See clearly through menopause: Empowering your eye health

The additional training focuses on educating staff about the specific impacts of menopause on eye health, such as dry eye syndrome, fluctuating vision, and increased sensitivity to light. It covers:

• Understanding the hormonal changes that affect the eyes during menopause.
• How to recognise common Ocular menopause-related symptoms.
• Offering advice on how women can manage these ocular changes through lifestyle adjustments, eye care routines, and appropriate products.
• Educating staff on when to refer customers to optometrists or other Eye Care Professionals for further care.

The training is being provided by specialists in ocular health. We are partnering with leading experts in the field, including representatives from relevant organizations and experienced optometrists who have a strong understanding of menopause-related eye issues.

A quarter of women already told us that they do not feel health providers understand menopause symptoms fully. With over 500 stores nationwide we want our customers to have the confidence that our Eye Care Professionals are equipped to listen, understand and advise women on the impact menopause has on eye health, beyond whether or not you need to wear glasses. It is important that women have another signpost of help and advice.

Vision Express has a longer term strategy which started with the See Yourself Differently Campaign in 2022, to empower women and men of midlife, and to educate on the changes and importance of maintaining regular eye tests during midlife. The next step of that strategy is to implement this valuable initiative to educate and upskill all our colleagues, and to communicate with our customers the benefits of speaking to your Optician at any point, from early perimenopause, to midlife and beyond. 

The training will also utilise leading external health professionals in the field and aim to partner with key organisations which is different to the existing Eye Care Professional training centred on menopause.

Eye Care Professionals are as standard trained to discuss any symptoms that come with changes in the eye during adulthood including midlife. However, we know that hormone fluctuations and HRT medications can also cause changes in the eyes and so by upskilling our Eye Care Professionals our customers can continue to receive the most expert and personalised care that is relevant to them. We already know via our research that over a quarter of women feel menopause and its symptoms are not understood or taken seriously, and so our ambition to upskill our colleagues means that more practices on the high street are available to fully discuss changes in the eyes during menopause.

The pilot programme will initially be rolled out in up to 30 Vision Express stores across key locations to gauge customer response and effectiveness.

A full list of the piloted stores will be available on the Vision Express website www.visionexpress.com

These stores were selected based on their strong customer bases of women aged 45 and above, who are more likely to benefit from the menopause-focused eye care services. Additionally, these locations have demonstrated success with past health-related initiatives, making them ideal for piloting this program.

If the pilot is successful, we plan to roll out the training to additional stores over the next six months with the goal of expanding the program nationwide fully in 2025.

Yes, the plan is for all relevant staff across our stores to eventually receive this menopause-focused eye care training, ensuring that we can provide this specialised service to women wherever they shop with us. The phased rollout will ensure that staff in all regions are equipped to address the needs of menopausal women in a consistent and professional manner.