Sentinel is a clinician-led retinal assessment and referral programme helping people living with diabetes access timely eye care, clear clinical reports and the right onward referral.
A structured care pathway
Assessment is only the beginning. Sentinel connects review, reporting, referral and follow-up.
Diabetes and your eyes
Diabetes can affect the small blood vessels in the retina before a person notices blurred vision, pain or any other warning sign. That is why retinal assessment should become part of routine diabetes care—not something delayed until vision changes.
Your first assessment
Sentinel is being established in Nigeria with a care model informed by Nigerian eye-health priorities and recognised international diabetic eye programmes.
Type 2 diabetes
Type 2 diabetes may have been present before it was diagnosed. International best practice therefore supports a retinal eye examination at diagnosis to identify existing disease and establish a baseline.
Book your first assessmentType 1 diabetes
The NHS invites people with diabetes from age 12. American guidance recommends an initial comprehensive eye examination within five years of Type 1 diabetes diagnosis. Your diabetes and eye-care team should advise the timing that applies to you.
The key message is consistent: enrol in an organised eye-care pathway and do not miss recommended follow-up.
Why register with a programme?
A first retinal assessment creates a clinical starting point that future images and findings can be compared against.
Retinal changes can develop before vision is affected. Ongoing assessment helps identify change earlier.
Clinical findings are reviewed by qualified eye-care professionals, not released as raw automated output.
Patients who need further investigation or treatment are guided into the right eye-care pathway.
The Sentinel pathway
A governed pathway designed around patients, clinical responsibility and continuity of care.
Join through a participating hospital, clinic or direct patient request.
Relevant history and retinal images are captured in a structured encounter.
An eye-care professional reviews the images and available clinical information.
A structured report explains the findings and recommended next step.
Where needed, Sentinel supports onward referral and continuity of care.
For hospitals
Sentinel helps hospitals provide organised assessment access, professional reporting and onward referral without presenting the service as a software product.
For eye clinics
Participating clinics help deliver assessments, specialist review and treatment pathways for patients who require further care.
Clinical responsibility first
Sentinel uses secure digital workflows to connect assessment, review, reporting and referral. Where eligible and consented, AI-assisted image analysis may support clinical review, but it does not replace professional interpretation or clinical judgement.
Frequently asked questions
Clear information helps people take the first step before sight is affected.
Early diabetic retinal changes may not cause pain or obvious visual symptoms. Retinal assessment can identify signs that need monitoring or referral before a person notices a change in sight.
International best practice recommends assessment at diagnosis because Type 2 diabetes may have been present before it was discovered. Sentinel encourages adults newly diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes to register early and establish a retinal baseline.
Timing varies by age, duration of diabetes and local guidance. International programmes provide useful reference points: the NHS invites people with diabetes from age 12, while American guidance recommends an initial eye examination within five years of Type 1 diabetes diagnosis. A patient’s diabetes and eye-care team should guide individual timing.
No. Sentinel supports retinal assessment, clinical reporting and referral. It works alongside existing diabetes and eye-care providers.
The report will state the recommended next step. This may include routine monitoring, an earlier repeat assessment or referral to an eye clinic or ophthalmologist.
Take the next step
Register for a retinal assessment or speak with Sentinel about bringing the programme to your hospital or eye clinic.
