s a very ongoingrelationship we have, and they are very generous in support of our work.

“The link that connects us is vision impairment: we provide speciallyadapted audio sets to people who are blind and partially sighted,” Simoncontinues. “Our sets that are manufactured by Roberts have colour-contrasting controls and tactile markings, which make it easy for thelistener to navigate round the machine. If an individual meets our qualifyingcriteria, the set is available on a free loan basis – and if it gets damaged orbroken then we will replace it. There are around 40,000 people in the UKwho are using one of our sets at the moment.

“I get to meet a lot of the recipients when I’m installing sets, and I knowhow grateful they are,” adds Simon. “We get such nice letters and anecdoteswhere people say that their radio becomes their friend and they couldn’timagine life without it. It’s their lifeline to the world.”

“After a traumatic accident, eight-year-old Albert lost the sight in one eye. His behaviour at schoolbecame very disruptive and he wassubsequently excluded.”

Thus wrote Greg Richardson, a specialist orthoptist at St Thomas’ Hospital,in a paper last year. Albert was examined by the St Thomas’ team in2007. “This was the first time his vision had been assessed in his seeingeye, and it was severely reduced. On refraction, he was found to have aprescription of -14.00 dioptres in that eye. After getting glasses to correcthis vision, Albert said to his father: ‘Daddy, can I go back to school now?’”

The above story – and there are many others like it – is set in Tanzania.Richardson is part of a Vision 2020 Links Programme between theophthalmology departments of St Thomas’ and the Muhimbili University ofHealth and Allied Sciences in Dar es Salaam. Part of the programme’sfunding comes from the Worshipful Company of Spectacle Makers’ Charity,which was established to fight visual impairment at home and overseas.

Working as a team

“The strength of this link is that we go over there for a fortnight at a timeonce a year and help them with their set-up,” says Liz Tomlin, the headorthoptist at St Thomas’. “We do everything from helping to organise their

clinics to seeing theirpatients. Then they comeback to London and spend a fortnight viewing our clinics and ourhospital set-up. That does mean it’s expensive,but it does bring the standard of medicine updramatically. It’s unique tothe links programme, andthe Spectacle Makershave been kind enough togive us at least fivethousand pounds a yearto keep it going.”

The benefits of theprogramme are felt onboth continents. “There is no doubt that itstrengthens team workingand bonds for the UK

Worshipful Company ofSpectacle Makers

QUALIFICATIONS

WCSM Education Trust

TRAINING

Related links

Spectacle Makers’ Charitywww.spectaclemakers.com/charity

Vision 2020www.iapb.org/vision-2020

British Wireless for the Blind Fundwww.blind.org.uk

Two stories from the Spectacle Makers’ Charity

Fighting visual impairmentat home and overseas

The St Thomas’ ophthalmology team at work in Tanzania

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26

Children’s boutique eyewear creators Red Optical, based in theNetherlands, make fine acetate and metal frames in beautiful colourationswith strong junior appeal. The shapes are classic and superbly crafted.Colours are a speciality at Lafont Paris; the company’s new collection forseven to 12-year-olds includes striking shapes with a hint of vintage in verystylish colours: tortoiseshell with purple or green, black and red, plus atartan design, popular in adult frames as well.

Youngsters will respond well toScandinavian designed framesby Lindberg Kid/Teens. Knowinghow much children want to be‘grown up’, the shapes areingeniously constructed for smallfaces, in sturdy, lightweighttitanium for beauty and endurance.Never stop innovating is themotto at ic! berlin in Germany,and their children’s framesfeature a screwless hingesystem that looks great, and isstrong and resilient.

“For my daughter, who is 12 and wears glasses, frames are a real fashionaccessory,” reports a mother who is delighted that her daughter hasenthusiastically embraced eyewear. Her 15-year old daughter doesn’t needframes, but is begging her mum to let her wear them…

Top manufacturers and independent designers recognise the growingdemand for children’s eyewear. The variety of styles, the scope of colourvariations and quality materials all enhance this expanding market. Mostimportantly, from an early age, children who wear glasses are aware of theimportance of eyecare. Eyesight is a precious gift, and with people living toadvanced ages, being able to see well and live life to the full in later life isa wonderful asset. Cultivating healthy eyewear habits from a young age isan excellent, responsible learning experience.

Fashion pacesetters

Technical innovation, fabulous colours and creative designs all contribute to enhance and develop the children’s eyewear market. For babies andtoddlers, Orange Eyewear’s Baby collection by Ivko has a selection of well-

designed frames, withhigh quality features and finishes. The framesare very lightweight;some are hand-paintedand include baby-friendly curled-end softsilicon tips and nosepads – ideal for infantskin. Soft colours includepink, blue, vanilla, violet and green.

STYLE SPOTLIGHT

Baby-friendly designs by Ivko at Orange Eyewear

Chic colours by Lafont Paris

BY JOAN GRADY, FASHION EDITOR

Back to school and eyewearare synonymous for childrenas it’s time for a new term,different subjects, perhapsclothes shopping, and framesthat are fashionable and cool

Pretty Pastels from Red Optical of the Netherlands

Sleek styling by Lindberg Denmark

CHILDREN’S EYEWEAR:

originaland fun

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27STYLE SPOTLIGHT

Sunnies not just for summer

Sunglasses for children’s vulnerable eyes are not just for summeroccasions. Winter rays can be very penetrating and potentially damaging tounprotected eyes. Eye surgeon and Zoobug director Dr Julie Diem Le, whorecently launched a new collection – MyZoobug Sunglasses – notes:“MyZoobug was developed in response to the growing awareness amongparents that children should wear protective sunglasses when outside inthe sunshine. We have come up with an affordable range that offers safeprotection from UV rays, and makes wearing sunglasses enjoyable andaccessible to all.”

Created for babies up to the age of 10, MyZoobug frames are produced ina high quality flexible rubber for comfort and durability. The material hasbeen carefully selected for absolute safety on small faces and sensitiveskin. Maximum UV protection is assured with polycarbonate UV400 lenseswith 100 per cent UVA and UVB protection. The colours are fun andappealing – bright neons, flattering pastels and on-trend sporty tones areincluded in the selection.

Claire Goldsmith at Oliver Goldsmith believes that adults shouldn’t have allthe vintage eyewear style and fun. Moonshine was originally an adultframe, created in 1969. However, the pretty, charming shape of Moonshinelends itself stylishly to an OG mini-icon. The colour range is delicious – JamSandwich, Bumblebee and Union Jack.

Whiz Kids, distributedby Dunelm, featuressunglasses in qualitymaterials that aresturdy and secure,should tumbles orplayground/beach anticsbecome overly active.Colour contrasting addsa funky touch to thedesigns that childrenwill enjoy wearing.

Innovative, adventuresome, cool and trendy – kids’ frames are the rockstars of the eyewear world. With so much variety available, from babyframes to teenagers, the independent optician can set the stage byfeaturing designs that will keep the young set fashionably bespectacled.

Trendy tweens

Teens in particular aredramatically aware offashion trends. Theyfollow what their rolemodels are wearing;what colours andstyles, and they knowdesigners and shopnames. UK companyEyespace capturesthis market with RockStar, a collection oflively frames with a

sense of adventure and fun. Trendsetting model Liam has a smart roundedshape that is a must have for boys to keep up-to-date with the latestfashions. The metal retro frame is available in brown or a sleeknavy/turquoise combination. The design is so popular and versatile, that a‘mini’ version has been introduced.

At Brulimar, managingdirector Howard Libraeobserves: “We’re delightedto be working with one ofthe UK’s most iconic HighStreet labels. Our Kickersfashion frames have beendesigned to be completelyin keeping with the brand’sfootwear, and this is theperfect opportunity toextend its range tofashionable, affordableand desirable eyewear for children and teenagers.” The colours are superb –vibrant and soft, plus energetic two-tones and classic metals.

Italian sunshine and proximity to water inspires Vanni Tribe by Nico Design,with its Surf-ing collection. The metal frames are innovative and daring,featuring a freeze finish – a milled surface like metal coated in ice. Coolcolours too – black, burgundy, burnt orange and apple green.

Trendy Rock Star from the UK’s Eyespace

Innovative and Intriguing: ic! berlin of Germany

For trendy ‘tweens’ – Kickers from Brulimar

The Surf-ing collection by Vanni at Nico Design Italy

Kiddie favourites: MyZoobug sunglasses

Moonshine – authentic vintage by OG Mini-Icons

Fashion and protection from Whiz Kids by Dunelm

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PREFERRED SUPPLIERS’ DIRECTORY

ACCEPT CARDS Tel: 01422 [email protected]

ASSOCIATED OPTICALTel: 01628 605433Fax: 01628 [email protected]

BAUSCH + LOMB UKTel: 020 8781 2900www.bausch.co.uk

BIB OPHTHALMIC INSTRUMENTSTel: 01438 [email protected]

BONDEYE OPTICALTel: 0121 7723888Fax: 0808 [email protected]

BRULIMAROPTICAL GROUPTel: 0161 655 7000Fax: 0161 655 7002www.brulimar.co.uk

CALOTHERM(part of the Three-Sixty Group)Tel: 01686 627595Fax: 01696 [email protected]

CENTRO STYLE LTDTel: 01923 239267Fax: 01923 [email protected]

COOPERVISIONTel: 0870 9000 055Fax: 0870 9000 [email protected]

DAVID THOMASTel: 01604 646216Fax: 01604 [email protected]

DE RIGO (UK) LTD Tel: 01923 249491Fax: 01923 249490www.derigo.com

DIBBLE OPTICAL SUPPLIESTel: 01634 880885Fax: 01634 [email protected]

DUNELM OPTICALTel: 01388 420420Fax: 01388 [email protected]

ESSILORTel: 01454 281281Fax: 01454 281282 www.essilor.co.uk

HARROW OPTICALTel: 01923 840291Fax: 01923 [email protected]

HENRY BEAUMONTTel: 0116 251 8936Fax: 0116 262 [email protected]

HILCO EUROPETel: 0800 [email protected]

HOYA LENS UK Tel: 0845 330 0984Fax: 0845 330 [email protected]@hoya.co.ukwww.hoya.co.uk

INTERNATIONAL EYEWEAR LTDTel: 0121 585 6565Fax: 0121 585 0954www.internationaleyewear.co.uk

JOHNSON & JOHNSONTel: 0870 6088990www.jnjvisioncare.co.uk

NowVision

ax: 0151-426 9340Fel: 0151-426 3907TTe

.comewearr..continental-eywww.uk.coewearr.sales@continental-ey T 01562 701111

www.eyespace-eyewear.co.uk

Charmant UK Co Ltdtel 020 8992 9222fax 020 896 0287

email: [email protected]

Preferred Suppliers are suppliers who, by prior arrangement, offer members of the PK National Eyecare Group preferential terms. For fulldetails and terms offered to the membership, please call 01580 713698

Directory listings are available free of charge to all preferred suppliers, with a larger listing available to Vision Now Advertisers. To makechanges to the directory listings, please call Sharon Hicks on 01580 713698 or email [email protected]

DAILIES® AquaComfort Plus® Focus® DAILIES® All Day Comfort® Focus® DAILIES® TORIC Focus® DAILIES® PROGRESSIVES

AIR OPTIX® AQUA AIR OPTIX® for ASTIGMATISM AIR OPTIX® AQUA MULTIFOCAL AIR OPTIX® NIGHT & DAY® AQUA

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Call Customer Services 0871 376 0017www. myAlcon.co.uk

BRANDS

www.HeidelbergEngineering.co.uk

OCT isn’t Everything

MultiColor BluePeak Autofluorescence

EOCT isn’t

.HeidelbergEngineering.co.ukwww

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DIRECTORY 29

LENSTECTel: 029 2088 3009Fax: 029 2088 [email protected]

LUXOTTICA (UK) LTDTel: 0808 165 8555www.luxottica.com

MARK’ENNOVYTel: 0800 3280610Fax: 0800 [email protected]

MENRAD OPTICSTel: 01635 32123Fax: 01635 [email protected]

MID-OPTICTel: 01332 295001Fax: 01332 [email protected]

NATIONWIDE FRAME REPAIRSTel: 01706 369530Fax: 01706 [email protected]

NORVILLE OPTICAL GROUPTel: 01452 528686Fax: 01452 [email protected]

No7 CONTACT LENSESTel: 01424 850620Fax: 01424 [email protected]

ORANGE EYEWEARTel: 0161 773 5555Fax: 0161 773 [email protected]

PERFORMANCE FINANCETel: 01536 529696Fax: 01536 310033www.performancefinance.co.uk

POSITIVE IMPACTTel: 08446 696907glasklar@positiveimpactsales.co.ukwww.positiveimpactsales.co.uk

PRACTICE BUILDINGTel: 0115 989 [email protected]

PRO-OPTICTel: 01392 [email protected]

RAWDON OPTICAL LIMITEDTel: 0113 288 3094Fax: 0113 288 [email protected]

RIDGWAY OPTICALTel: 01295 678800Fax: 01295 678811www.ridgwayoptical.co.uk

SAUFLONPHARMACEUTICALSTel: 020 8322 4222Fax: 020 8891 [email protected]

SEIKO OPTICAL UKTel: 01452 610033Fax: 01452 [email protected]@seiko-optical.co.ukwww.seiko-optical.co.uk

SERIOUS READERSTel: 01296 [email protected]

SHAMIR UKTel: 01954 785100Fax: 01954 785101 [email protected]

SILHOUETTE UK LTDTel: 020 8987 8899Fax: 020 8987 [email protected]

SPEC-CARE LIMITEDTel: 01392 [email protected]

SPECTRUM THEAPHARMACEUTICALS LTDTel: 01625 618816Fax: 01625 619959spectrumthea.co.uk

STEPPER UKTel: 01732 [email protected]

STONE OPTICALTel: 029 2073 5293Fax: 029 2073 [email protected]

TANT LABORATORIESTel: 01279 653785www.tantlabs.com

TOP VISION UKTel: 0870 8402378Fax: 0870 8402379www.topvisiongroup.com

ULTRAVISIONTel: 01525 381112Fax: 01525 [email protected]

VIVA EYEWEAR UKTel: 01423 874466Fax: 01423 874499www.vivagroup.com

WILEY X EUROPEAvailable from Emporium EyewearTel: 020 8902 6211Fax: 020 8902 6277www.emporiumeyewear.com

YOUNGER OPTICS EUROPEUK Tel: 01242 578971UK Mobile: 0790 133 [email protected]

FOR FULL DETAILS AND TERMS OFFERED TO THE MEMBERSHIP, PLEASE CALL

01580 713698or email [email protected]

CUSTOMER SERVICE 0800 72 2020

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Marchon UK Ltd | Unit 1 Weyvern Park, Portsmouth Road, Peasmarsh | Guildford

|Surrey | GU3 1NA

01474 [email protected]

See Better Look Perfect

Page 32: A National Eyecare Group Publication AUGUST 2014 · single lens add profile of 1.50D. “With excellent optical clarity, at any distance, our new lens is a great opportunity for independents

Driftingdown the Nilestretched out

on a silk pillow,fanned by

the breezeof a thousandhummingbirds.

Impossibly comfortable.A contact lens so comfortable that it tests your patients’ powers of imagination?

Absolutely. Thanks to Aquaform® Comfort Science, ™ CooperVision® Biofinity® lenses

deliver a combination of breathability and moisture higher than the leading silicone

hydrogel brands. In sphere, toric and multifocal designs.

This promotional material is limited for distribution outside of the U.S. ©2013 CooperVision, Inc. 11/2013

Biofinity

tribution outside of the U.S. ©2013 Cor dised ferial is limittional matomoThis pr

y® contact lensescoopervision.co.uk

. 11/2013ooperVision, Inctribution outside of the U.S. ©2013 C