Environmental Eye Care for the 21st Century: Optegra publishes group-wide Sustainability Report
Optegra Eye Health Care, which operates Optegra Eye Hospital Birmingham, has launched its second group-wide Sustainability Report, underscoring its ongoing commitment to becoming a more sustainable healthcare provider, with a specific focus on three pillars - people, planet and patients.
The report looks back on the past year and demonstrates a clear dedication to the company’s environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles together with an ambition to deliver world-class ophthalmic care in a way that is sustainable, equitable and future-focused.
Dr. Ola Spencer, Chief Operating Officer at Optegra, said: “Our purpose has always been to deliver exceptional eye care while acting responsibly towards the communities we serve and the world we share.
“Over the past year, we made significant strides in advancing our sustainability strategy, integrating ESG priorities more deeply into the core of our operations across the UK and Europe.
“This includes improving energy efficiency at our premises and the energy required to treat each patient, reducing waste including a 12% reduction in single-use plastic across the UK, and minimising the number of times patients need to travel for treatment.
“Key to this has been the rollout of digital tools, from virtual pre-operative assessments to AI-led triage. This has enabled us to improve access, reduced travel-related emissions, and accelerate care without compromising on quality.”
Insights and commitment from Optegra’s clinical leaders and surgeons have also helped to shape developments from sustainability-conscious theatre practices to data-driven innovation that improves diagnostics and decision-making.
The report continues to highlight Optegra’s ethos to provide the very best service to patients, driving customer service and outcomes through innovation. Pioneering treatments launched in the past year include:
Innovative glaucoma treatment
Becoming one of the first hospitals to provide Valeda light therapy, a first-ever treatment for the dry form of Age-Related Macular Degeneration
Embracing AI to enhance the quality and speed of patient interactions
Dr Spencer continues: “Sustainability at Optegra is not a separate initiative, it is embedded in how we grow, how we care, and how we lead.
“Looking ahead we will focus on deepening our stakeholder engagement, further decarbonising our operations, and preparing for evolving regulatory standards such as the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).”
Optegra Eye Health Care is a specialist provider of ophthalmic services. Established in 2007, it has completed over one million eye procedures from its 78 eye hospitals and clinics across the UK, Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia and Holland.
As well as providing private vision correction treatments – from lens replacement and laser eye surgery to implantable contact lenses – Optegra treats cataract surgery both privately and through its partnership with the NHS. Optegra also treats medical conditions AMD and glaucoma; and has launched the first ever treatment for people with the dry form of AMD.
Optegra brings together leading-edge research, medical expertise and state-of-the-art surgical equipment. It performs more than 170,000 treatments annually, both private and publicly funded. Its top ophthalmic surgeons are renowned for their areas of expertise, offering excellent clinical outcomes and great patient service.
