Working as a Police Officer for over 8 years, Darren had started to grow increasingly frustrated with the hassle of wearing glasses and contact lenses while he was out on duty. Having to be vigilant at all times when he was operational, he relied heavily on his eyesight but found that outdated vision correction solutions had become more of a hindrance than a help.

“I recognised quite quickly that contact lenses were more a hindrance, although they help short term, but when you are doing 12 hours a shift it’s a bit of an issue. As well as that it was things like having to keep track of all your kit, and then glasses I would put them down, misplace them, and not be able to find them,” he explains.

Coming across our ‘Thanks a Million’ campaign online, Darren immediately thought it was a great initiative and didn’t hesitate to send in his application. He couldn’t believe his luck when he received an email several weeks later to congratulate him on being a successful applicant, even having to get his partner to check the email to make sure he hadn’t misinterpreted it.

“I was absolutely blown away that I was successful,” he says.

Darren received life-changing laser eye surgery in our flagship treatment centre in Glasgow. Speaking to us about his experiences, he said he couldn’t fault the procedure and the team that supported him in the run-up to and on the day of his surgery: “All the staff have made me feel very much at ease and looked after me pre the procedure and post procedure.”

Following his procedure, Darren is delighted at the prospect of finally being able to go out and about without having to rely on any visual aids, stating that he can’t wait to “leave the house care free and embrace my new vision!”

Optical Express first launched the ‘Thanks a Million’ campaign in 2017, donating £1 million worth of free laser eye surgery to NHS and Emergency Service workers. The campaign since relaunched in 2023 with Optical Express donating another £1 million worth of laser eye surgery as a way of saying ‘thank you’ to those who work tirelessly every day to help safeguard our communities.