COVID-19 GUIDANCE AND SUPPORT

All information correct as per 21st October 2020

As a LOC we want to do what we can to support colleagues through this challenging time.

To assist local practitioners and contractors, we have put together guidance on patient management during the crisis brought on by the virus. If you scroll below, we have chronicled as a series of links to available guidance and resources you may find helpful as you face the challenges of the COVID crisis. We also aim to support you in every way we can, so if you want to contact us via phone or email, there are some contact details of LOC officers at the bottom of this page. Please don’t shoulder this burden on your own as if we all work together, we can emerge from this crisis stronger.

Resumption of routine NHS General Ophthalmic Services (GOS) and private eye tests

NHS England released a letter and Standard Operating procedure document on Wednesday, 17th June to outline the process for resuming GOS. The Optical Fees Negotiating Committee (OFNC) also issued various updates since and all documents can be downloaded at the bottom of this page.

We are in regular contact with our local NHS England team, so if you experience any difficulties with this and need our help, please contact us and we will do our best to assist.

The GOC, College, AOP and FODO have recently updated their guidance for provision of all eye care services.

COVID-19 Urgent Eyecare Service (CUES)

Halton, St Helens and Warrington CCGs are commissioning CUES, supported by St Helens and Warrington Eye departments and contracted through Primary Eye Care Services (PES).

Unfortunately, despite the best efforts of the LOC, Knowsley CCG confirmed in July that they will not be commissioning CUES. However, we are still holding discussions with them to try and overturn that decision. We are aware that some patients with a Knowsley GP are expressing their dissatisfaction with being unable to access a CUES service, so we have drafted leaflet you may wish to hand to patients, available to download at the bottom of this page, explaining the situation and including details of how they can complain if unhappy with this decision.

Please see below for updated guidance on managing patients where CUES will be commissioned and where it won’t be yet. Information regarding direct referrals to our local HES, St Helens and Warrington can be accessed on this site at: http://www.centralmerseyloc.org/direct-referral/

PPE

Primary Eye Care Services and LOCSU have developed a site for all English practices to purchase suitable PPE to enable them to carry out face to face examinations.  NB You do not have to be participating in Primary Eye Care to obtain the PPE from this source.

The site can be accessed at:
https://primaryeyecaresupplies.co.uk/

NHS England have made arrangements for practice providing GOS to receive stocks via an online PPE portal. Practices with NHS email, will be sent an email with instructions on how to sign up to this portal and arrange ongoing supplies of PPE.

Management of urgent & emergency patients without CUES

Please note guidance document below

Patient Management where CUES is being commissioned

Please note guidance document below

USEFUL WEB RESOURCES