How To Choose The Best Laser Eye Surgery Clinic

Making your decision

The decision to have vision correction surgery is an important one that you should make after carefully considering the options available. Your eyes and your vision are precious and you should not make any compromise with eye surgery.

No person or pair of eyes are the same. You are unique and should be treated as such.

When deciding which laser eye surgery clinic and/or surgeon is the best for you, you might find the process overwhelming due to the long list of providers who all seem to be offering the same thing.

In fact, though, there are a lot of things that differentiate the best laser eye surgery clinics from the competition and you don’t have to be an expert in Ophthalmology to know them.

In general, it is best to avoid large impersonal chains and hospitals in order to receive the personalised, individual care that you deserve
You should also think about whether the clinic you’re considering offers the latest and most advanced laser eye surgery techniques and technologies, to ensure you’re getting the best possible results. The best laser eye surgery clinics will offer the option of LASIK and LASEK, sparing no expense in giving you the most advanced laser technology available
Location is sometimes also a factor for people considering surgery. Depending on convenience, some might, for example, choose a surgeon that practises at a laser eye surgery clinic in Hertfordshire or at a specialist laser eye clinic in London. Here at OCL Vision, our expertly trained surgeons are available in key locations to accommodate everyone

Last but not least, there are many things to consider when choosing the best laser eye surgeon for your needs, since you’re trusting them with the most valuable thing; your eyes.

Here’s a 10 point do’s and don’ts safety guide of essential requirements for when choosing your eye surgeon.

Choose the best laser eye surgeon for your needs…

NHS consultant

Your surgeon should either hold or have held a substantive NHS Consultant post. Training to become a Consultant Surgeon in the UK is long and rigorous and UK trained Consultants are the envy of the rest of the world in terms of experience and surgical expertise. The NHS sets the bar very high for who qualifies for a Substantive Consultant Post and this should be the very minimum standard for the surgeon that you chose. Unfortunately the vast majority of eye surgeons who work in ‘high street’ laser vision practices and chains have never held a substantive NHS Consultant post.

The correct training

When choosing your surgeon, they should be trained in cornea, cataract and refractive surgery. Laser vision correction is surgery on the cornea and although modern technology allows for the maximum safety and results, no surgical procedure is ever guaranteed however good the technology. The eye surgeon’s calibre, training and experience allow him/her to respond appropriately when unpredictable situations arise and to manage them safely. The vast majority of surgeons both on the high street and in large reputable eye hospitals have not been fellowship trained in the latest laser eye surgery techniques.

Experience

When looking at the range of surgeons available, ensure your chosen surgeon can offer you and personally carry out more than one type of procedure. Every patient and their visual needs are different and your eye surgeon should have the training and experience to be able to offer and carry out exactly what is best for you.

Volume of surgery

Your chosen eye surgeon should already be carrying out high volume surgery on a monthly basis. He or she should be carrying out at least 50 vision correction/cataract procedures each month.

Do your own research

Do not assume that just because a company or a website claim that their surgeons are experts that they actually are. Type the vision correction surgeon’s name into Google and see what comes up independently of corporate websites.

Check that they are recently quoted and published as experts. It’s also very important that your surgeon has had specific fellowship training in vision correction surgery.

Research

Your eye surgeon should have published and presented their own original research into the conditions that they treat. To be considered an international expert in their field, they eye surgeon should be regularly invited to speak around the world and have presented and published work on every condition that they treat and intervention that they offer.

Expert

Do not assume that just because a company or website tell you that their surgeons have performed thousands of procedures that they are necessarily an expert in eye correction treatment.

We are extremely proud of the results we achieve for our patients, across all procedures.

You can find out more on Our Results page.

Technology

Do not have blind faith in the technology. However advanced the technology, unexpected things can and do happen and you want the most highly-trained and expert eye surgeon in such an unlikely event.

Word of mouth

Do not have blind faith in a word of mouth recommendation. One happy patient does not guarantee that you are in the best hands. Thoroughly research your ophthalmic surgeon to ensure that he/she has the skill and experience required.

Reputation

Do not rely on an institution’s good name. Some institutions use their name as an excuse to under-invest in the latest technology and the best surgeons. Institutions can have good surgeons but also not so good surgeons. Make sure you know exactly who your eye surgeon is.