My experience working abroad as an Orthoptist in the United Kingdom, during the COVID-19 pandemic- by Aida Zeric
In February 2020 I left my job as a full-time Orthoptist at Westmead Hospital Eye Clinic, in order to embark on an experience of a lifetime; to temporarily work in Oxford, United Kingdom, and travel Europe with my fiancé. Little did I know that one month later the COVID-19 pandemic would occur.
In fact, the very same week I was meant to start working was the week that the UK Government announced a sudden, strict national lockdown. Due to the lockdown, Oxford Eye Hospital, based at the John Radcliffe Hospital and run by Oxford University Hospitals, was required to essentially close, with all clinical appointments being cancelled across the various eye specialities, except for the Emergency Eye Department. The vast majority of the team at the eye clinic were deployed to assist in the COVID-19 wards. It was quite a daunting period, but a few months later the restrictions eased and I was finally able to start working.
The Orthoptic team was beyond welcoming and supportive. I was amazed by how big the entire eye clinic is - about three times the size of Westmead Eye Clinic, which is quite a large clinic in itself! It was interesting to observe the differences in orthoptic practice between Australia and the UK. The main difference is that their primary role is to run ‘Orthoptist-only’ clinics, where they manage paediatric and adult strabismus. They also work in conjunction with strabismus/paediatric ophthalmologists for patients who require surgical treatment or further ophthalmic testing. They even have a combined clinic with the Optometry department, which performs dilated refractions. This is different to Australia, where ophthalmologists perform dilated refractions on children. The orthoptists here do not perform any standard ophthalmic imaging or visual field testing, unlike the orthoptists in Australia. Instead this is done by the ophthalmic imaging technicians, and optometrists. I love the autonomy that orthoptists have here in the UK, and that they are highly regarded in the eye clinic for being the ocular motility specialists that they are. With that said, I still think it is beneficial that Australian orthoptists are additionally trained in ophthalmic technician work, as I think this helps build a holistic understanding of ophthalmic pathologies, and provides additional scope of practice.
The only imaging, which two orthoptists have recently become involved in, is done for the Craniosynostosis clinic. Here they have been upskilled to use a brand new Heidelberg OCT, which has been modified to take scans fast enough to capture optic nerve OCTs on babies. This is impressive and cutting-edge technology. There is also an orthoptist involved in research trials using OPTUS wide-view retinal imaging and testing it for use in screening and monitoring Retina of Prematurity; a technique developed at the Oxford Eye clinic called the ‘flying baby’.
Speaking to my orthoptist colleagues here I found that they were all very satisfied with their careers and are thankful for the opportunities that the Oxford Eye Hospital provides them to upskill if they choose to. For instance, one orthoptist has been trained to do intravitreal injections (which isn’t currently legal in Australia for orthoptists to perform), and another orthoptist is undertaking a Masters in Glaucoma in order to additionally work in the glaucoma clinics alongside the ophthalmologists.
For those considering life in the UK, rest assured that your registration as an UTS trained orthoptist will be recognised by the ‘Health & Care Professions Council’, which is the governing body that orthoptists must be registered to in order to legally work in the NHS (National Health Service). Allow time for this registration though as it takes a few months. Also, there is a ’Youth Mobility Scheme Visa’ which is an agreement between Australia and the UK. It allows Australian citizens aged between 18-30 years old to live and work in the UK for 2 years. I highly recommend looking into this Visa and taking advantage of it if you’re eligible!
So, while the year didn’t quite go to plan due to COVID-19, I don’t regret my decision one bit as it gave me a new perspective on life and my career, and has inspired me to find work in my area of interest, which is Paediatric Orthoptics, when I return to Sydney this year.