Posted on: 8 April 2024
My Eye Health is a new website for people across West Yorkshire, particularly eye care service users and their families, friends and carers.
The idea of having a website just for eye health was the result of discussions with members of Outlookers, a member-led organisation that runs support services for people with visual impairments. Members told us they can easily find out more about their eye condition and search for details of eye care services online, but there’s a problem. Because there’s such a huge amount of information online, it’s not easy to find the best information in terms of it being up to date, clinically accurate, easy to understand and relevant to where people live. It’s hard to know which is good information, and which isn’t so good.
My Eye Health pulls all the good information together in one place. It details over 50 different eye conditions, including the most common which are age-related macular degeneration (AMD), cataracts and glaucoma. The website offers information about treatments, self-care guidance and post-surgery advice. There’s information about how people can access a local eye care service for non-emergency eye problems like soreness or redness, and how people can get urgent medical help for an eye care emergency such as sudden sight loss or an eye injury.
There’s a section dedicated to children’s eye health which has guidance for children and their parents or carers on how to look after the eyes and why it’s important to get eyes tested regularly from a young age. This section also covers common childhood eye conditions such as squint, lazy eye and blocked tear ducts. There are links to videos and animations showing children being tested for different eye conditions. These can help children who may be worried about being tested see that the tests aren’t frightening and understand what will happen at their appointment.
My Eye Health was developed in collaboration with members of Outlookers who carried out a review of the website’s content and its accessibility. Mark Owen, Outlookers Chief Executive Officer, said: “Groups that offer practical advice and peer support for people living with sight loss can be a lifeline. Having that link with people who have gone through, or are going through, a similar experience is invaluable. We are pleased that Outlookers is one of many West Yorkshire support services signposted on My Eye Health and we hope it encourages more people to find a service that’s right for them.”
In addition to patient information, My Eye Health has a professionals section for those working in eye care in West Yorkshire. Professionals can log in to access information including clinical guidance, eye care commissioning policies and medication updates for example.
Sarah Sharps, Project Manager for Eye Care Transformation, said: “My Eye Health holds a range of information and resources that eye care professionals can easily access such as clinical guidance, medication updates and patient treatment referral forms. The professionals section has an interactive staff forum where eye care professionals can ask questions and share information with others working in eye care across West Yorkshire.”
The Partnership hopes that My Eye Health will be a useful resource for anyone wanting advice about eye health or a particular eye condition, or information about eye care services in West Yorkshire. However, it’s a brand new website and there’s always room for improvement. Visitors to My Eye Health are asked to share any thoughts or suggestions about the website via the ‘Get in touch’ contact at the bottom of each web page. Any feedback will be used to help improve My Eye Health and make it as good as it can be.