The Eye Watering Costs Of Dry Eye Drops.

All clinicians are encouraged to have a culture of stewardship to ensure sustainable and efficient use of NHS resources. In 2021/22, the total cost to NHS commissioners in England, for the issue of medicines, appliances, and medical devices is estimated to be £17.2 billion. Ophthalmic preparations are among the top ten drug categories by spending across primary care and hospitals. We aim to look at our prescribing spending, starting with dry eye products, to look for savings in prescribing expenditure.

This study was conducted in Leicester Royal Infirmary, United Kingdom. 

Data was extracted from ePACT2 for primary care and secondary care in the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Intergrated Care Board (LLR ICB) which covers a population of 1.2 million people. Two consultant ophthalmologists categorised all dry eye products looking at cheaper alternatives and the acceptability of the use of cheaper products. The Drug Tariff was consulted for costs of all products.

The total spend for dry eye products in 2021/2022 for LLR is £1.5 million. Therefore, by simply using cost-effective drugs in the category of sodium hyaluronate (0.2 % and 0.1%) will release almost £150,000 from primary care alone. We present further analyses of all dry eye products and the savings released.

As a result of this study, the local dry eye formulary was updated, a self-care section was introduced to patients and learning resources were drawn up for GPs and independent-prescribing optometrists. Continual monitoring of the introduction of new eye products and engagement with key stakeholders of pharmacy teams from the community and hospitals are essential strategies to identify key savings in ophthalmic prescribing.