We founded Lutra Health as two ophthalmologists who’ve spent much of our careers working across NHS and independent sectors and seeing the same problem everywhere.
Despite huge advances in diagnostics, imaging and treatment, the way information flows through eyecare hasn’t kept up. Patients are referred without the right data, clinicians work blind to what’s already been done, and too much time is lost to paperwork and process.
We didn’t create Lutra to add another layer of technology. We built it because we were tired of seeing great clinicians and anxious patients held back by disconnected systems.
We've both experienced the daily frustration of fragmentation:
We wanted to fix the hidden gaps between optometry and ophthalmology, to make those handovers clear and connected. Lutra is our way of doing that.
Ophthalmology is now the busiest outpatient specialty in the NHS, accounting for nearly 10% of all hospital appointments.
Around 9 million outpatient visits take place each year and yet over 650,000 patients are currently on waiting lists in England alone.
Demand continues to rise as populations age and earlier diagnosis becomes possible through community testing and digital imaging. Meanwhile, workforce pressures mean services are struggling to expand capacity fast enough.
Community optometry has the clinical expertise and equipment to help, but the infrastructure for collaboration hasn’t kept pace. Referrals are often sent via letter, fax or unstructured email. Imaging files stay trapped in local systems and feedback from secondary care can take weeks or months to reach the optometrist, if at all.
This disconnect costs time, resources and, ultimately, patient vision.
We asked ourselves that question throughout our careers and Lutra Health is our answer.
We believe that great care happens when everyone in the pathway - patient, optometrist and ophthalmologist - can see the same information, in real time.
So we built a secure, interoperable platform that enables joined-up digital pathways across community and secondary care. Lutra acts as a Single Point of Access (SPA) for eyecare - bringing together referrals, triage, advice & guidance, patient choice, image sharing and outcomes into one connected workflow.
NHS hospitals and independent providers use Lutra to manage incoming referrals more intelligently.
This reduces administrative load, improves case allocation and helps every clinician work at the top of their licence.
For optometrists, Lutra turns what was once a disconnected handover into a collaborative exchange.
In short, it helps optometrists do more for patients without adding workload.
Patients see the biggest difference of all.
Their journey becomes transparent, they can be referred, triaged, and treated without the confusion of lost paperwork or unclear communication. Lutra allows their data to move with them, so they don’t have to repeat tests or explain history at every step.
By joining up the pathway, we shift patients from passive waiting to active participation.
In short, it helps optometrists do more for patients without adding workload.
Lutra doesn’t replace existing systems, it enhances them.
We’ve designed it to integrate with EHRs, imaging platforms, and regional referral systems, so that data flows freely and securely. Every element complies with NHS Digital and UK GDPR standards.
Our goal isn’t disruption, it’s alignment.
In short, it helps optometrists do more for patients without adding workload.
We both came into medicine to improve lives and Lutra is an extension of that.
We see a future where:
Eyecare can be faster, fairer and more joined up.
That’s the vision that drives us and the reason we built Lutra Health.