Ophthalmic Assistant

Newmedica; Shrewsbury; On-site; GBP 24,000 - 30,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Salary £27,206.40 pro rata

25 days annual leave + bank holidays

Company pension scheme

Free eye tests and glasses discount

Well-being counselling service

Discount scheme for retail/tech

Learning tools and courses

Friendly multi-disciplinary team

Modern, bright working environment

Job summary

Newmedica is seeking an Ophthalmic Assistant for the Shrewsbury site. This role is 24 hours over 3 days per week, including some weekends on a rota.

You will be the face of Newmedica, greeting patients and guiding them through diagnostic tests, with support to senior clinicians for treatment decisions. This busy, welcoming role requires strong communication skills, comfort with Office 365 and patient records systems, and a keen interest in eye health.

Qualifications

• Experience working with patients or in a customer-facing role.
• Knowledge of eye physiology and treatment is advantageous.
• Competent user of Office 365 programmes and comfortable with new systems such as patient record systems or diagnostic programmes.
• Excellent grasp of the English language, both spoken and written.
• Experience handling data from patient records, GP communications and diagnostic results.

Responsibilities

• Take patients through a range of diagnostic tests.
• Support senior clinicians to determine if surgery or further treatment is required.
• Assist in the theatre pathway and support the multidisciplinary team.
• Explain the purpose of tests to patients to aid understanding of their treatment.
• Adapt to using various equipment and systems and be comfortable with technology.

Skills

Patient-facing experience

Eye physiology knowledge

Tech-savvy with diagnostic systems

Tools

Office 365

Job description

Ophthalmic Assistant

Who are we?

Newmedica is one of the leading providers of NHS ophthalmology services in England, delivering outpatient appointments, diagnostic testing and eye surgery to change lives through better sight and eye health.

We're proud to have been certified as a Great Place to Work for the third year running and listed among the UK's top 30 Best Workplaces for 2026 - recognition that reflects how colleagues feel about working here.

Our Purpose is to change lives through better sight and eye health, and our Vision is to end avoidable sight loss in every community we serve; we live our values every day - Commercial, Courageous, Compassion, Collaborative and Curious.

Role overview

We are looking for a new Ophthalmic Assistant to join our Shrewsbury site. This will be 24 hours over 3 days per week including some weekends on a rota basis. Our Ophthalmic Assistants are the face of Newmedica - they're often amongst the first people that our patients interact with on clinic visits and so having a welcoming, friendly, empathetic approach is vital.

It’s a busy role - you’ll be seeing a number of patients each day to take them through a range of diagnostic tests. These will be passed onto a senior clinician to ascertain if surgery or further treatment is required. You’ll be using a variety of different equipment and systems so we’re looking for someone who is comfortable using systems and is fairly tech savvy.

You’ll also play an active role in the theatre pathway, supporting patients and the multidisciplinary team to ensure a safe and positive patient journey.

The thought of eye surgery can be a daunting prospect for patients to deal with, so our Ophthalmic Assistants need to be able to put patients at ease. They also need strong communication skills to be able to explain the purpose of the different tests to ensure the patient understands their treatment.

This is a great role to progress your clinical skills or to take the first step on a clinical career path. Newmedica is committed to the growth and development of all our colleagues and the Ophthalmic Assistant is a great platform to potentially explore a career in diagnostic (clinic) or theatre teams

What skills and experience do I need?

We’ll provide training so experience isn’t always needed, but the following things will be advantageous:

• Previous experience of working with patients or in a customer facing role
• Knowledge of eye physiology and treatment or a keen interest to build knowledge in this area.
• A competent user of all Office 365 programmes & comfortable working on new systems such as patient record systems or diagnostic programmes.

An excellent grasp of the English language both verbally and in written format

Experience of dealing with a variety of data for example patient records, GP and patient correspondence and diagnostic test results

• A good team player - happy to jump in and support others when required

What we’re offering

• A salary of £27,206.40 (pro rata)
• 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays
• A company pension scheme
• Access to a range of benefits including free eye tests, discounted or free glasses, a free 24/7 well-being/counselling/advice service and a retail/technology discount scheme.
• An environment where your learning and development is supported through a range of various learning tools and courses.
• Working with a friendly multi-disciplinary team passionate about improving the lives of our patients
• A bright, spacious and modern working environment, built to the highest standards

Our employment offers are subject to receipt of satisfactory pre-employment checks. Applicants must have the right to work in the UK and a Disclosure and Barring Service check will be necessary in the event of a successful application which we will pay for.

At Newmedica, we actively promote diversity and equal opportunities, and we are committed to this in both the running of our services and how we recruit our staff. We actively encourage applications from everyone with the essential requirements of the job, regardless of any protected characteristics.

Newmedica is fully committed to safeguarding the welfare of all people, irrespective of gender, age, disability, sexual orientation, race, language, religion, ethnic or social origin