CUES FAQ's

Community Urgent Eyecare Service (CUES) FAQs

Following our CUES clinical and screening webinars, we would like to share some of the frequently asked questions.

1)       What do we do if our practice cannot accommodate a CUES patient within 24 hours of initial contact?*

Your Responsibility: 

• Contact up to 4 local CUES practices directly to secure an appointment** 

• Ensure the patient is seen within 24 hours of initial contact 

• Do NOT provide practice contact details to patients and ask them to self-refer 
• If a practice has accepted taking on the CUES patient, please add the screening form onto Opera and select ‘refer to another practice’ and choose the practice that accepted the referral

If no practice can see the patient within 24 hours: 

• Consult with your clinician to assess the situation based on patient symptoms 
• Determine if the patient can be seen safely beyond the 24-hour window, OR 

• If symptoms require immediate attention, arrange direct referral to eye casualty 

Opera System Process: When another practice accepts the patient: 

• Add the screening form to Opera 

• Select 'refer to another practice' 

• Choose the accepting practice from the dropdown 

*For a patient with a Leeds GP, all patients must be directed to the Primary Eyecare Services (PES) central telemedicine hub and no screening carried out.

**This protocol is recommended but not mandated in London and Essex

2)       If there is the PES CUES telemedicine service available in the area, can we refer patients to this number if we cannot find them an appointment in time?

Yes, please ask the patient to call our telemedicine hub on 0300 303 4922 (Monday – Saturday, 9am to 5pm).

3)       How soon do I need to complete the CUES episode?

•        With any referrals, they need to be completed within 24 hours
•        Any emergency referrals need to be completed at the time of consultation, a copy printed and given to the patient by hand for reference
•        We ask that episodes are completed as contemporaneously as possible.
•        The maximum interval accepted is within 48 hours

4)       How to process a F2F + OCT episode on Opera

•        At the end of the F2F form – select outcome: “see at practice: OCT at this practice”
•        Complete the OCT form

5)       Who is suitable for the OCT pathway?

•        Please check your local specification
•        In general, patients who present with sudden onset vision loss and/or with distortion – to exclude macula pathology

6)       Can we change patients for an OCT or Optomap examination?

•        NO
•        As CUES is a fully funded NHS service, patients must not be charged for any element during the service
•        If the clinician feels that an OCT or Optomap is necessary to support the clinical decision making within the CUES pathway, they are welcome to perform it, but must absorb the cost, i.e. no patient charge

7)       Can CLOs participate in CUES?

•        Please check with your local lead and the Association of British Dispensing Opticians (ABDO)
•        CLOs can participate in the majority of areas, provided they have completed the MECS accreditation, can see patients with anterior eye symptoms and have an Optometrist present on the premises too

8)       Can I view the recordings from the webinars?

There are 3 CUES webinar videos available to watch:

•        CUES: Pathway & protocols
•        CUES: Referrals from the red tab
•        CUES: Screening the urgent (for front of house staff)

Please see here for the webinar recordings as well as here for the updated CUES help pages

9)       Who is the Clinical Lead for my area?