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The various teams at St Paul's Eye Unit are dedicated and trained to understand the needs of our patients. We put our patients first and know how to vary our approach to individual patients’ needs.

The team seeks to continually improve, looking at new innovations. We understand the need for change, and promote this within the team. Quality is our priority.

Who we are

Administration

Call Centre

Call Centre – if you are referred into our service from your GP, an Optician, an Accident & Emergency Service, or from another consultant your referral will firstly be received in our Call Centre.

For more infomation on the Call Centre, please CLICK HERE

Case Note Preparation

We have a team of administration staff responsible for locating and preparing your case-note prior to your attendance at St Paul’s Eye Unit.

Reception Teams

We have a team of highly qualified reception staff, who will be in out-patient clinic areas to receive patients on arrival. They will check your details, it is important that we have your correct name, address, date of birth, GP and next of kin. If you need to have any tests prior to your consultation, they will direct you to the appropriate area to wait.

Following your consultation, the receptionist may book you a further appointment, may put you onto an out-patient/in-patient waiting list, or may if you require surgery direct you to the pre-operative assessment area, in preparation for your surgery. Following pre-operative tests, the receptionist may then be able to offer you an agreed date for your surgery before you leave the department.

If you need to see an Optician and require spectacles, the reception staff in the Optometry Department, will look after your needs, whilst you are choosing your frames. They will also book any appointments required for contact lens clinics and low visual aid clinics.

Reception staff in the Clinical Eye Research Centre, will as in all out-patient clinic areas, receive patients on arrival, check patient information, and book any required follow up appointments before you leave. They are a dedicated trained team, and understand the administration complexities within this service.

Reception staff in our Primary Care Department (Ophthalmology – Accident & Emergency Department), will receive patients into the emergency department. Following your consultation, the reception team will book you a further appointment if required. Their role is to also ensure that any provisional diagnosis made by the medical team and any treatment that you may have been given, is inputted onto the Patent Administration System, so your GP can be informed

Reception staff in all areas will contact patients if they Do Not Attend their appointment.

It is important that if you cannot keep your appointment, you let us know in advance, so the slot can be offered to another patient.

In-Patient Waiting List Team

We have a dedicated team who will book your date for surgery, if this was not already been done when you attended your out-patient clinic. They will contact you to offer you a choice of dates, once agreed with your surgeon and anaesthetic cover.

Ward Clerks

St Paul’s Eye Unit has a Day Ward and patients that need to be admitted overnight will be admitted to 9Y Ward. The ward clerks will receive you onto the ward, and all your information will be checked once again. It is important that we have your correct names, address, date of birth, GP and next of kin. Once the ward clerk has admitted you onto the ward, the nursing staffs will then, take a history and settle you in on the ward. The ward clerk will book you a follow up appointment to attend the out-patient clinic once you have been discharged

About Us

Your referral

If you are referred into our service from your GP, an optician, an accident & emergency service or from another consultant your referral will firstly be received in our Call Centre.

Referrals may be received as paper copies, via EPOC (electronic system for opticians) or via Choose and Book. Choose and Book is a national system that combines electronic booking and a choice of place, date and time for first out-patient appointments.

Once referrals are received they will be registered onto the Patient Administration System. The referral (not Choose and Book) will then be checked against agreed protocols to determine the urgency, and patients will be contacted within 48 hours by telephone and offered a choice of appointment dates and times.

The referral will then be passed to the consultant to confirm the date, and if agreed a letter will then be sent to the patient. If the consultant feels a patient requires an earlier date, then the patient will be contacted by telephone, the appointment date changed, and a confirmation letter sent.

Patients wishing to change their out-patient appointment can contact St Paul’s Eye Unit Call Centre. This is a centralised point for calls to be taken by a dedicated team of administration staff. They have been trained to understand ophthalmic conditions, and are local to consultant ophthalmologists and their secretaries. Also, all calls received in the Call Centre are tracked, so each patient’s call is noted - who took the call, time and date, and the outcome of the call.

Patients who have been placed on an out-patient waiting list will be contacted by the Call Centre Team by post. This gives patients the opportunity to contact us and to agree a suitable date and time for their next appointment.

Administration

Case Note Preparation

We have a team of administration staff responsible for locating and preparing your case notes prior to your attendance at St Paul’s Eye Unit.

Reception Teams

We have a team of highly qualified reception staff who are located in out-patient clinic areas. They will receive you on arrival and will check your details - it is important that we have your correct name, address, date of birth, GP and next of kin. If you need to have any tests prior to your consultation, they will direct you to the appropriate area.

Following your consultation, the receptionist may book you a further appointment, may put you on to an out-patient/in-patient waiting list, or may direct you to the pre-operative assessment area if you require surgery. Following pre-operative tests, the receptionist may then be able to offer you an agreed date for your surgery before you leave the department.

If you need to see an Optician and require spectacles, the reception staff in the Optometry Department, will look after you while you choose your frames. They will also book any appointments required for contact lens clinics and low visual aid clinics.

Reception staff in the Clinical Eye Research Centre will receive patients on arrival, check patient information, and book any required follow-up appointments before you leave. They are a dedicated and highly trained team.

Reception staff in our Primary Care Department (Ophthalmology – Accident & Emergency Department), will receive patients into the emergency department. Following your consultation, the reception team will book you a further appointment if required. They will let your GP know about any provisional diagnosis made by the medical team and any treatment that you may have been given by inputting your information into the Patent Administration System.

Reception staff in all areas will contact patients if they Do Not Attend their appointment.

It is important that if you cannot keep your appointment, you let us know in advance so the slot can be offered to another patient.

In-Patient Waiting List Team

If you require surgery our dedicated team who will book your date if this was not done when you attended your out-patient clinic. They will contact you to offer you a choice of dates, once agreed with your surgeon and anaesthetist.

Ward Clerks

St Paul’s Eye Unit has a Day Ward and patients that need to be admitted overnight will be admitted to 9Y Ward. The ward clerks will receive you onto the ward, and all your information will be checked once again. It is important that we have your correct names, address, date of birth, GP and next of kin. After the ward clerk has admitted you onto the ward, the nursing staff will settle you in. Once you have been discharged the ward clerk will book you a follow up appointment to attend the out-patient clinic.