Work experience student hailed hero for saving patient's eyesight in Ripon

A work experience student has been hailed a hero for saving a man's eyesight after he identified a dangerous blockage during his placement at an opticians in Ripon.

15-year-old school pupil Alexander Pickering had been on work experience at Specsavers in Ripon, North Yorkshire, when a patient, John Morgan, came in for a check-up for his blurred vision.

Carrying out a scan, the Ripon Grammar School student noticed something unusual in Mr Morgan's retina.

Mr Morgan was then put on an urgent referral to Harrogate Hospital, where it was revealed he had a dangerous blockage in his main retinal vein.

By detecting the condition early Alexander managed to help prevent Mr Morgan from losing his eyesight permanently.

Alexander was able to pick up the blockage because he was trained to use a 3D optical diagnostic scanner which detects conditions that threaten people's eyesights early on.

Pleased to have contributed to saving Mr Morgan's sight, Alexander said: "I was thrilled to play a small part in a much bigger team of people at Specsavers, in helping to save someone's sight."I never expected to learn so much and achieve something so worthwhile during my work experience."

Mr Morgan will now need an injection in his eye every month for the next year.

He praised Alexander and the rest of the team for their speedy reaction, encouraging others to have regular checkups.

He said: "My experience shows how a routine eye test can help diagnose other worrying health issues and I’d urge everyone to book in an eye exam, no matter how small they feel the problem may be,” said John.The Year 10 student will be taking his GCSEs next year and is aiming for a career in healthcare. He has now been offered part-time work as a customer services assistant in the store.