A GRADUATE who works at a Hereford opticians has been named Young UK Contact Lens Practitioner of the Year at a national award ceremony.

Laura Reece who works at BBR Optometry in St Owen's Street, received the award at the British Contact Lens Association’s (BCLA) 40th annual conference held in Liverpool.

The accolade comes after Laura was named a finalist at the Association of Optometrists Awards 2017, acknowledging her clinical achievements and patient care.

Nick Rumney, BBR chairman, said: “This award is so deserved for Laura who works tirelessly to offer the best contact lens care possible for all of our patients who are benefitting from her growing expertise and showcases her commitment, dedication, education and training.

"Since she first joined us in 2015 after graduating from the University of Manchester with a Masters of Optometry (MOptom) she has shown a keen interest in contact lenses and to be recognised by her peers with this award is a fantastic achievement.

“The award follows Laura gaining a prestigious Alcon Scholarship, run by one of the world’s most innovative eye care companies, which is designed to help scholars become ‘best-in-class optometrists by increasing clinical knowledge and widening skill sets’ and this accolade shows the worth of this programme in developing her skills further."

Laura has a particular interest in Orthokeratology (Ortho-K), a system of vision correction that she uses herself.

She added: "By wearing bespoke-made contact lenses each night as I sleep, my cornea is gently flattened to provide perfect vision for the day ahead.

"My uncorrected vision is -2.25 dioptres, with some astigmatism, so sufficient for me to be wearing glasses all the time, but with this overnight system I wake up to good vision which is brilliant and a system I can personally recommend to many patients, especially those who are keen on outdoor activities and sport where spectacles can be a hindrance.

"I feel humbled to have won this accolade but very pleased as well because I care passionately about contact lenses and the real difference they can make to the lives of so many of our patients."

BBR Optometry has recently become one of the initial practices in the UK to offer revolutionary MiSight contact lenses used for myopia control and this is another area where Laura is providing expert advice to patients.

She added: “Myopia is a global epidemic forecast to affect more than 50 per cent of the European population by 2050 and, if left unchecked, can lead to glaucoma, retinal degeneration, tears and detachments, all of which are potentially blinding.

“That’s why I am delighted that we can now offer these lenses that are clinically proven to prevent myopia. I was privileged to be among fellow optometrists from Portugal, Norway, Sweden and Norway, to receive special training from CooperVision who developed these lenses so I can offer patients expert knowledge about the benefits of them."

Ortho-K and Myopia were among the many topics on the agenda at the BCLA conference attended by hundreds of delegates focused on driving up standards of care.