NES Optometry

09/01/2026

📣2026 GOS Mandatory Training is available for completion!

💻 'A Realistic Approach to Community Eyecare'
📆Completion deadline: 31st December 2026

The resource aims to enhance your understanding and implementation of the principles of Realistic Medicine and Value-Based Health and Care (VBH&C) within your role as an eyecare practitioner in Scotland.

📲Access the training here: https://learn.nes.nhs.scot/26227

05/01/2026

📣NES is partnering with NHS Golden Jubilee to offer community optometrists a fantastic CPD opportunity on managing cataract surgery.

You will shadow Consultant Ophthalmic Surgeon, Dr Sumona McLaughlin, and a senior cataract optometrist, as they assess newly referred patients from across every Health Board in Scotland, moving through the consenting for surgery process.

*6 CPD points available (sessions can also count towards 1 IP clinical placement).

Sessions are now available in January 2026.

Book here: https://learn.nes.nhs.scot/79140

25/12/2025

24/12/2025

🎀 1 day to Christmas 🎀

One day just wasn’t enough to tell you about all the FTY progress, so here’s a couple more highlights from the year:

✅ Assessments
We supported GCU and UHI to create robust, authentic assessment approaches. Sign-off processes are underway to confirm shared ownership and alignment across both universities. This included equality impact assessments to embed inclusion from the start of programme design.

✅ Coming soon…
Quarterly newsletters (subscribe by emailing nes.ftyoptometry@nhs.scot), remote & rural lifestyle videos and student/supervisor explanation videos to be released in the new year, as well as the ongoing development of a comprehensive FTY resource hub, with a dedicated Supervisor space.

📣 A huge thank you to everyone across universities, employers, professional bodies, Optometry Scotland, Scottish Government and NES colleagues who’ve contributed this year. We’re excited for the next steps!

23/12/2025

🎀 2 days to Christmas 🎀

This year has seen major progress in the FTY, the fifth year of Scotland’s new MOptom (IP) programme, launching in 2028.
For full details visit our dedicated Turas Learn page
https://learn.nes.nhs.scot/71767

Here are some highlights:

✅ Placements
We’re designing two 24-week workplace-based placements to offer diverse clinical experience, including urban, remote & rural settings, with a preference-based matching approach agreed in consultation with stakeholders. At our Stakeholder Day at Stobhill Hospital, Glasgow, we showcased the simulation and ‘teach and treat’ components of the delivery to universities, employers, professional bodies, and partners.
Watch the highlights here: https://vimeo.com/1131322977

✅ Supervisors
Each student will have an Academic Mentor, a Clinical Supervisor, and an Educational Supervisor, aligned to a Once for Scotland standard. We’ve developed training modules for Supervisors, piloted them on Turas Learn, and refined them based on feedback. These modules include built-in peer review and provide ongoing support.

Don’t miss tomorrow for a little more….

22/12/2025

🎀 3 days to Christmas 🎀

The 2025 Mandatory Training: Population health: community optometry making an impact in Scotland received great feedback with over 70% of learners leaving a 5-star rating and comments like “Excellent! Love this course”, “..very useful, informative and interesting”, “..compliments to the staff producing this for our profession”.

We’re so glad you liked it and hope that it reinforced the positive impact of community optometry on the population in Scotland!

Look out for the 2026 Mandatory Training coming in the new year, “A Realistic Approach to Community Eyecare”.

21/12/2025

🎀 4 days to Christmas 🎀

The Postgraduate Support team have offered a wealth of CPD this year using a mix of evening webinars, lunch time learn sessions and both weekday and weekend face-to-face events across the country. There have been 18 events in total offering development in independent prescribing, first aid, paediatrics, leadership, communication and decision making, supporting smoking cessation and showcasing areas of expertise like cataract surgery and vascular health.

It doesn’t end here as we have a further 7 events planned for the start of the new year including our return-to-work course and a face-to-face event around a patient-centred approach to people living with diabetes. Make sure to sign up on our Turas page:
https://learn.nes.nhs.scot/8792

20/12/2025

🎀 5 days to Christmas 🎀

Our Community Glaucoma Service support has been busy this year with peer discussion groups, journal clubs and a skills day.

Glaucoma services in the community are a fundamental part to sustaining the NHS in Scotland and we are here to provide those working in the community with a community of their own, where they can be encouraged and developed in their skills and experience.

We want to know what you think and need so please join in the discussion and don’t miss our Annual Glaucoma CPD day coming up 8th Feb 2026!

https://learn.nes.nhs.scot/87266

19/12/2025

🎀 6 days to Christmas 🎀

The 4th cohort of NESGAT supported 15 students through to qualification, receiving an excellent assessment from the external verifier and a glowing report from the SQA, now known as Qualifications Scotland (QF).

Quotes from NESGAT cohort 4 trainee feedback:

"...I am definitely better at managing my glaucoma patients because of the knowledge and additional experience I have gained."

"...my knowledge of glaucoma (and especially the major studies which have shaped glaucoma care) improved significantly during the course.

📣 It takes a small army to make this a success so “Thank you” to all of those involved, we couldn’t do it without you!

We are excited to work with cohort 5, due to start June 2026.

18/12/2025

🎀 7 days to Christmas 🎀

Our Teach + Treat clinics have continued in WOSCOTT, LOTT, Grampian and Forth Valley, with the addition of a cataract clinic in Golden Jubilee.

Designed predominantly to provide trainee IP Optometrists with first-hand experience of treating patients, under the supervision of an Ophthalmologist, who by providing feedback on their skills and knowledge, help them to continue their development and progress to qualifying as an independent prescriber.

📣Thanks to all the staff at the Health Boards for facilitating the sessions and making them possible!

Look out for developments to delivery in 2026!

17/12/2025

🎀 8 days to Christmas 🎀

This year we moved the booking of our 12 session, simulation-based Independent Prescribing Clinic Placements onto Turas. Delivered at Clinic M, Stobhill Hospital, Glasgow these sessions involve the use of the groundbreaking EyeSi virtual reality slit lamp and working in small groups with an actor, in the role of the patient, to develop differential diagnosis and management plan formulation skills, while also earning CPD points.

We also held some sessions up in Inverness and hope to widen delivery in 2026!

📣 This wouldn’t be possible without all of our amazing facilitators and actors, so a huge “thank you” for all of their collaboration this year!

Interested in finding out more? Why not watch this short video:

Training to become an independent prescribing optometrist, Optometry team.

16/12/2025

🎀 9 days to Christmas 🎀

The NES Optometry team have been expanding their research and innovation this year with attendance and involvement in multiple National events, collaborating on multidisciplinary projects and pursuing opportunities for shared learning.

We had posters accepted and exhibited at UKEGS and BCOVS, where we latterly received a prize for the best poster!

We’ve also been committed to staff development with one of our Senior Educators successfully completing their MSc, our FTY Head of Service starting the Leading for the future programme and in business support our Deputy Manager receiving a place on the New Horizons Leadership and management programme. Go Team!

Check out our winning poster: