Clinics

Eye emergencies

Phone: 020 7188 4336

Location: rapid access eye service, eye department, St Thomas' Hospital, ground floor, South Wing, block C, Westminster Bridge Road, London SE1 7EH

Opening times: Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 4pm

If your condition is urgent, please call our eye casualty telephone service.

If you need urgent advice out of these hours, please call 111.

Our rapid access eye service is for existing patients and those who live in south east London.

We assess you and give you the most appropriate appointment slot.

A clinician will aim to call you back within 1 hour.

This is not an examination. The telephone call is a chance for you to speak to an ophthalmology clinician to decide if you need to attend our rapid access eye service

This service does not replace a full eye examination. You may be asked to come to hospital for a further examination.

Please remember:

• if you're under the care of another eye department or hospital, you must contact them for advice first
• if you live closer to another eye unit, we will redirect you there

We may not see you if your condition is not an emergency.

If you're in immediate danger and need urgent help, call 999.

Eye surgery

Location: eye day case unit, 8th floor, North Wing, St Thomas' Hospital, Westminster Bridge Road, London SE1 7EH

Opening times: Monday to Friday, 7.30am to 6pm and Saturday, 7.30am to 5pm

At the eye day care unit we care for people who are having eye surgery. 

You may need to come to the eye day care unit if you're having:

• cataract surgery
• retinal surgery
• glaucoma surgery
• a laser procedure
• lid surgery
• a corneal graft
• squint surgery
• an intra-vitreol steroid injection
• a lumbar puncture

Contact lens clinic

Phone: 020 7188 2960

Please leave a message and we'll aim to return your call in 3 working days

Location: contact lens clinic, eye department, ground floor, South Wing, St Thomas' Hospital, Westminster Bridge Road, London SE1 7EH

Opening times: Monday to Friday, 9am to 12.30pm and 1.30pm to 4pm

We can prescribe and fit contact lenses for a range of medical eye conditions, such as:

• keratoconus
• corneal distortion
• scarred or white corneas

We also treat people with very high prescriptions (such as over +10D or -15D). We also treat people to relieve pain and help with cosmetic reasons if your eye has scar damage (such as from infection or trauma). We cannot fit contact lenses if glasses can help you have normal vision. You need to go to your own optician for this.

At the clinic, we select the lens type according to your need. The lenses are often specially made. You usually need another appointment to collect your lenses and instructions on how to look after them.

Please wear your contact lenses to your appointment.

We can supply a copy of your contact lens prescription once your fitting is complete. This is usually after you have been reviewed in the clinic and have been wearing the lenses for a minimum of 3 months.

Your ophthalmologist will be able to refer you to the clinic.

Uveitis clinic

Phone: 020 7188 8871

Location: iris clinic, eye department, ground floor, South Wing, St Thomas' Hospital, Westminster Bridge Road, London SE1 7EH

Opening times: Monday, 9am to midday

We treat uveitis at this clinic. 

This clinic is led by Tasanee Braithwaite and Jonathan Virgo.

Low vision clinic

Phone: 020 7188 4569

Location: eye department, ground floor, South Wing, St Thomas' Hospital, Westminster Bridge Road, London SE1 7EH

Opening times: Fridays, 9.30am to 4.30pm

The low vision clinic is for people with poor eyesight. We aim to help you make the most of your vision. This clinic is only for people who are already being seen at our service.

The clinic provides a bridge between the hospital, social services and charities that support visually impaired people.

We can:

• check your glasses are correct
• recommend suitable magnifiers and aids to vision
• provide you with advice from our eye clinic liaison officer, who can refer you to other services if necessary
• offer a taster of some of the high tech low vision aids and gadgets available

We also run the Living with Sight Loss course with London Vision.

This 2-day course includes information and advice on a range of topics from:

• understanding welfare rights
• staying independent
• tips and gadgets for everyday living
• eye health
• hobbies and interests
• other organisations and services that can support you

This course is for adults of all ages, including friends, family members or anyone close to you.

We'll ask you to be in the waiting room at certain times but you do not have to stay in the department in between measurements.

At the end of the clinic, we'll show your measurements to your glaucoma consultant and explain the results to you. If you need to have more treatment we'll discuss this with you.