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OPTICAL APPLIANCES: SALE OF "READY READERS" (P.55/2002) - COMMENTS _______________
Presented to the States on 14th May 2002 by the Health and Social Services Committee
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STATES OF JERSEY
STATES GREFFE
150 2 0 0 2 P . 5 5 C o m .
Price code: A
Comments
The advice of the Health and Social Services Committee's Consultant Ophthalmologist, Mr. R. Downes, is that th Committee should have no objections in principle to following the action taken in the United Kingdom in regard to the sale of ready readers'.
Ready readers' have been widely available in the United Kingdom for over a decade since the change in law was effected by the Opticians Act 1989. The United Kingdom authorities took into account concerns raised principally by professional groups that unrestricted access to ready readers' might discourage people from having their eyes tested by qualified opticians, and thus miss the opportunity for detecting coexisting eye disease. It is fair to say that some concern is still expressed by elements of the profession. However, the Committee is unaware of any evidence that this has in practice had a significantly adverse impact on attendance at opticians or that it has resulted in an increased incidence of late detection of diseases which might be identified in this way.