Hartlepool opticians upskilling staff with innovative Newmedica partnership
A town opticians has invested in its staff development and customer care after forming a partnership with a leading eyecare clinic.
Specsavers Hartlepool, which is based in Middleton Grange Shopping Centre, teamed up with Newmedica’s Teesside clinic to upskill its staff.
The locally owned and run store sent five staff members to Newmedica on placements to shadow ophthalmologists in both clinic and theatre.
Directors Ash Karim and Cian Murphy, as well as senior optometrists Craig Walker, Kristina Krancioch-Daniel and Heather Patrick, spent time at the Middlesbrough clinic to better understand the links between primary and secondary care.
Specsavers Hartlepool optometrist director Ash Karim said: “We are delighted to partner up with Newmedica to develop our staff and improve our offering to customers.
“The aim is to strengthen our clinical understanding of the patient journey and the treatments available for conditions such as cataracts, glaucoma and macular degeneration.
“For us, this is all about allowing patients to better understand their options and strengthen links between primary and secondary care.”
Specsavers Hartlepool’s optometrists are experts in looking after people’s vision and managing their eye health.
Newmedica Middlesbrough offers a variety of both NHS-funded and private ophthalmology treatments including cataract surgery, YAG laser treatment, oculoplastic surgery and treatment for glaucoma.
It is owned and led by the consultant ophthalmologists undertaking patient treatment as well as operations director Annette Johnson.
Annette said: “We were delighted to welcome members of the Specsavers Hartlepool team to our clinic as a fantastic opportunity for them to see what we do first-hand.”