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The article presents an interview with optometrist Harjinder Sunda. Topics he discusses include his first experience of optics, his love for optometry and his becoming a qualified optometrist. He also offers information on the building of his own optometry practice business and his focus to increase the public's awareness regarding domiciliary eye care.

The article offers news briefs regarding the organization Association of Optometrists (AOP). It offers information on the "Voice of the Profession" project to be launched by AOP in February 2017 to promote optometry and eye health habits among people. It reports the AOP's expansion of its image library and patient leaflets. It also reports the availability of the Parental Leave grade for AOP members.

The article discusses the potential future impact of technology on optometry. It is noted that the role of the optometrist is likely to be increase clinical through MECS accreditation and increasing clinical skills. It is also evident that optometry needs to be embedded within National Health Service (NHS) England's plans for the delivery of the Five Year Forward View of primary care services within the community.

The article presents an interview with optometrist Sheik Rahman, who is supporting the Just Help Foundation in Bangladesh. Topics discussed by him includes how he first involved in the project, steps he will take to support the programme, next steps taken by him for working about the Foundation and his experience on the field.

The article offers various development associated with the Association of Optometrists (AOP). Some of them includes membership renewal by the AOP, which provides the best professional indemnity and medical malpractice insurance cover for individual practitioner, expansion of its leaflets available for patients on eye conditions and voting for the AOP Awards' newest category "Product of the Year."

The author comments on the need for optometrists and dispensing opticians to take the lead in driving changes in healthcare. Topics covered include the opportunity for eye care professionals to develop the care they offer, the duty of clinicians to get involved in supporting and managing changes and the context of optometric practices within the healthcare system. Also mentioned is the launch of the UK Medical Leadership Framework.

The article reports on the accreditation of Specsavers optometrists to offer Minor Eye Conditions Services (MECS) in England in 2016.

An interview is presented with Paul Surridge, Sight Care Group chief executive, on the firm's Independent Optician Survey on issues faced by British independent practice members. He explains that the survey aims to understand practitioners' views on eye health, customer care and their business model. He cites findings including respondents' business optimism and that optical chains and non-Internet businesses are not a threat. He also points out the need to encourage the sale of contact lenses.

The article examines the commercial pressures affecting the optical industry. Topics discussed include the issues involved in striking the balance between practitioner and business owner as explained by Association of Optometrists policy director David Craig. Also discussed is the initiative led by optometrist Mike Kilpatrick to review the National Health Service General Opthalmic Services contract in view of the unprofessional approach of some optometrists offering free private sight tests.

The article offers updates on the Children's Eye Health Campaign launched by the Association of Optometrists (AOP) that aims to include sight test in every back to school routine, as of August 2014. It cites the case of a six-year old girl who was diagnosed by optometrist Polly Dulley to have sight problems which has negatively impact her school activities. AOP said that these case studies also help in reinforcing the importance of sight testing among young children.

The article discusses the views of several optometrists in Great Britain on the milestones in eye care in 2014. Topics covered include the move of the National Health Service to recognize eye health as a public health priority and the cost-effectiveness of sight test. Also mentioned are the causes of blindness in England such as glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy and macular degeneration.

The article discusses the highlights of the Johnson & Johnson Vison Care clinical roadshow, held in Westminster, London, England. It notes that the event was attended by optometrists and dispensing opticians, and featured several lectures including one about the future of contact lens design by Professor Eric Papas of the Brien Holden Vision Institute, and another on contact lens comfort by independent researcher, Dr. Heiko Pult.

The article focuses on Dr. Simon Barnard, a founder member of the European Academy of Optometrists. Barnard is cited as the first optometrists to use a colorimeter in practice in 1980s. He is credited for developing the first General Optical Council-accredited supplementary prescribing course in Great Britain. He shares the experience of using the clinical potential of the colorimeter.

The article discusses the role that optometrists have to play in ensuring that people have the right eye care, examinations, advice and correction for their chosen profession. Topics discussed include occupational vision standards developed by the Association of Optometrists (AOP) in Great Britain, and the Vision Standards pages on the AOP website.

An interview is presented of the shortlisted nominees of the Local Optometric/Regional Optometric/Area Optometric Committee (LOC/ROC/AOC) of the Year category of the British "Optometry" Association of Optometrists (AOP) Awards for 2013. Devon LOC's Charles Bill describes his LOC as gatekeepers of eyecare. Croydon LOC's Chris Kerr details their paediatric eye care programme. Trevor Warburton of Stockport LOC cites their five enhanced services including the Minor Eye Conditions Service (MECS).

The article features the VSP Neighborhood Eyecare network model for independent optometrists and dispensing opticians launched in Great Britain by vision care benefits company VSP Global in May 2013. It profiles VSP Global which was founded in the U.S. 60 years ago and provides care in the U.S., Australia and Canada. It describes the model which provides a covered benefit amount applicable towards a vision examination and materials, members discounts, and online claims administration.

The article feature prison optometrist Chaaban Zeidan. He says working at Featherstone Prison is unique and challenging. He notes that his job is to provide the best care for his patient, irrespective of their background. He says it is rare that prisoners do not turn up to their appointment. He explains variation in the awareness of eye health, noting that some are aware of the importance of eye care but majority wait for the problem before they talk about it. INSET: Low visual acuity in prison populations.

The article presents a conversation with optometrist David Crystal about Eye Dispense, an iPad application he designed to aid the dispensing process. Details of how the application works are presented. In 1984, Crystal has graduated from Glasgow Caledonian. During his pre-registration year, Crystal has worked at a hospital, Donald Cameron's contact lens practice and Trotters Opticians. Aside from Eye Dispense, he also developed Just Reading Test Types.

The article discusses the highlights of the annual Sight Care conference that was held in March 2013 in Great Britain. One speaker explored the conference theme "Adapt and Prosper" highlighting the need to surpass the patient's expectations. Another speaker talked about patient-selling in optics. A third speaker offered statistics about independent optometrists.

The article profiles opticians shortlisted by "Optometry Today" Association of Optometrists Awards in the community achievement category. McCandless Opticians of Northern Ireland helps children's eye care in their local community. Umarfaroug Jussab is the principal optometrist at St. Peter's Eye Clinic in Leicester, England. Optician Chaaban Zeiban is a visiting lecturer for the ophthalmic foundation degree at Nottingham College.

The article presents the short-listed candidates for the Best Educational Video award to be given by the Association of Optometrists (AOP) in 2011. The video "Ellie's Eyes" was filmed in November 2010 for the Staffordshire Diabetic Retinopathy Screening Service. The other candidate videos are "Top Tips for Examining Children's Eyes," and the DVD release "AMD," which was produced by the Directorate of Optometric Continuing Education and Training (DOCET).

The article focuses on the campaign of several British organizations for children's eye health in 2011. The Optical Confederation has called on headteachers to support early eye screening. Also noted is a roundtable event hosted by Transitions Optical to raise awareness of the issue. It mentions the Top Tips guide to examining children's eyes and dispensing eyeglasses posted on the website of the Association of Optometrists (AOP).

The article discusses what "family firm" means to two Specsavers practitioners. For optometrist Dilpreet Gahir, her parents' positive experience working in Specsavers led her interest in eye care. Despite working elsewhere, she has chosen Specsavers because of their patient-focused nature, team support, and the feel of having an extended family. For Nigel Davidson, optometrist director for Sutton-in-Ashfield, it is great having customers they know by name because it is their commitment to attract the whole family and become a real part of the community.

A personal narrative is presented which explores the author's experiences as optometrist and founder of Eyes4Everest and pursuing its aim of providing eye care to children and adults in the region of Mt. Everest.

The article reports that the Association of Optometrists (AOP) has partnered with Eye Health United Kingdom (UK) to promote National Eye Health Week (NEHW) on September 19-25, 2016.

An interview with managing director Katrina Venerus of Local Optical Committee Support Unit (LOCSU) is presented. Venerus discusses the milestone achievements of LOCSU since it was established in 2007 by the Association of Optometrists (AOP). She mentions that the production of clinical pathways for eye care services was the first major project of LOCSU. She notes the introduction of leadership course developed by learning and development consultant Gill Brabner of LOCSU.

The article presents information of interest to optometrists and other eye care professionals. One presents an interview with Optometry Australia president Kate Gifford who discusses the aspects of her career that inspires her the most and the most influential development for the clinical role of practitioners. Another outlines the articles to be published in the August 2016 edition of the journal including "Management of nystagmus" and "Practice dispensing."

This section offers news briefs on Great Britain's Association of Optometrists (AOP) as of July 2016. Resources to promote children's eye health have been launched by AOP. Doctor Glen Steele is one of the speakers chosen for the AOP's Therapeutics Conference to be held in London, England. The AOP's position statement on independent prescribing highlights the potential of IP training as a fulfilling career choice.

The article reports on the advice issued by the Association of Optometrists for contact lens users on caring for their eyes during the 2016 festival season in Great Britain, and cites the short top tips video produce by the Association for festival goers to help raise awareness.

The author discusses important role of optometrists in Great Britain in evaluating school children's eye health and in detecting abnormalities in their vision. Topics mentioned include the Association of Optometrists' effort to update its resources to help practitioners promote eye examinations for children and deliver eye care, and the common reasons why a child fails a vision screening including refractive errors.

The author reflects on the efforts by the Association of Optometrists (AOP) to finding smart ways to raise awareness with the media about the importance of children's eye health. Topics mentioned include the release of a story in April 2016 about the concurrence of children's vision and three-dimensional films, the launch of a poster for AOP members, and the use of World Book Day to explain the benefit of a visit to the optometrist for young bookworms.

An interview with Sali Davis, chief executive of Optometry Wales, is presented. She mentions that something that is significant for eye care is the funding from Welsh government for training of optometrists. She states that what has been vital is the creation of the Welsh Eye Care Plan because it has offered them with the lever to establish the services. She says that they really need the budget for the Welsh Eye Care Service (WECS).

The author focuses on the Association of Optometrists (AOP) and impact of fashion on various fields. Topics discussed include enthusiasm brought by featuring latest fashion trends in 100% Optical events, AOP being educational partner of 100% Optical to deliver interactive learning and eyecare awareness education through regional events, role of fashion in politics to nationalize health services, and AOPs encouragement to develop information technology (IT) infrastructure in ophthalmic services.

The article discusses the success of the Kensington, Chelsea, Westminster local optical committee (KCW LOC) in its bid for the delivery of ophthalmology services in the community. Topics include the participation of optometrists in the service through the LOC company Primary Eyecare Tri-Borough London Ltd., the training provided by NHS Trusts to optometrists, and the statement of managing director Katrina Venerus concerning the opportunity provided by the team up between LOC and NHS trusts.

The article offers information on the eye care campaign "Choose well" to be launched by the government of Wales in April 2015 to encourage people to visit their local accredited Welsh Eye Care Service (WECS) optometrist and presents the views of politician Vaughan Gething on the campaign.

An interview with Jason Dunn, client services manager at Hunter Human Capital (HHC), is presented in which he talks about the number of eye care practitioners that participated in HHC's annual survey, whether the 2015 HHC data shows any shifts in perception from 2014 and the level of stability of the optometric jobs market in 2015 and beyond.

The article discusses the highlights of the 2014 annual conference of the National Eyecare Group (NEG) in November 2014, which offered attendees nine continuing education and training (CET) points encompassing subjects like OCT to glaucoma and human resource practice.

An introduction to the journal is presented in which author discusses articles within the issue on topics including charity Blind Veterans UK's No One Alone campaign for community eye care practitioners, winners of the Association of Optometrists (AOP) Awards and experts at 100% Optical 2015 event.

The article reports on an annual eye ball event by optometry undergraduates at Glasgow Caledonian University, which have raised 850 Euros for Optometry Giving Sight program to donate money to, as many of our optometry students have been providing sight care in South Africa over the summer.

The article reports on the call to change the commissioning of community eye health services by the Optical Consideration (OC) and the Local Optical Committee Support Unit (LOCSU) in Great Britain as of October 2014. Topics discussed include the call's response to the National Health Service (NHS) England's Call to Action for eye health, and the optical sector's desire for more involvement in eye health services. Also mentioned are recommendations of other organisations across the sector.

Th article reports that the Local Optometry Committee Support Unit (LOCSU) has issued a new strategic plan that is compliant with new challenges and opportunities called for by the National Health Service (NHS) England. LOCSU managing director Katrina Venerus said that the plan aims to increase the role of optometrists and opticians in providing quality eye care to communities. Venerus added that the new plan also calls for practitioners to demonstrate robust data on patient outcomes.

The article reports that 20 optometry undergraduates from Glasgow Caledonian University will travel to South Africa to join Transnet-Phelophepa Health Care Train project by students from Australia and South Africa providing eye care to people in some of the poorest regions of the country.

The author comments on the survey of the Association of Optometrists (AOP) in Great Britain. He argues that AOP must listen to experiences encountered by its members in their practice. He believes that asking all members about their real experiences is the best way to have a full understanding of the practice. He urges AOP members to take time out to reply to the survey so the Association can be assisted in responding to the changing environment in eye care delivery.

The author offers highlights on the political conferences of the Conservative Party, Liberal Democrats and the Labour Party in Great Britain in 2013. The fringe events held by the Optical Conferederation at the political party conferences are highlighted. According to the author, the conferences provide an opportunity to promote the importance of good eye health and the role of optometrists in the community.

Several letters to the editor are presented in response to articles in previous issues including the resignation of an optometrists due to cognitive, near vision, and balance problems, another about the changing expression of optical profession and sales pressure set on optometrists by managers and employers, and another on the availability of eye care in developing countries.

The article discusses developments in the field of optometry in Great Britain as of August 2013. It cites the move by the General Optical Council (GOC) to conduct two consultations on how it will regulate optical students and businesses in the future. The move was supported by the Association of Optometrists (AOP). The opinion of the AOP's Ella Power on the developments is also cited.

The author examines the roles of three professional organisations in the British eye care sector as the Association of Optometrists (AOP) interim chief executive. He notes that the College of Optometrists is a public interest body with a standards-setting role while the General Optical Council (GOC) is the sector's regulatory body. He also stresses that the AOP's role is to defend its members' interests and that the AOP is always in constant dialogue with the College and GOC.