This course will demand that you extend and apply the basic optics and visual optics studied thus far into real world scenarios. This will be achieved through hands-on experiences as well as further theoretical studies. As its name implies, 'The Clinical Environment' will introduce you to the key players in the consulting room and the interrelationships that drive successful clinical outcomes.

You will be challenged to recognise the range of people seeking eye care, including those with vision impairment, and the effects that your personal communications skills and reflective practice have upon their welfare. You will be confronted with commonly used tools that evaluate oculo-visual status and learn how these can be used strategically to enhance our understanding of the patient and how they operate within their home/work environment. At the same time, the course is designed to augment your studies in Ocular Anatomy and Physiology. Spectacles are a common outcome of an eye examination: you will learn the impact of this need upon the person and how lack of access to spectacles places an enormous burden on an individual and their community, particularly in developing countries. During this course your preparedness to take on social responsibility and global citizenship will be piqued. Most importantly, your capability to self-audit, to solve problems and to work either independently or as part of a team will be developed.