In a typical day, I see patients with simple or complex needs, ranging in age from a few months old to 90 years old and beyond. These patients are referred to the eye clinic by an optician, health visitor or other specialities in the hospital.
We commonly see children with a lazy eye that we help treat with patching to improve their vision. We also see adults and children with squints that are treated by surgery or botulinum toxin injections by an eye surgeon.
Patients with double vision are frequently referred to orthoptists and it’s my job to determine the cause of the double vision and to manage the condition with treatments such as prisms to join the double vision together.
I’m responsible for assessing the patients before and after these treatments and to make sure that the best outcome is achieved. As an orthoptist, I’m an autonomous practitioner and my role requires good decision making and management skills.