Recent eye symptoms may need prompt attention

Sudden or rapidly changing eye symptoms should not always wait for a routine appointment. Contact Actons Opticians promptly if you develop a recent problem and need advice about the most appropriate next step.

When you contact us, we will ask about your symptoms and help identify the most appropriate next step. Depending on the nature and urgency of the problem, this may be an appointment through the NHS Community Urgent Eyecare Service (CUES) in Worcester, another accredited provider, your GP, NHS 111 or hospital eye services.

Symptoms that may need urgent advice

Seek prompt advice if you experience:

• Sudden loss or reduction of vision
• New flashes of light or a sudden increase in floaters
• A dark curtain, shadow or missing area in your vision
• Moderate or severe eye pain
• A very red or swollen eye
• An eye injury or something embedded in the eye
• A chemical splash to the eye
• Sudden double vision
• Marked sensitivity to light with pain or redness
• A rapid and unexplained change in sight

This list is not exhaustive. Contact the practice if you are concerned about a recent change, even if your symptom is not listed.

What to do in a serious emergency

Call 999 or attend A&E immediately for a serious eye injury, major trauma, sudden severe loss of vision, chemical exposure, or eye symptoms occurring with signs of stroke such as facial weakness, arm weakness or difficulty speaking.

For a chemical splash, begin rinsing the eye immediately with plenty of clean lukewarm water while urgent medical help is arranged. Do not delay rinsing in order to contact the practice first.

How Actons can help

When you contact us, explain:

• What the symptom is
• When it started
• Whether it affects one or both eyes
• Whether your vision has changed
• Whether there has been pain, injury, discharge, flashes or floaters
• Any relevant medical conditions or recent treatment

The team will use this information to help direct you. This may include advising whether an NHS urgent eyecare pathway is suitable or whether you should contact another healthcare service.

NHS Community Urgent Eyecare Service (CUES)

Actons Opticians is an accredited provider of the NHS Community Urgent Eyecare Service (CUES) in Worcestershire.

CUES provides urgent assessment, treatment or referral for suitable sudden-onset eye problems. Examples can include a red or painful eye or eyelids, recently occurring flashes and floaters, recent and sudden loss of vision, or a foreign body in the eye. It is not a routine eye test.

Please telephone Actons first. We will ask about your symptoms and consider whether the problem is suitable for CUES and how quickly it needs to be assessed. We can offer a CUES appointment only when we have an appropriate appointment available within the timeframe required for the urgency of the problem.

If we cannot provide a suitable appointment in time, or if your symptoms are not appropriate for CUES, we will advise you to contact another accredited CUES provider or the most appropriate NHS service. Availability therefore has to be considered on a case-by-case basis, and patients should not attend the practice without first arranging an appointment.

Where the service criteria are met, a GP referral is not normally required. Children under 16 must attend with an adult. CUES is not intended for major eye conditions already being regularly monitored by an optometrist or hospital eye service, such as cataracts, diabetic retinopathy or glaucoma.

Read more about the NHS Community Urgent Eyecare Service.

Flashes and floaters

Floaters are small shapes, dots or strands that move across your vision. Flashes may look like brief streaks or sparks of light. Many people have longstanding floaters that do not change, but new flashes, a sudden increase in floaters or a dark curtain across the vision can require urgent assessment.

Contact the practice promptly if these symptoms are new, particularly if they affect one eye or are accompanied by reduced vision.

Please be aware: to examine flashes and floaters properly, we may need to use eye drops to dilate your pupils so we can see more of the retina. These drops can cause blurred vision and increased sensitivity to light for several hours, so you should not drive until your vision has returned to normal. Please consider arranging for someone else to bring you or collect you.

Red or painful eyes

A red eye can have many causes, ranging from minor irritation to a problem needing urgent treatment. Pain, reduced vision, significant light sensitivity, injury or contact-lens wear can make prompt assessment particularly important.

Remove contact lenses if the eye becomes red or painful and do not put them back in until you have received appropriate advice.

Do not drive if your vision is affected

If your vision has suddenly changed, do not drive yourself to the practice or hospital. Ask someone to take you or use another safe form of transport.