To evaluate the perception of optometrists on causes of professional discordance among eye care professionals and its impact on refractive error service delivery in Kenya....
This was a prospective qualitative case study conducted between January and June 2022 among optometrists registered with the Optometrists Association of Kenya. The data was collected through telephoni...
Out of the 100 respondents, 37 (37%) were female. The mean age for the participants was 30.5 years with majority being in the age group 30-34 years. There was no statistically significant difference b...
Professional discordance remains an underrated barrier which negatively impacts on refractive error service delivery. However, to achieve effective refractive error coverage, a strengthened team appro...
To assist policy-makers in improving access to eye care in under-served areas by analysing the relationship between motivational factors affecting the uptake of task-shifting in eye care and the recru...
The World Health Organization recommends two key strategies in tackling preventable blindness in under-served areas: improving human resources for health and task-shifting. The relationship between ta...
Motivation was explored through semi-structured interviews with 19 optometrists in Ghana and Scotland with experience in remote and rural practice. Framework analysis was used to analyse interviews, e...
The main motivational considerations included altruism, quality of life, learning and career opportunities, fulfilling potential, remuneration, stress of decision-making and collaboration. Motivationa...
Recruitment and retention in remote and rural areas require staff be incentivised to take up those positions, motivated to remain and given the adequate resources for personal and professional fulfilm...
Keratoconus (KC) has been regarded as a rare condition, although recent studies, including those in South Africa, suggest it is common and is increasing in prevalence. Furthermore, South African-based...
This study aimed to evaluate self-reported knowledge and skills for examination, diagnosis and management of KC patients among public sector optometrists....
Seven public hospitals of the Capricorn district of the Limpopo province, South Africa....
A quantitative cross-sectional descriptive study design was used. A self-administered online questionnaire was used to collect data on demographic characteristics of participants and their knowledge, ...
Twenty-four optometrists (n = 24) with a mean age of 39 ± 5.67 years, 18 (75%) of whom were female, participated in the study. Nineteen (79%) reported that their hospitals did not have the appropriate...
A significant proportion of optometrists did not have the appropriate knowledge and skills to examine, diagnose and manage KC patients. Lack of equipment and poor knowledge and skills were the main ba...
Defining the patterns of practice and referral criteria of optometrists within New Zealand to investigate the diagnosis and management of keratoconus....
Optometrists recruited through the New Zealand Association of Optometrists, Cornea and Contact Lens Society of New Zealand, and private practices were invited to complete an anonymous survey....
Responses were received from 168 optometrists (representing 20.0% of the optometrist population). Half (48%) of optometrists had ≥15 years of experience, and 22% prescribed soft contact lenses daily, ...
This survey provides an overview of current practice and highlights the importance of optometrists in the diagnosis and management of keratoconus. There was a significant discrepancy in keratoconus ma...
Myopia management is practiced by ophthalmologists and optometrists...
A questionnaire was sent to 954 optometrists and 365 ophthalmologists, including demographic questions; whether they owned any devices to monitor myopia progression; the lowest progression they consid...
Responses from 135 optometrists and 126 ophthalmologists were collected, the majority practicing more than five years; 94% of optometrists, and 64% of ophthalmologists. Around 53% of optometrists and ...
This study highlighted ECPs' agreement on the principles, importance of, and timeline of intervention with myopia management. The disconnect between the two professions lies in management methods. Gen...
Correction of refractive error in children is important for visual and educational development. The aim of this questionnaire-based study was to explore paediatric refractive correction by optometrist...
An online questionnaire was piloted and distributed to optometrists in England. The questionnaire asked about respondents' characteristics (such as type of practice), management of refractive error in...
Two hundred and ninety-three questionnaires were returned, although only 139 (47%) were fully completed. In an average month, about half of respondents examined no children between 0 and 2 years of ag...
These results suggest optometrists often defer management of paediatric refractive error to the hospital eye service, with implications in terms of underutilisation of community optometric expertise a...
Stroke survivors often experience various visual consequences that impact their daily life and may benefit from visual interventions. However, some of these usually go unaddressed as optometrists are ...
A questionnaire was developed by the researchers, pilot tested by 5 research optometrists and 15 community optometrists, and modified based on the feedback. Practicing optometrists were invited to com...
Most respondents displayed strong knowledge, but 61.6% indicated that enhancing their knowledge would be helpful. The majority (87%) agreed that stroke is related to an increased incidence of falls. P...
Overall, survey respondents displayed sufficient knowledge. However, there are areas of uncertainty in their knowledge, which in many cases correspond to real gaps in the available evidence. There is ...
The number, demographics, registration status and geographic distribution of optometrists in Australia who do not renew their registration is reported....
The size of the optometry workforce in Australia is determined by the number of new entrants to the profession and the number of optometrists leaving it. Limited attention has been paid to the latter....
A dataset obtained from the Australian Health Practitioner Registration Agency about registered optometrists during the period 1 January 2011 to 31 December 2019 was analysed. It included registrants'...
Data for 6,595 registrants were analysed. Over the study period, 626 optometrists left the register. When those leaving the register were examined by year of birth bands, two main groups emerged - opt...
Optometrists who left the register fell into two main groups - late-career and early-career. An unanticipated finding was that younger optometrists who left the register were disproportionately male. ...
In the UK, the Certificate of Vision Impairment (CVI) certifies a person as sight impaired (partially sighted) or severely sight impaired (blind). This is completed by ophthalmologists and passed with...
We conducted semi-structured individual interviews with 17 patients with a diagnosed eye condition, 4 Eye Clinic Liaison Officers (ECLO) and 4 referring optometrists around their experiences around CV...
Patients reported lack of clarity around the processes of certification and registration, benefits of certification and what happens beyond certification, the type of support that they are entitled to...
Vision loss can be a devastating experience for the patient. There is a lack of information and confusion around the process. The lack of a joined-up process between certification and registration nee...
Optometrists play an integral role in primary eyecare services, including prevention, diagnosis, and management of acute and chronic eye conditions. Therefore, it remains essential that the care they ...
