OPTIMAX | ULTRALASE

Brought to my attention yesterday*

'Dry Eye Management at Optimax'
www.optimax.co.uk/eye_health/dry_eyes

Optimax/Ultralase boss Russell Ambrose has never suggested that they 'manage' my chronic dry eyes and MGD after much regretted laser eye surgery at Optimax in 2011.

Checking out what miracle they were advertising, I was not surprised to find no mention of laser eye surgery as one of the recognised common causes of dry eyes.

I completed the online form, ticking the 'DRY EYE & BLEPHARITIS' box to specify that this was my only treatment interest.



Imagine my amusement when I received an on-screen acknowledgement that their customer service team would be in touch, to guide me 'towards a life free from glasses or contact lenses'.



Then I received an email saying, 'Our expert staff are ready to answer any questions you may have regarding our life-changing treatments'.


ROTFLMAO - my laser eye surgery at Optimax was certainly that!

And as for 'Lifetime aftercare guarantee', while I do have this, it's only thanks to my settlement agreement with Russell Ambrose, whereas the same can't be said for so many damaged Optimax and Ultralase patients, left to suffer for the rest of their lives without any aftercare!

How about offering Dry Eye Management treatment to some of your damaged patients Russell, starting with the ones you won't even provide with free eye drops?

I tested the online application a few times, in case there was a glitch, but each time the response came back the same!

Try it yourself, and take screenshots, as I believe this is a complaint for the ASA!

Not forgetting the fact that pre existing dry eye disease/syndrome is a contraindication for laser eye surgery, so this is totally irresponsible and reprehensible advertising!

I trialled MiBo Thermoflo treatment in 2016, and cannot recommend it at all. Described as massage, pressure is applied to the surface of the closed eyelid - a painful experience if your eyes are super sensitive to touch after surgery. I suffered through the first treatment just so I could review it, but it made no difference whatsoever.

Whereas LipiFlow certainly helps me, but to alleviate the pain and irritation caused by MGD I need it every few months, and it is VERY expensive!

Please note that this a temporary fix, and doesn’t work for everyone.

'Treatment for dry eye syndrome helps to control the symptoms, but there's no cure.'
www.nhs.uk/conditions/dry-eyes/treatment

I noted that Optimax/Ultralase boss Russell Ambrose has also added cosmetic eye surgery to his company's list of specialities, which in my opinion is likely to confuse or mislead unwitting customers discussing laser or lens exchange!

*I rely on people to send me info like this, so please don't assume I already know.

Send any info you think I might be interested in to: sasha@mybeautifuleyes.co.uk

This morning I received some - but definitely not all - of the emails Optimax MUST disclose in response to my recent Subject Access Request (SAR)...

And as usual they didn't fail to entertain



And if the writer of this email (I believe Paul Rosen at/or Optegra Eye Hospital) has to ask 'What the heck is wrong with this woman?', then there's no hope for any of us damaged patients!

Because the entire industry flatteringly follow my every move, and of course they know what's wrong with my eyes!

But they expect damaged patients to limp away and live the rest of our lives in silence, which is mostly what was happening before I turned over the rocks of this incestuous industry and exposed the corruption crawling beneath!

And there's so much more yet to come boys and girls!

PS: If Optegra Eye Hospital or Paul Rosen deny my claim, they have my email address, and in the interests of transparency I will publish their response.

Anon wrote: Whistle-blowing reviews about Beata McManus, Optimax CEO. The WHOLE of Head Office staff boycotting the 2017 Optimax Xmas party.
"The most intriguing aspect of it all is how this person even became a CEO as her knowledge for most areas of a business is quiet frankly rubbish."
www.glassdoor.co.uk/Reviews/Employee-Rev...ists-RVW19098174.htm

Imagine a very rich & married man in his 4Os pops in a local supermarket near his office where he spies a pretty blond Polish girl in her early 20s on the checkout till. Mr Rich married man has wandering eyes & starts an affair with Polish Checkout Girl. He gives her a job over the road in his business & [strike]clever[/strike] Polish Checkout Girl gets herself pregnant !! Mr Rich won’t put a ring on her finger but agrees to support her & the baby.

Polish Checkout Girl delivers a son & goes back to work for Mr Rich. Pillow talk dries up over the years but Polish Checkout Girl knows more about Mr Rich's businesses & private life than any of his his wives ever do & she climbs [strike]over bodies[/strike] the ladder to become CEO of Mr Rich's company.

Polish Checkout Girl is a [deleted] to lots of the female staff who keep leaving. Mr Rich knows this but he can’t ever get rid of Polish Checkout Girl because she knows too much about him & his company & Polish Checkout Girl has his balls in a vice.

Not sayimg Beata McManus did that but it’s one way a woman with No business knowledge can go from being a checkout girl to a CEO !! :whistle:

Whistle-blowing reviews about Beata McManus, Optimax CEO. The WHOLE of Head Office staff boycotting the 2017 Optimax Xmas party.




www.glassdoor.co.uk/Reviews/Employee-Rev...ists-RVW19098174.htm

18 February 2011, my life changed forever when Optimax surgeon Dr Wilbert Hoe irreparably ruined my eyes and quality of life...



But I'm proud to say that this caused unparalleled consequences for this unregulated and corrupt industry...

And will continue to do so

Hi

I realise it was a few months ago, but what sort of response did you get from people in the street? Did you manage to speak to anyone considering the procedure?

G

I was in Manchester on Tuesday and handed out my flyers near the Optimax clinic in Albert Square.



If this stopped even just one other person having their eyes ruined at Optimax then it was worth while.

It was low key this time but I've still got plenty of flyers left and am planning another visit in the near future.

The 24th November marks 5 years since my eyes were ruined by Optimax. Laser eye surgery is the single biggest regret of my whole life. A life changing event that leaves me struggling daily. I do try and get on with life, and generally keep it all to myself now, but my poor quality of vision haunts me every single day. Optimax are still trading, but I hope for not much longer.
Oh, and Russell I still have my Optimax Ruined My Life T-Shirt, and I am going to Manchester this week… if anyone would like to join me please contact Sasha and she will give me your details.
Watch this space

To most people, the word ‘hospital’ evokes an image of a safe haven, where sick or injured people are treated by doctors and nurses.

I am therefore dismayed when a provider selling unregulated refractive eye surgery - or indeed any other elective and unnecessary treatment - ostensibly tags ‘hospital’ to its name!

An advertising ploy that relies on a person’s innate trust, typically accepting that hospital staff will do nothing they believe might harm us.

So when my attention was drawn to this link I didn’t really expect it to be a hospital group caring for injured eyes.


www.eyehospitals.co.uk

But where did I recognise that eye logo from I wondered, as I clicked on the locations link…

Surprise surprise - Optimax attempting to rebrand! (Was it something I said Russell?)

Reading through the site I noticed that Eye Hospitals Group aka Optimax/Ultralase advertise MiBo Thermoflo as treatment for dry eyes, so superficially they could be thought to be caring for injured eyes.

But read on, because according to their blurb the 'Causes of Dry Eye Syndrome’ do not include laser eye surgery: a blatant and deliberate omission that the tens of thousands of damaged patients worldwide would successfully argue - with evidence!

'This condition can occur when the tear production process is disturbed in some way. There are a host of possible causes for this, although a single definitive cause is rarely identified. It can affect people of all ages, however up to a third of those aged 65 and above may have Dry Eye Syndrome, this condition is more common amongst women.’
www.eyehospitals.co.uk/dry-eye-syndrome

Fyi, I trialled MiBo Thermoflo a few years ago (not to be confused with Lipiflow) and categorically do NOT recommend it!

If your eyes are sensitive you will find the pressure involved in the MiBo treatment quite painful, which in my experience outweighs any potential benefit.

In the interest of research however I did complete the trial, but it gave me zero relief from dry eyes.

Better to invest in steam googles, or if you have MGD spend the same amount of money (approx £150) for a dry eye specialist to debride your meibomian glands for a few months respite.

Optical Express advertise, "Over 99% of our patients achieve 20|20 vision or better with Laser Eye Surgery”.

But with their ongoing p*ssing contest Russell had to trump Moulsdale, so Eye Hospitals Group aka Optimax advertise, "99.86% of our patients achieve driving standard vision or above”.

Unlike Optical Express though, Eye Hospital Group aka Optimax have published no statistics to support their nonsensical claim.

Another one for the ASA methinks

Even the RCOphth spuriously claim only 95% satisfaction rate in their advertorial masquerading as Refractive Surgery Standards!

Read Bruce Allan's email to me in November 2016 (RCOphth topic), admitting that, "We do not have accurate contemporary figures for the numbers of refractive surgery procedures performed in the UK.”.

I believe that in fact there are at least 40% patients left with problems, and until the government step in my claim is as valid as any the industry care to make - if not more so - because I’m contacted by a never ending stream of damaged patients every single day.

It has to stop!

Hello
I just wanted some advise, I've read through your page and noticed how many people are in the same situation as me or worse!
Basically I had the treatment done in 2005 with Ultralase. 5 years later I started to realise it was no longer working so was back to glasses and contact lenses. I left it for another 18 months (why I don't know, scared maybe) then I contacted Ultralase as I was fed up of buying glasses again and also didn't realise at the time I would be entitled to a 2nd treatment.
Ultralase did perform a second treatment in 2012 and I was told it was for life as they siad the 2nd treatment works better than the 1st!
But now for the last 12 months again I'm back to wearing glasses my sight is deteriorating more and more each week I get bad vision when driving at night seeing stars round the headlights and also get dry and tired eyes more often, I also get a halo effect every now and again and find some days it's so bad I can't work at my computer screen.
I contacted Ultralase 6 weeks ago to again discuss my eye sight deterioration to be told they have now gone into liquidation and I would have to go to Optimax for any further advice and aftercare, I went to my appointment to have my eyes checked to be told I'm now short sighted and will need glasses for the foreseeable future!
The optometrist did try to talk me into having it done for a 3rd time but said he would have to consult head office. I jumped in to say I didn't want it for 3rd time as I was worried about the situation of my eyes and would be quite scared as I was told my eyes were scarred when having it done a 2nd time, I then went in to discuss getting my money back for the inconvenience of everything and I was totally dismissed and treated very differently basically they wanted rid of me and told to ring back on Wednesday as there was no admin in on that day!
I just feel now I don't know what to do Ultralase are no longer there to discuss options and feel totally let down by a company that promised 'lifetime aftercare' and 'lifetime vision'.
Can you help me?