Specsavers’ rollout of OCT in New Zealand is complete, with the state-of-the-art diagnostic technology now available in every Specsavers store across the country. The final New Zealand store to receive an OCT was Specsavers New Plymouth, with the installation completed in early October.
Peter Larsen, optometry director for Specsavers Australia & New Zealand says that the OCT rollout is a cornerstone of Specsavers ‘Transforming eye health’ mission, with eye examinations to incorporate OCT screening for every patient at no additional cost. “OCT, in combination with functional visual field testing on indication, collaboration with medicine, and benchmarking of referrals, has resulted in a measurable impact on key eye health outcomes as OCT scanning can mean reduced rates of avoidable blindness – specifically glaucoma, age-related macular degeneration and diabetic eye disease. Already, more than 250,000 OCT scans have been performed across Specsavers’ Australian and New Zealand stores,” Larsen says.
“In Australia, the detection rate of glaucoma has doubled in Specsavers stores with OCT compared to 2017 – a rate which is near the population prevalence as determined by the Blue Mountains Eye Study. In the last nine months, Australian Specsavers stores have referred an additional 10,300 patients for glaucoma,” he says, adding that OCT helps the group “detect an additional one-in-five patients who might easily have progressed to irreversible damage and/or vision loss”.
Specsavers is now turning its focus to diabetic retinopathy, says Larsen. With the impending launch of the Australian KeepSight diabetic eye screening programme, results will continue to build on the 7,000 patients with diabetes already referred this year, he says.
