HIGH-QUALITY VISION BENEFITS CAN CREATE EMPLOYEE RETENTION

Raises, additional vacation time and flexible hours have long been the items that have enabled companies to hold on to their employees. “High quality vision benefits” (coverage of premium frames and lenses) can now be added to this list, reports “Employee Perceptions of Vision Benefits,” a 2017 survey conducted by Wakefield Research on behalf of Transitions Optical.

Specifically, 87% of respondents said they would be more likely to stay at a company that offered high-quality vision benefits, with millennial employees the most likely to strongly agree with this statement. Further, 83% of respondents said they would be willing to pay extra per pay period if their vision plan “fully covered” these benefits.

The survey was conducted in December 2016 among 1,002 nationally representative U.S. adults, employed with companies that offer vision benefits. ■

SCRIPTOPEDIA: EXPLAIN VISION PLAN BENEFITS

Managed vision care plan benefits cost the average consumer around $100 or less annually, have no deductibles and provide huge savings on fabulous eyewear all year round. Sadly, most optometrists and their staffs don’t focus on these attributes, which, in part, has created the consumer question, “What’s covered?” (Change your words, and change your world. People buy with their emotions.)

Here are two scripts to answer this question that get consumers to focus on the benefits of their managed vision care plans.

Receptionist: “Tom, you have the XYZ Vision Savings Benefit Plan. Other consumers with this plan love it because it doesn’t limit or restrict your choices, and you have savings for any eyewear or contact lenses you’d like. For example, your exam without your savings benefits would be $175. With your benefits, your contribution is just $10, so you save $165 dollars before you even get to optical. Now, after we know what Dr. ________ is prescribing for you today, we’ll know how to maximize your other benefits for your advantage, so you’ll be happy. Sound good?”

Optical pharmacist: “Tom, the wonderful advantage you have over most other vision savings plans is that yours doesn’t limit or restrict your choices. After you choose your favorite frames and say, while looking in the mirror, ‘Yep, that’s just how I want others to see me,’ I’ll maximize your entitlements for your best advantage and calculate your savings. This way, you don’t compromise your own feeling about how you want to look. Make sense?” ■

MR. HINTON is CEO and president of eYeFacilitate. Email him at mark@eyefacilitate.com, or send comments to optometricmanagement@gmail.com.

TFOS DEWS II INCLUDES NEW DRY EYE DISEASE DEFINITION

Although the final Tear Film & Ocular Surface Society’s (TFOS) Dry Eye Workshop (TFOS DEWS II), will not be fully available until the beginning of July, TFOS presented highlights from the globally anticipated report at the 2017 Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology Annual Meeting, divulging a definition change for dry eye disease (DED).

Specifically, TFOS DEWS II defines DED as, “a multifactorial disease of the ocular surface characterized by a loss of homeostasis of the tear film, and accompanied by ocular symptoms in which tear film instability and hyperosmolarity, ocular surface inflammation, and damage and neurosensory abnormalities play etiological roles.”

The first TFOS DEWS, released 10 years ago, defined the debilitating condition as, “a multifactorial disease of the tears and ocular surface that results in symptoms of discomfort, visual disturbance and tear film instability with potential damage to the ocular surface, accompanied by increased osmolarity of the tear film and inflammation of the ocular surface.”

“The TFOS DEWS II dry eye definition is a nod to the old definition, while recognizing the importance of maintaining the delicate homeostasis of the tear film and ocular surface environment,” says Kelly K. Nichols, O.D., M.P.H., Ph.D., F.A.A.O., TFOS DEWS II Definition and Classification subcommittee co-chair and dean of UAB’s School of Optometry, in Birmingham, Ala. “We have learned so much about dry eye in the last 10 years, and the new definition will solidly stand the test of the next 10.”

In addition to updating the definition of DED, TFOS DEWS II also discusses the classification, diagnosis, epidemiology, pathophysiology, mechanism, global impact and management of DED, with recommendations for the creation of clinical trials to evaluate potential treatments.

A total of 150 global clinical and basic research experts were involved with the more than two year effort in crafting of the report, which is 400 to 500 pages long and includes diagnostic videos for clinicians.

The TFOS DEWS II report will be published by The Ocular Surface in July. A downloadable version and additional material will be available on the TFOS website: www.TearFilm.org . ■

VISION SOURCE ANNOUNCES EXCLUSIVE OPHTHALMIC AND CONTACT LENSES

Vision Source, an independent optometric alliance, disclosed at its annual member meeting, Vision Source Exchange, held in May at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center in Nashville, that it’s coming out with TrueClear XD2 and SD2 progressive lenses, from Essilor, and the private label silicone hydrogel contact lenses, AQUACLEAR 110 and AQUACLEAR 110 Toric, with availability for Vision Source patients expected this summer.

Other meeting highlights: more than 156 industry vendors that enabled attendees to test drive the latest technology and products; eight free continuing education credits, the multimedia program “My Vision Source Family” advertising campaign, the Frame Dream program and the Essilor Experts program. Also, Dallas Cowboys and Hall of Fame quarterback Troy Aikman and “Shark Tank” investor Barbara Corcoran gave keynote addresses.

The annual meeting hosted 4,500 attendees, including optometrists, optometry staff and industry vendors. ■

AOA REACTS TO VETERANS AFFAIRS SECRETARY’S REMARK TO FARM OUT OPTOMETRY

Responding to a disabledveterans.org article that mentioned Secretary of Veterans Affairs David Shulkin, M.D., suggested, behind closed doors, that Veterans Affairs (VA) healthcare directors farm out optometry and audiology services to use the saved funds to update VA facilities, AOA President Andrea Thau, O.D., released a statement outlining why doing so would be a mistake.

“America’s veterans need and deserve the assurance that their eye health and vision care needs will be met by doctors of optometry through the advanced, high-quality care we provide,” Dr. Thau says. “In 2017, bias and outdated thinking have no place at the VA or any government agency. . . .On behalf of all of the patients who’ve bravely served our country, I’ve asked to meet with Dr. Shulkin to make absolutely certain that this report is false, and to discuss the changes the VA needs to make to fulfill its mission.” ■