From Burnout to Breaking Point: Why 1 in 2 UK Optometrists Can No Longer Cope

When the General Optical Council (GOC) released its 2024 study, the industry was shaken. The "bombshell" stat was that 1 in 7 UK optometrists planned to quit the profession entirely. At the time, we attributed it to the standard post-pandemic fatigue—long hours and a general sense of being undervalued.

We hoped it was a peak. We were wrong.

The GOC’s 2025 Registrant Workforce and Perceptions Survey has just been released, and it confirms that the "quiet crisis" has become a loud, systemic failure. It’s no longer just about personal fatigue; it is a direct threat to patient safety.

The Data: A Profession in Freefall

The numbers suggest that the gap between professional standards and daily reality is widening.

Perhaps most alarming is that 31% of respondents admitted they found it difficult to provide sufficient patient care due to time and workload constraints. This isn't just "being tired"—this is a fundamental inability to perform a clinical role safely.

The "Commercial Overhang" vs. Clinical Care

For years, there has been a whispered tension between the clinical room and the retail floor. The 2025 data brings those whispers into the light. The "optometrist sitting in their car, dreading the next rushed appointment" is no longer a trope; they are nearly half the workforce.

• The Time Crunch: 48% of optometrists believe the standard time allocated for a sight test is insufficient for safe care.
• The Volume Pressure: 38% felt pressured to see a high volume of patients at the expense of safety.
• The Profit Pivot: 30% reported pressure to meet commercial targets, while 22% were pressured to sell specific products over clinical needs.

When profit is prioritized over public health, the professional becomes a high-speed technician rather than a healthcare provider. The result? Brilliant, highly trained professionals who bought the house and the car, but now feel trapped in a system that asks them to compromise their ethics daily.

Is Help on the Horizon?

There is one glimmer of hope. In response to these sobering figures, the GOC has signaled a thematic review into commercial practices and their direct impact on patient safety.

This is a critical step. For the majority of optometrists who know something is deeply wrong but feel they have no way out, this review must be more than just a paper exercise—it needs to be a catalyst for structural change.

Join the Conversation

This data reflects a profession at a crossroads. We want to hear from the people on the front lines:

• Have you felt the pressure to prioritize targets over the person in the chair?
• Do you feel you have the time to be the clinician you were trained to be?
• What is the one thing that would make you stay in the profession for another decade?

Share your thoughts in the comments or join the discussion with your colleagues. It’s time we stop suffering in silence.