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Community Minor and Urgent Eye Care

Community Minor and Urgent Eye Care (CUES) can help to transform urgent eye care and helps to deliver the aims of the 10 year Health plan, moving care from hospitals to community and people’s homes, embracing digital innovation and shifting from sickness to prevention and reaching patients earlier. 

Pathway Benefits

The specification aims to: 

  • Assure, support and enhance access to minor and urgent eye care locally across England 
  • Support local commissioning 
  • Improve consistency, reduce unwarranted variation and aims to help relieve capacity pressures in general practice, hospital eye casualty and A&E 
  • Inform local delivery and support a consistent level of high-quality care for patients.
Pathway Documents
Supporting Materials

Supporting information is available for LOCs in the members area. You will need to log in to view this. 

Case studies
Hertfordshire LOC: Demonstrating Clinical Need for a Minor and Urgent Eye Care Service in Optometry Through Dual-Audit Evidence (May 2025)
Acute red eye and similar minor and urgent ocular presentations are not eligible for GOS, do not require a refraction or sight test and must be managed through alternative pathways.
Hertfordshire and West Essex Integrated Care Board (ICB) remains one of the few areas in England without a commissioned Minor Eye Conditions Service (MECS) or COVID-19 Urgent Eyecare Service (CUES) to manage these conditions.
Referral Feedback Within CUES in Manchester (March 2022)
This case study considers the additional benefit that referral feedback brings to the CUES service in Manchester.
Useful Documents and Previous Materials
Skills and Training

MECS/CUES 

Accredited practitioners will be able to provide a prompt assessment of a patient presenting with an acute eye condition. As many patients as possible will have their management maintained within the primary care setting, avoiding unnecessary referrals to hospital services. Where referral to secondary care is required it will be to a suitable specialist with appropriate urgency.  

This online course, provided by WOPEC and LOCSU, is also suitable for practitioners who wish to refresh their knowledge to participate in locally commissioned service (CUES or MECS).   

To register for this course, please contact your LOC to a request a code. 

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