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We hope you are staying safe and well in what has become a very changed world over the last few months. We are all looking forward to the day when we can all resume our normal daily lives and hoping this will come very soon. We particularly look forward to the day we can welcome everyone back through our doors with open arms.
In the meantime we are still open by appointment for repairs and replacement of spectacles when a new prescription is not essential. Contact lenses for our Plan to Wear scheme patients have continued to be delivered direct to their door and our pay as you go contact lenses, solutions and dry eye products can be ordered online on our website www.brownandwhite.co.uk.
Should you need any help during the continued forced closure of our practice please call our advice line on 01582 507200 preferably during normal working hours if not an emergency.
If you feel that your prescription has changed and are likely to need an Eye Examination or Contact lens check soon after our reopening, we are creating a waiting list now, as appointments are likely to be limited due to social distancing and enhanced cleaning regimes. Please email martin@brownandwhite.co.uk with your personal details, up to date contact information and best email address to contact you on. Please tell us what you are likely to need and the branch that you normally attend so that we can add you to the correct list. If you know anyone else who would benefit from our service please send this email on to them.
Although we have no confirmed date yet from NHS England about when we can reopen for more routine matters, we are currently working very hard behind the scenes. We will ensure a safe place for all our patients, our staff and our wider community by developing new practice protocols following Covid-19. Infection control has always been of paramount importance for our practices as you will no doubt remember from your previous visits. We follow a strict policy so that when you receive care, it is both safe and comfortable.
We would like to reassure you that a team member will be available to guide you through any changes that may affect you. For example:
- Before arrival you will be contacted to ensure that neither you nor any member of your household have any symptoms of Covid-19. (You will be asked these questions again on arrival at the practice). You may be asked some pre-examination information, such as your reason for your visit and update of medication, so that time in the closer environment of the consulting room can be minimised.
• On arrival, we will require you to use hand sanitizer and to wear a face covering. If you do not have one, one will be provided to you.
• Your forehead temperature may be checked using a no touch thermometer.
• Perspex panels or ‘germ-guards’ may be installed along the reception desk and dispensing tables in the waiting room.
• It is important that we keep the number of people in the practice down to a minimum. We ask that you attend alone if at all possible, though we do understand that on occasions it is essential for some to be accompanied. Any children will need to be supervised at all times and young children should be secured in push-chairs, buggies or prams.
• You are asked not to bring in excess bags or non-essential items into the practice.
• Appointment times will be managed to allow for social distancing between patients which may mean that you are initially offered fewer options for scheduling your appointment. If you arrive early you may be asked to wait outside. We will do our best to ensure that waiting times are kept to a minimum.
• We will implement a daily health screening check point and log for the screening of all staff entering the workplace.
• We will take steps to minimise staff interaction.
• You are likely to see members of our team wearing additional PPE whenever they have to come within the 2 metre social distancing area.
• All communal areas of the practice will be cleaned prior to practice opening, at lunchtime and at the end of the day.
• Certain review appointments, necessary follow-ups and initial consultations maybe completed over the phone or by utilising video consultations.
• During the Covid-19 crisis your eye examination will take a very different form, as time in the consulting room will need to be kept to an absolute minimum. It will begin with your optometrist talking to you before taking you into the consulting room in order to learn relevant history and to discuss any concerns you may have. He/she will then be in a position to decide which clinical tests are essential for you. This important part of your eye examination may sometimes be conducted by telephone prior to your appointment.
- Discussions regarding the test results and findings may also take place outside the consulting room. To make the best possible use of the short time available in the consulting room our Advanced Gold examination is strongly advised for most patients. Careful analysis of the extra detailed tests can be carried out in safety after you have left the practice and discussed with you later by telephone. Thorough cleaning of consulting equipment will take place between each client.
- All payments should be made by card as we will be unable to accept cash or cheques at this time. If this is a problem please let us know in advance so that alternative arrangements can be made.
• You may see that our waiting room will no longer offer newspapers and magazines, since those items are difficult to clean and disinfect. In the short term tea and coffee will also be off the menu.
As we receive further guidance from our governing bodies relating to Covid-19, it is likely that infection control measures will need to be modified.
We would like to remind you that we continue to be available via phone, email or video consultation for all our patients. We would also like to reassure patients that we have established secure remote access to our clinical database. We are available 7-days a week regarding any emergency eyecare problems or concerns you may have during this outbreak.
We look forward to seeing you again and are happy to answer any questions you may have about the steps we are implementing to keep you, and every patient, safe in our practice.
Thank you for your patience and understanding during this crisis. We look forward to welcoming you back at some point in the near future but until then, please, stay safe.
Martin White
