COVID-19 Latest Update
A message from our Clinical Director
Following my update earlier in the week, there have been some quite significant updates for Eye Care in Scotland as of late yesterday afternoon and we want to update you on these as soon as possible.
Routine Eye Exams
First of all, routine eye examinations will cease as of 4pm this evening, Saturday 21st March. If you have a routine appointment booked with us after today, our team will be in touch as soon as possible to discuss this with you.
Emergency Eye Care
However, please don’t worry. We will still be here for you. From Monday, we will only be able to care for people with Emergency or Essential Eye Care needs. If you require an appointment, please call one of our practices and they will ask you a few saw short questions to assess the symptoms that you are experiencing. If it is an emergency and where possible, you will be offered a same day appointment at one of our practices. Please note, that during these times, we will be operating with a reduced staff base, and therefore you may be asked to travel to a practice, other than the one that you normally attend.
These changes have been mandated to us by the Scottish Government and Optometry Scotland, and we fully support their decision so as to protect patients and our colleagues.
What are we doing as a result of these changes?
Well, as I mentioned, we will be operating with a skeleton staff from the middle of next week. From Tuesday morning, our practices will be open, but the door will be locked. Only those with an emergency appointment will be able to access the practice. Please call our practice if you have any questions or an eye condition and do not turn up in person, as we will not be allowed to give you access.
Therefore, if you have any glasses that are ready but are uncollected, our team will be contacting you to please come and collect them in person by 5.30pm on Monday. Any outstanding glasses that we have and are uncollected, will be posted directly to patients.
Our team members will also be wearing personal protective equipment. Please do not be alarmed, this is a necessary measure for your safety, and for the protection of our valued colleagues.
Our thorough cleaning procedures will remain in place across all our practices, including diary spacing which means you will be the only person in our practice. Where possible, please attend appointments alone.
As a result of operating a skeleton staff, we will also be stopping our late night in Kilmarnock for the foreseeable future.
So, and in summary, we are here for you. We are your community eyecare provider, but please only use us from Monday for any emergency eye care needs. Our team will be on hand to support you in any way possible. Please take care of yourself and follow the guidelines put in place for your own safety.
Alistair Duff, Clinical Director
