Ensuring standards for the extended role of optometry

Area of Science:

• Optometry
• Primary Eye Care
• Healthcare Education

Background:

• Optometrists' roles are expanding into primary eye care, including prescribing and managing conditions previously handled by general practitioners.
• This expansion necessitates robust educational support to ensure safe and effective practice.
• National educational programs can standardize training and support isolated practitioners.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate a national educational program designed to support optometrists in their expanded primary eye care roles.
• To assess the effectiveness of a three-stage educational approach incorporating simulation and mentorship.

Main Methods:

• Optometrists received education through three stages: skill simulation, simulated healthcare context learning, and practice transfer support.
• Mentorship via email was utilized to facilitate the transfer of newly acquired skills into practice.

Main Results:

• The three-stage educational program, including simulation and mentorship, received positive evaluation.
• Simulation effectively supported initial skill acquisition and standard setting.

Conclusions:

• Further development of expanded healthcare roles requires safe practice guidelines.
• Mentorship is crucial for embedding newly acquired skills into practice, complementing simulation-based training.