South Warwickshire GP Federation has secured a two-year contract on behalf of Coventry and Warwickshire Integrated Primary Care to provide an Ophthalmology Coordination Service (OCS) Hub across the system. SWGP will continue to provide the OCS in its role as delivery partner for IPC. The new contract will commence in July 2026, building on the success of the existing OCS introduced by Coventry & Warwickshire ICB in 2024.
OCS hubs give patients greater choice for eye treatments and enable faster, more efficient referral management. Since launch, the Coventry & Warwickshire OCS has handled over 45,000 referrals, enabling optometrists to refer patients for specialist care using the Eye Electronic Referral System (EeRS). The service improves patient choice and reduces the administrative burden on GP practices.
The OCS pathway sees opticians upload secondary care referrals directly onto a digital referral system which is administratively triaged by the OCS. Urgent referrals are actioned within two working days, while routine referrals are responded to within five working days. Eligible patients are taken through screening questions, before being offered a choice of places to receive their treatment based on suitability, waiting times, and location. GP practices receive a copy of their patients’ referrals for their records and for any follow-up purposes.
Cristina Ramos, Chair of Integrated Primary Care and SWGP Federation said: “We are delighted to have been awarded this contract, in recognition of our successful work to date in operating the OCS in Coventry & Warwickshire. Both SWGP and our partner organisation, IPC, are rooted in primary care and focused on providing services which enhance outcomes for patients and maximise the quality and value the primary care sector provides. We look forward to working with the ICB teams and our colleagues to develop the OCS further in the months ahead.”
Richard Rawlinson, Deputy Director of Commissioning and Improvement for Planned Care and Specialised Commissioning at Coventry and Warwickshire ICB said “The ICB are pleased to be able to continue to offer patients choice through the Ophthalmology Coordination Service identifying options for treatment and sharing current waiting times. We look forward to continuing to build upon the work undertaken over the last few years and working in collaboration with the provider “
The two year contract was awarded to SWGP Federation following a competitive tender process and includes an option to extend for a further two years.
For further information about OCS, please visit the IPC website or email cwicb.cw-ophthalmologyservice@nhs.net.