Throughout the UK demand for sight saving treatments is increasing as the population ages. Hospital budgets are tight and capacity issues in eye clinics are hampering service delivery. In England, the NHS faces its own pressures of delivering £20 billion of efficiency savings while implementing major structural reforms. This is coupled with a shift to local decision making which could increase postcode prescribing and exacerbate health inequalities.
In response to these pressures and to reduce the amount of avoidable sight loss in the UK, we launched the "Save our Sight" campaign. The report below outlines the work that is currently being undertaken as part of the campaign in each of the four countries of the UK.
The increasing levels of unnecessary sight loss
In the UK it is estimated that almost two million people are affected by sight loss, at a predicted cost to the economy of over £6.5 billion per year in direct and indirect costs. The number of people at risk of the main causes of blindness - cataract, glaucoma, wet AMD and diabetic retinopathy - is set to increase by up to 25 per cent in the decade leading up to 2020.
We estimate that over half of sight loss is avoidable; yet it continues to increase due to problems accessing timely diagnosis, treatment and monitoring. With some eye conditions, such as glaucoma, the chances of retaining good sight are extremely high if the disease is caught early and treated appropriately. However, it is estimated that 17 per cent of people in the UK who have severe sight loss in at least one eye, have lost their sight as a result of glaucoma.