Professional conference aims to reduce fear and isolation in patients

The Macular Society’s fourth annual professional conference, Experts in Macular Disease, is set to take place in October.

The event aims to encourage those in the sector to work together in order to reduce feelings of fear and isolation in patients by improving their experience upon diagnosis.

At the event, a patient panel will share their stories and discuss the impact of being diagnosed with macular disease and living with sight loss.

Jessica Murray, the Macular Society’s lead for eye care professionals, said: “When you are told you are losing your sight to macular disease it can have a huge psychological impact, with many people describing the feeling as similar to a bereavement.

“Effective communication from eye health professionals upon diagnosis can often help reduce the feelings of fear and isolation many face.”

She added: “We have some excellent speakers joining us and it promises to be an interesting and informative day.”

The conference will be held on Tuesday 22 October 2019 and will welcome speakers, including professor David Crabb from City, University of London. Professor Crabb will present his recent research which has found how effective communication from health professionals can make a difference to the lives of patients with dry age-related macular degeneration.

The event, which is open to all staff working in the eye care sector, will also see consultant ophthalmologist, Clare Bailey from Bristol Eye Hospital update on the latest in treatments and research.

Experts in Macular Disease will run from 9am-5pm at Resource for London, 356 Holloway Rd, London N7 6PA. Tickets are £45 each. For more information, or if you would like to attend the conference, please contact Jessica on 01264 322 412 or email jessica.m@macularsociety.org

The Macular Society also has two free online training modules for eye care professionals. The web-based courses are designed to support staff to develop a greater understanding of macular disease and its impact on patients, as well as the services and support available to help them. The two courses, ‘An Introduction to Age-Related Macular Degeneration’ and ‘The emotional impact of a diagnosis of AMD’, have full Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and Certificate in Education & Training (CET) accreditation. Each module takes about an hour but can be completed in stages. Both courses can be accessed at www.macularsocietylearning.org