Staff and patients from Bridlington Hospital’s Eye Clinic have celebrated 10 years of treating patients across the East Coast.
The clinic, which is the main intravitreal injection site on the East
Coast, first opened after outgrowing its then base at Scarborough Hospital and initially started as a weekly Saturday clinic with just 30
patients.
Today, the clinic is operational for injections three days a week,
seeing 80 patients a day and runs from five consulting rooms at Bridlington Hospital.
It treats patients who suffer loss of central vision due to macular oedema secondary to macular degeneration, retinal vein occlusions and diabetes.
The drugs are injected into the eye to
slow or stop the growth of abnormal blood vessels. They can also improve
vision in some patients and help keep patients living independently for
longer.
As Head of Bridlington’s Intravitreal Injection Clinic, Fiona Bailey has
witnessed the department grow over the past decade, not only in the
number of patients it regularly treats but in the days it is operational.
“We just couldn’t cope with the number of patients we had to treat,”
recalls Fiona, “and we are likely to grow again as we are extremely
busy.
Clinic staff are working on launching a virtual clinic to help with the
Increase in caseloads.
The clinic received over £140,000 from two innovative healthcare companies (Bayer AG and Roche) who together have granted vital funding to pay for specialist diagnostic cameras and
rooms. The grant allows patients to be scanned on the East Coast on the
cameras whose images can be reviewed by clinicians working in York.
Fiona praised her team and added: “I am fortunate to work in a great team, many of whom combine working with us with other jobs, within both the hospital and community setting. All the team are fantastic. They make a daunting treatment possible,
and we couldn’t do it without them.”
