Kingston Hospital previously used an external company to provide a low vision aids and specialist hospital contact lens service. Unfortunately, this company informed us that they are no longer able to provide the service and we are now working to bring this in house.
An Orthoptist has been recruited to undertake the low vision aid (LVA) clinics at Kingston Hospital and we are hopeful to be able to recommence appointments for this service from May/June 2023. Until then, the Eye Clinic Liaison Officer (ECLO) who is based in the Royal Eye Unit (REU) will provide support, where possible, to our LVA patients.
The contact lens service requires more specialised training and experience and unfortunately, we have not yet been able to recruit to this role. We are hopeful that we can appoint someone in the coming months, however this will mean a further delay in resuming the specialist contact lens service at Kingston Hospital.
As part of this ongoing work, we are also reviewing patient records to identify eligibility to access the service and any medical needs. It may be necessary to arrange a routine appointment for patients to be reviewed in the REU and we will be in touch if this is the case. Any patients who do not meet the eligibility criteria for hospital supplied medical contact lenses and/or low vision aids will be contacted to advise them they are being discharged from the service. This may be due to the patient’s location or if normal vision can be obtained using glasses.
For contact lens patients who have contacted us and are eligible to access the service, we have begun referring to the Moorfields Eye Centre at St Georges Hospital in Tooting so that patients can continue to access these services while they are unavailable at Kingston Hospital.
For any queries relating to these services, please contact the Ophthalmology Administration team on 020 8934 6404 or email khft.reuhelpdesk1@nhs.net.
We would like to apologise for any inconvenience. We are working hard to re-establish these services as soon as possible and will continue to keep patents informed by letter, as the services become available again.
