First Assesment

We go to Boots the Opticians - they have never tried to flog unnecessary stuff to us.
Our local Boots also have an excellent retina camera thingy.

'Official' NHS Diabetic eye tests use drops in the eyes and more detailed cameras, but I have always been very happy to get a good photo and no eye drops from Boots!

My partner went to Vision Express, for bog standard reading glasses, and they tried to sell him a £150 pair! We went to Tescos and bought the same prescription (1.5) for £4.99.

If any optician suggests a pair of glasses for any reason, thank them, ask them for the prescription (they should give you this as standard) and leave. Then have a search on the internet. You can usually find better deals, at comparative quality, that way. And of course, if you want to try glasses on, just do so in the opticians, remember which shape/style suited you best, and then buy them online. This works for sunglasses too.

Hello,

Well done for getting a meter. This will be your best tool in helping to get your levels down.

As for opticians, you need to find one that does the full retinal image screening. It isn't an eye-sight test you need it is a full retinal image. I can't help you with this because in my area we have a specialist team at our local community hospital where we are all referred annually, so I don't use an ordinary optician. Maybe someone else can help with that, otherwise you'll have to get on the phone and find one.

Why did your nurse tell you to inform the DVLA? It isn't necessary in your case as you are just on Metformin. Insulin users (plus certain other meds) are different.

All areas have different educational courses. Some are for 1 or 2 days, others are for a couple of hours over a longer period. I was invited to the Xpert course, but as my own DN was the leader on that course, I declined the invitation as I knew exactly what she would be saying. I chose t learn about everything on here, from actual diabetics. However, the choice is yours. People do find them interesting and helpful, but very often the dietary advice is rubbish.

Hello Daniel1e. I used Specsavers, routinely. I had been a customer/patient of theirs for years before diagnosis. They do the full retinal screening and photography, as well as field of vision and pressure tests.

At my last eye test my prescription had changed, but the ophthalmologist commented that the change was so minor that unless I wanted new glasses, there was no need to consider any, at that time.

One comment I will make thoug is that some newly diagnosed diabetics find they can experience a few days of blurry visions - either before or after diagnosis, when their blood sugar levels are changing. If you have the symptom, then it isn't a good time to buy glasses, as it usually clears pretty quickly, and can render those glasses useless, from a seeing perspective.

Well done on being proactive with all your checks and buying a meter. It sounds like you fancy giving this thing a run for its money.

Bluetit1802 said:

Hello,



Why did your nurse tell you to inform the DVLA? It isn't necessary in your case as you are just on Metformin. Insulin users (plus certain other meds) are different.

Click to expand...

Hi, Bluetit 1802

I'm on Metformin and Gliclazide. Do you know if I need to inform the DVLA? My GP didn't mention it - just that I needed to make sure that I have full fat coke and some slow release carbs in the car whenever I drive.

The DVLA website doesn't specify if the Gliclazide is notifiable.

Thanks in advance and apologies for hijacking the thread.

norbitonite said:

Hi, Bluetit 1802

I'm on Metromin and Gliclazide. Do you know if I need to inform the DVLA? My GP didn't mention it - just that I needed to make sure that I have full fat coke and some slow release carbs in the car whenever I drive.

The DVLA website doesn't specify if the Gliclazide is notifiable.

Thanks in advance and apologies for hijacking the thread.

Click to expand...

These are the rules for driving.

https://www.gov.uk/diabetes-driving

I do believe Gliclazide is one of the drugs that can cause hypos.

I have been with Boots opticians for years now and they have always been very good and looked after my eyes very well.
Good luck RRB

You need both a routine eye test AND a specialist diabetic eye screening test. An appointment for the latter should be offered to you by your local NHS Diabetic Eye Screening Programme within 3 months of diagnosis. The screening may be provided by specialist opticians in some parts of the country (and can be combined with a routine eye test) or in other parts of the country the screening is done by specialist screeners (so a routine eye test appointment should be booked separately, with an optician).

You need to make sure that your eye screening is performed by an accredited member of the Diabetic Eye Screening Programme - some opticians will take retinal photographs but do not have specialist qualifications in grading diabetic retinopathy, do not have enhancement tools for viewing the retinal photographs, do not have robust quality assurance, do not see enough cases to maintain expertise and do not have access to a consultant ophthalmologist for a second opinion.