The role of optometrists is evolving. Practitioners are no longer just carrying out sight tests and checking ocular health. They are having conversations with patients about lifestyle choices and how these are affecting their health.

In autumn 2023 there were contract reforms for the NHS Wales optometry service (Welsh Government, 2023). Optometrists in Wales are now required to embed prevention and wellbeing into Wales General Ophthalmic Services eye examinations. 

All optometry practice staff in Wales must carry out mandatory Making Every Contact Count (MECC) training. This shows them how to have conversations with patients about health, encourage people to make positive changes, and signpost to other services, including smoking cessation. 

In Scotland, it is also mandatory for optometrists to ask patients whether they smoke. This has been a requirement since 2006 (NHS Scotland, 2006). Eilidh Thomson MCOptom, Vice-Chair of Optometry Scotland, says that optometrists have a breadth of knowledge of many health conditions and how these can affect ocular health. “Asking a patient whether they smoke is part of an optometrist’s standard routine in Scotland. They will be in the habit of asking in both General Ophthalmic Services-funded examinations and private ones.”