How a new Eye Imaging Hub in Sunderland will help prevent ill eye health

“We know it’ll make it a much better experience for the people we see,” say the team behind the city’s Eye Imaging Hub, which is relocating.

A new community hub will help people keep on the ball with their eye health when it opens later this month.

South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust has teamed up with the Beacon of Light to launch a new NHS Eye Imaging Hub.

This will welcome low-risk patients who have glaucoma or retinal conditions such as diabetes and macular degeneration, a common eye condition that can affect vision as people get older.

It will offer them their regular eye scans and photos, which are used to check on the health of the eyes and they can then be called in for further appointments and treatment if needed.

The imaging service, currently running at Sunderland Eye Infirmary, has seen around 8,000 patients in its first year.

The move to a new dedicated Eye Imaging Hub in a community location now means the NHS will be able to see more patients, meaning people will get faster access to care.

Jill O’Brien is the Acting Head of Ophthalmic Photography for the trust and is part of the team setting up the hub.

She said: “The Beacon of Light is a fantastic building and great location for this community service. Patients will be able to join in other activities while they are there, catch a cuppa at its café and take advantage of two hours of free parking or use the nearby transport links.

“The team is really excited. We know it’ll make it a much better experience for the people we see. We’re looking forward to having our own dedicated space. We can’t wait to be able to welcome people to the hub.

“Our Trust and the Beacon of Light both want to help people be healthier, so it’s been so great to work together to set this up.”

How the hub works

Work is ongoing on the ground floor hub, which will open later this month - check your appointment letters for where to go.

The Eye Imaging Hub, will have its own welcome desk and be staffed by a team of four ophthalmic imaging technicians.

When glaucoma patients visit, they get three scans of their eyes which look at their structure and for any loss of vision.

The trust says the new location will make it easier for patients to use public transport or be dropped off, as patients often need eye drops, which means they can’t drive.

However, free parking at the stadium carpark is limited to two hours.

The new NHS Eye Imaging Hub will also play a pivotal role in helping to identify ill health by working closely with the Northern Ophthalmic Research and Innovation (NORI) Institute

Hosted by the University of Sunderland, NORI is a pioneering new research programme that will securely link routine eye images with other community and NHS data, to help spot early signs of other health conditions such as diabetes, dementia, heart disease and stroke.

Ajay Kotagiri, Clinical Director of Ophthalmology, said: “When our new Eye Imaging Hub opens, it will be a pivotal moment in way we deliver eye care and, most importantly, prevent eye ill health.

“For so many eye conditions it is important that we monitor them closely so that we keep peoples’ eyesight as good as it can be, for as long as possible.

“By opening an imaging hub in the community, we will be able to see so many more patients which means faster access to care and greater peace of mind for everyone.”

The new Eye Imaging Hub comes at a time of change for eye services in the city with the new Sunderland Specialist Eye Hospital also set to open later this month at Riverside Sunderland.