how to find a decent optician

[chatterbox54]

I need a new one. I have gone off my current one after they tried to tell me they know better than the eye hospital doctors and disagree with what the doctors have told me. I have Drusen and the optician at my practice whom I have never seen (my own is on holiday) told me I have macular degeneration and that I should be seen regularly at the eye hospital for check ups. I said if they felt the need to keep seeing me they would have told me to go back.

Drusen can be a sign of macula degeneration, it also means that you are more likely to develop macula degeneration.

I'd find a practice who has an OCT and a retinal camera as they will be able to image the drusen and then note any change in their number or size over time.

You also need to have an amsler grid to detect any changes in you visual field. If either the hospital or the optician hasn't give you one, you can download one here.

www.allaboutvision.com/conditions/amsler-grid.htm
You need to do each eye separately (so cover one eye at a time)
and note the following as you look at the central dot.

Do any of the lines in the grid appear wavy, blurred or distorted?
Do all the boxes in the grid look square and the same size?
Are there any "holes" (missing areas) or dark areas in the grid?
Can you see all corners and sides of the grid (while keeping your eye on the central dot)?

HTH