Home Visits

The practice has been designed to be wheelchair and walking frame friendly.  Free parking is also available right outside the door.  These measures help the majority of people receive the best possible eye exam with access to ALL of our state-of-the-art equipment.

For those of you who find it impossible to leave the house unaccompanied, we can arrange a home visit in the following NHS Primary Care Trusts: 

• Greenwich                  
• Bexley            
• Bromley                     
• Lambeth
• Lewisham
• Southwark
• West Kent

Specialist portable equipment is used and a large range of frames are carried.  We can offer advice on the most appropriate lens selection and other eye care needs such as lighting and some low vision aids. Please note that we cannot offer a contact lens service or retinal photography in a home visit setting.  

We are able to see people who are bed bound and also people with little or no communication by using specialist techniques similar to those used when testing young children.

We are also happy to visit individuals or groups at nursing homes and residential homes to ensure continuity of care.

Booking a home visit appointment 

• Contact us on 020 8293 9493 and we will make an appointment on our next scheduled day in your area.  Visits are scheduled between 10am – 7.30pm.
   
• A scheduled time cannot be given but broad time preferences will be accommodated where possible. We recognise that people’s daily routines are different and that 7.30 pm may be too late for some people. If this is the case, please let us know when booking the appointment.
   
• If your symptoms are a sudden loss of vision i.e. overnight and /or severe pain in one eye, we would regard this as an emergency and would offer the earliest possible appointment available.  
   
• Please bear in mind that we have a lot of equipment to carry and need to park as close as possible. If there are any parking restrictions please discuss with us how best to resolve them.
   
• If you live within the congestion zone we will usually visit after 6pm.
   
• If we are unable to see everyone on the agreed day before 7.30pm we are happy to continue with appointments after this time if preferred by the patients.  Alternatively we can rebook your appointment as a priority.  
   
• If you are making an appointment on behalf of someone who is unable to make their own decisions, it is important to ensure that someone responsible is present at the home visit.  If this is not possible, please discuss your requirements beforehand and we will try to accommodate your needs.
   
• It is sometimes possible to book an appointment outside these arrangements for a fee of £25.
   
• When testing your sight we will ensure that all legal requirements relating to health and safety in the workplace are satisfied, and that we strictly follow the requirements and recommendations of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency.

Cancelling a home visit appointment

We do understand that many of our home visit patients are frail and may need to cancel appointments at short notice.  We do ask though that every effort is made to keep appointments or to give us as much notice as possible for a cancellation.  The time lost in visiting someone who is unable to see us or is not at home on the day could have been spent helping someone else. If you break your appointment without giving us reasonable notice, we reserve the right to make a charge.

Do you qualify for a FREE NHS home visit?

You may be entitled to a FREE NHS home visit if you already qualify for FREE NHS eyecare and are unable to leave your home unaccompanied or are in a care home.  You may also qualify for help towards the cost of your spectacles – see NHS Entitlements.

A private patient home visit costs £75.

Your rights and responsibilities

As a patient you have the right to be treated by us with fairness and with dignity. After your sight test we will give you your optical prescription or a statement that you do not need a prescription.

We ask you to give our staff accurate information about the illness or disability which prevents you from being able to go to a high street optician without another person’s help. We also ask you to treat our staff with courtesy.

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