Optician

Urgent Eye Care Services

If you have any concerns at all about your eyes, see a High Street Optometrist (also known as an Optician) straightaway. He or she will tell you if you are eligible for a free eye health examination. This examination is known as an Examination for Urgent Eye Problems and this available under the Wales General Ophthalmic Service (WGOS).

As part of an examination for an urgent eye problem the Optometrist will carefully examine your eyes to see if anything is wrong. The tests and equipment they use will depend on what you tell them and what they find. An eye examination for an urgent eye problem is more in-depth than, and different to a routine vision test so it may take longer. If the Optometrist decides you need an examination for an urgent eye problem, it won’t cost you anything.

You can find an Optometrist on most High Streets in Wales. If you have a sight problem, you can go to your existing Optometrist (if you have one), or just phone, or walk into any practice that is convenient for you to get to.

Catherine McNamara, Primary Care Practitioner and Optometric Advisor for Aneurin Bevan University Health Board, explains more about the Urgent Eye Care Service in this short video

For more information about these services go to the Eye Health Examination Wales website.

If you have a problem outside of normal working hours, ring 111 for advice.

Conjunctivitis (bacterial) and dry eye can be treated by pharmacists under the common ailments scheme. See this page for more details or visit your local Pharmacist.