Celebrating our teams...Timothy Bagot, Clinical Lead for Primary Eyecare Services

There are a variety of roles across BHCP and other organisations we work with in the community. Here we shine the spotlight on the people who carry out a range of roles to keep our communities healthy and supported.

Timothy Bagot is a Clinical Lead for Primary Eyecare Services who manage the community side of the commissioned services in community optical practices across much of Lancashire and South Cumbria. 

The commissioned services aim to manage appropriate patients in community optical practice instead of in a secondary care setting (the hospital eye service). This includes an urgent access service for those with eye problems as well as services such as post-operative checks following cataract surgery amongst other things.

Timothy has been in this role since September 2016. He mostly works remotely as it is a very large area to cover. He works on his own covering this area, however there is a wealth of support from others within Primary Eyecare Services and from University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust to ensure everything runs as expected.

How did you get your role?

Timothy said: “I was involved with the discussions regarding the set-up of the services as a    member of the Local Optometric Committee (LOC). At the time it was the LOC who put forward someone to manage the contract for the primary eyecare company and that’s how I got started. 

“Since then the primary eyecare company has grown significantly to cover a significant amount of CCGs in England and a more formal recruitment process was implemented. 

“I am still very much active within the LOC as well as providing the clinical leadership in the area for the primary eyecare company, Primary Eyecare Services. I also work in community optical practice as an optometrist.”

What does your role involve?

Timothy said: “The role involves ensuring the Trust commissioned contract is run effectively. This includes quarterly reporting to the Trust and CCG and performance management when required.” 

What have been the best bits of your role?

Timothy said: “I really enjoy the people. There is a fabulous team in community optical practice across Morecambe Bay as well as a wonderful set of people to work with in the Trust.”

What have been the challenges of your role?

Timothy said: “It’s sometimes difficult to switch off as there is always so much going on regarding the services.”

Top tips for people wanting to get into a similar role:

Timothy said: “If the opportunity comes along then grab it.”

You can find a PDF version of the case study here.