New eye health clinic opens at UCLan’s Preston campus

Rupal Lovell-Patel, Professor Cathy Jackson, UCLan Vice-Chancellor Professor Graham Baldwin and Lancashire County Councillor Shaun Turner.

UCLan has now opened a purpose-built eye health clinic on its Preston campus.

Set up similarly to a high street optical practice, the UCLan clinic is already welcoming people from the local community.

Advertisements

She said: “The treatment is incredibly thorough, and the staff really took the time to talk me through the whole process. The UCLan Eye Health Clinic is a fantastic asset for the university and the local community.”

UCLan Vice-Chancellor Professor Graham Baldwin and Lancashire County Councillor Shaun Turner opened the new clinic.

Councillor Shaun Turner, Vice-Chancellor Professor Graham Baldwin, Deputy Head of School of Medicine Nigel Garratt, Professor Cathy Jackson, Executive Dean of the Faculty of Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, and Rupal Lovell-Patel, Academic Lead for Vision Sciences

Professor Baldwin said: “I am delighted to officially open our new eye clinic here at the University of Central Lancashire.

“Its services will benefit students, university staff and residents, who can take advantage of the outstanding eye healthcare we can provide in such fantastic facilities here in Preston.

“The clinic joins a growing number of public services we offer as a university, including our dental and physiotherapy clinics. Alongside the direct benefits to our community, the clinic is also helping to train the next generation of eye care professionals, boosting the local health economy and improving local healthcare provision.

“I am proud the university is training a wealth of healthcare professionals, many of whom go on to work in the region, including doctors, nurses, dentists, paramedics and physician associates, to name a few.”

Examinations are carried out by experienced staff or by final year MSc Optometry students under direct supervision, while students on the BSc (Hons) Ophthalmic Dispensing course will have the opportunity to learn within the clinic environment.

Councillor Turner, who is also a member of the East Lancashire Health and Wellbeing Partnership, said: “It’s important to develop, grow and retain optometry skills within Lancashire. To see such levels of care and ambition at UCLan is fantastic for future generations of eye care specialists.

“It’s also a hidden gem for members of the public who can make use of these fantastic facilities.”

Rupal Lovell-Patel, Academic Lead for Vision Sciences at the University, said: “To open a facility like this during a national pandemic is nothing short of miraculous.

“To do it so well deserves great credit to all the teams involved. We are looking forward to working closely with the community and providing high-quality health care whilst simultaneously training the next generation of eye health specialists.”

For more information, visit – https://www.uclan.ac.uk/business/professional-services/eye-health-clinic