CHRIS WILLIAMS

BSc(Hons) MCOptom DipTp(IP) Higher Prof Cert Glauc

SPECIALIST OPTOMETRIST

Llantwit Major

ABOUT US

Chris studied Optometry at Aston University in Birmingham in the late 80s, after which he took his first position with a large family practice in Wrexham. He came to Llantwit in 1993 and quickly fell in love with the town and its people, opening his own practice in 1999. Chris has always had an ethos of looking after patients' eyes first and foremost resulting in his practice being one of the pilot practices for the Welsh eye-care schemes first guises nearly 20 years ago. This involved patients being able to see their local Optometrist for acute eye problems not just for routine eye examinations. Chris has been very involved in these enhanced eye-care services from their inception and in 2019 went back to University to study for his Independent Prescribing enabling him to register as a Specialist Optometrist.

Meet the team here.

EYE-CARE SERVICES

The below are a list of eye-care services we provide

EYE EXAMINATIONS

Routine eye examinations are available to all. Since the 1980s NHS eye examinations have been restricted to certain groups, please see here for the list of those qualifying. For those not qualifying for the NHS to pay for their eye examination a private fee is payable at the time of the examination. This includes both an examination of the health of the eye and checking for any spectacle prescription. It also includes measurement of pressure inside the eye and visual field assessment where appropriate.

ENHANCED EXAMINATIONS

Where necessary and clinically indicated, further clinical tests are funded by the Welsh Government through the enhanced examinations available as part of the Welsh General Ophthalmic Services (WGOS). For those patients who would simply like the extra reassurance of undertaking the enhanced examinations such as Optical Coherance Tomography (OCT) which is able to take a 3D scan of the eye and potentially detect abnormalities before they are clinically visible. Enhanced services can be paid for privately as part or as an add-on to the routine eye examination.

ACUTE EYE-CARE

For eye problems that are not just a matter of requiring an update in spectacles or contact lenses, such as a foreign body in the eye, a scratched cornea etc. patients can be seen for an examination paid for by Welsh Government under WGOS and the acute eye problem examined and managed as appropriate. This service is provided by both Chris and Simon. Should the patient require any drug treatment for their eyes as a result of the acute problem and they have been seen by Simon, then Simon will refer the patient onto Chris who will prescribe whatever treatment is appropriate.

LOW VISION SERVICES

In cases where unfortunately ordinary spectacles or contact lenses are unable to improve a patients' vision as we would like, patients may be eligible for optical aids such as magnifiers to help make day to day visual tasks more easy. A low visual aid assessment is funded by Welsh Government as part of the WGOS and all magnifiers are provided on long-term loan to the patient free of charge. All that is requested is that the magnifiers be returned once the patient no longer has use for them so they can be recycled as appropriate and made available to another patient if possible.

COLOURIMETRY

Visual stress is a term used to describe visual discomfort and perceptual distortions caused when a susceptible individual looks at lines of a certain orientation, i.e. looking at text. In some cases, the symptoms of visual stress can be reduced by the use of coloured filters, either a coloured overlay placed over text or coloured lenses worn in the form of spectacles. For further information about Cerium coloured overlays and spectacle lenses click here.

CONTACT LENSES

In the UK all contact lens supply is regulated by the General Optical Council. To fulfil the legal requirements and to ensure the health of the eyes, all patients need to have the contact lens fitted to ensure the correct fit and prescription of the lens for their needs. It's not the same as a spectacle prescription. They also are required to have regular aftercares to ensure continued performance of the lens and to ensure no problems with the eyes occur as a result of wearing the lenses. Here at the Practice we fit all types of contact lenses and provide ongoing aftercare for them.

EYE-WEAR

A glimpse into the eye-wear we provide

SPECIALIST OPTOMETRIST

What does that mean?

To be called a Specialist Optometrist, an Optometrist must have gained higher qualifications and be registered on a specialist register with the General Optical Council (GOC). More information here.