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Optical Express Transforms Paramedic's Life

“I can now focus on saving lives with better vision"

Laura aged 30, from Hornchurch in Essex is one of the grateful emergency service workers who’s been given free laser eye surgery to say thank you for the great job she does for the public.

Laura wore glasses for 14 years, and before the surgery, she would find her eyes becoming dry and uncomfortable from wearing contact lenses and would have to switch to glasses. However, wearing glasses became a problem when attending early morning traffic collisions. The bad weather would cause her glasses to steam up and become dirty from the rain – preventing her from seeing the emergency in front of her. She even recalls a time when her glasses fell off, distracting her from the job in hand.

These issues coupled with the inability to rest comfortably when wearing contact lenses, made Laura sign up for the Thanks a Million campaign by Optical Express. The Lasik eye surgery was a simple procedure and only took a few minutes. Since the surgery, Laura has been free from her glasses and contact lenses.

Laser eye surgery has not only transformed Laura’s vision but has vastly improved her own health. Laura can now participate in all gym glasses with no restrictions, giving her much more endurance for the long shifts. Her new 20/20 vision has enabled the paramedic to now rest comfortably on breaks, drive more efficiently at night during emergency situations and enjoy her job as worries about dry and uncomfortable eyes have now ceased.

Commenting on her transformed vision, Laura said: “My eyesight has drastically improved since the laser eye surgery. I am now able to work long shifts at work and do my work with no discomfort or dry eyes from wearing contact lenses. Now my eyesight has been improved, it has become less of a distraction, enabling me to do my job efficiently and effectively”.

Dawn, Head of HR at Optical Express, said: “We are delighted to hear the impact Lasik Eye Surgery has had on Laura’s working and personal life. As a nation we all share a great sense of pride in our emergency services, and the British public told us that they believe these amazing men and women deserve the most thanks – and we wholeheartedly agree.

“We wanted to reward them in our own special way by providing free treatment, to help improve the lives of these everyday heroes. Over the coming months our goal is to offer some of the hardest working people the freedom of having better than 20/20 vision, without the barrier of their glasses or contact lenses.

“We’re delighted to have given so many deserving people free laser eye surgery through the Thanks a Million campaign, and we are looking forward to continuing to improve lives.

Optical Express launched its Thanks a Million campaign, offering NHS workers free laser eye surgery. The initiative followed a national survey of 2,000 Brits commissioned by Optical Express, which found that people who dedicate their lives to public service 'are most deserving of our thanks'.