Exploring public and General Optical Council registrants’ views on vision and safe driving
registrant responses to online survey
public responses to online survey
focus group participants
Challenge
The General Optical Council (GOC) is the regulator for the optical professions in the UK, with the overarching statutory purpose to protect, promote and maintain the health and safety of the public.
Within the background context of an increasing number of fatalities in recent years involving drivers who continued to drive against the advice of healthcare professionals, the GOC commissioned Enventure Research to undertake research with GOC registrants and the public in relation to vision and safe driving.
Approach
A mixed quantitative and qualitative approach was taken to the research, in the form of online surveys and focus groups with the general public and GOC registrants.
A survey of registrants focused on professionals’ views about the current system for assessing fitness to drive, the DVLA’s guidance, balancing patient confidentiality and public perception, and possible ways to improve patient safety in the future. A total of 3,934 responses were received, representing a 19% response rate.
A perceptions survey was carried out with members of the public via a UK consumer panel, which included questions about who should be legally responsible for notifying the DVLA/DVA if a patient is unfit to drive and whether they would be discouraged from attending for sight tests if there was a mandatory duty for optometrists to report unfitness to drive. Quotas were set to ensure a representative sample was achieved. In total, 3,025 responses were received.
Following the surveys, two focus groups with the public (including patients) and two groups with registrants were conducted to provide greater depth of understanding. A total of 57 participants took part in the qualitative research, stratified by location, age and gender to ensure broad representation.
Outcome
The findings from all research activity were analysed and reported on by Enventure Research. Headline findings indicated that almost seven in ten registrants thought the current process for assessing whether a patient achieves the required visual standards for driving is clear, but that over four in five did not think the current system adequately protects the public, indicating a clear gap between current safety standards and the practical, legal and ethical frameworks practitioners navigate. Similarly, public respondents felt that the current system did not get the balance right.
The findings provided the GOC with valuable evidence to inform its policy review surrounding vision and safe driving.
“This was a really interesting piece of research to deliver, exploring an important and topical issue with clear implications for public safety. The findings provided the GOC with useful insight to support its review of vision and safe driving, and we have recently revisited the topic through the latest GOC registrant survey to understand up-to-date perceptions from qualified optometrists and dispensing opticians.”
Insightful research. Expertly delivered.
