A VISITOR to Cumbrae says the swift actions of an optician's in Largs was crucial to save his sight after he began suffering blurred vision.
Steve Coombs, who lives near Stansted Airport in Essex, was referred to specialists at a hospital in Glasgow after visiting Eyeglass Opticians in Main Street, where staff confirmed he had a detached retina and quickly needed expert help.
Steve's holiday with his wife Vicki was cut short as a result of his health scare - but he says he can't wait to come back.
Steve said: "We decided to come and take a long weekend break on the beautiful Isle of Cumbrae, arriving Thursday evening and sampling the friendly hospitality on the island.
"I woke on Friday morning with slightly blurred vision in my right eye, and we decided to do a cycle round the island and see if it improved.
"It didn’t, and so by the afternoon I felt I needed to get this looked at.
"After getting the ferry to Largs we found Eyeglass Opticians and the help we received was amazing. "Immediately they listened to the symptoms and explained that they would need to take a closer look.
"They changed their appointments so they could see me, and a comprehensive set of tests.
"They confirmed I had a detached retina and it needed further hospital care.
"They immediately booked me an appointment with specialists at Gartnavel Hospital, provided detailed letters with the findings, emailed all the high resolution images, provided all the letters for me to take to hospital and also contacted my doctors down in England.
"They then reviewed the best routes and times for us to get to the hospital as we were reliant on public transport. They’ve followed up with me to check on my wellbeing."
Eyeglass is run by Lynn McLaren, from Millport, and Anne Allan, and Steve said they deserved to be publicly thanked for the help they gave to a "complete stranger".
Steve continued: "I would also like to apologise to anyone on Friday afternoon who may have had their appointments delayed. Our holiday was cut short but we cannot wait to come back.
"I always feel that great service should be celebrated. I will forever be grateful to Anne and Lynn, and all those in Largs and Millport who helped two panicked southerners navigate a pretty stressful experience."
Anne said: "Bless him for saying such lovely words. We managed to arrange some appointments as we quickly realised from his symptoms that it was something that had to be seen to immediately.
"You have to treat everyone regardless of whether they are a patient or not, and when he popped in to see us we realised straight away it was something that was needing dealt with."
Anne also praised the NHS for arranging an emergency appointment at Gartnavel the day after he was first examined,
Steve underwent surgery in London two days later and says the treatment was a success.
"The speed with which Lynn and Anne helped me was crucial for my sight to recover," he added.
"We really loved visiting Millport. Vicki found it on Instagram and we just booked a flight and an Airbnb.
"We had a really nice time, and were treated very well by everyone on the island. We will definitely be back."
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