LEARN FROM MEDICAL CLINICS. . . AND MAINTAIN CUSTOMER SERVICE

While Neil B. Gailmard, O.D., is proud of the progress optometry has made in providing medical eye care, in a recent OM “Management Tip of the Week” e-newsletter, he cautions fellow O.D.s not to adopt the “bad habits” that can sometimes be found in medical clinics (see http://bit.ly/2h3Y0pB ).

Customer service, one of the most important aspects of practice building for optometry, “can be virtually non-existent in many primary care medical practices [because] they have more patients than they know what to do with!” he explains in the Tip.

Dr. Gailmard illustrates the following ways many medical practices drop the ball on customer service, so optometrists can avoid them.

• Attitude. A never-ending supply of customers can make employees focus on their own needs.
• Hours of operation. They tend not to be convenient for the public, as the thought process is, “we have tons of patients needing to get in, so they will come whenever we want.”
• Office policies. Hundreds of business and clinical procedures are decided on by a practice owner or manager. They can go the patient’s way or the owner’s way.
• Staffing levels. Medical practices often cut employees because doing so saves on payroll.
• Waiting time. Some medical practices overbook, so the doctor is never waiting for patients.

Dr. Gailmard acknowledges he is “painting with a broad brush”: There are medical practices that deliver excellent service, and “extremely busy” optometric practices that have excess demand. ■

RECENT GRADUATE PROVIDES TIPS ON ACCLIMATING TO FULL-SCOPE OPTOMETRY

One of the challenges a new O.D. might face is the transition to full-scope optometry. Emily Korszen, O.D., F.A.A.O., who recently accepted a position at Central Washington Eye Clinic, in Yakima, Wash., knows this all too well, having completed a year residency focused on cornea and contact lenses at Pacific University, in Forest Grove, Ore.

“The residency I did had a strong emphasis on specialty contact lenses, so the majority of pathology I saw was in the anterior segment,” she explains. “At this practice, I see a wide variety of anterior and posterior segment conditions, so I’ve had the opportunity to get more comfortable in managing these patients.”

To accomplish this, she says she’s done the following:

• Contacted other doctors. Dr. Korszen says that the residency and the college’s proximity to Portland, Oregon, where there is, “nearly every type of specialist,” allowed her seamless and fast access to seasoned eye care providers, whom she could immediately consult with and refer patients. At the Yakima practice, she says she doesn’t have the same access for all specialities, so she calls other doctors for their opinions and soaks up as much knowledge as possible from them.

“They’re usually more than willing to talk for a minute or two about a patient, and that’s really helped me to learn and understand their perspective from the specialist side of things,” she explains. “For example, because we don’t have a B-Scan in the practice, I wanted a patient who had a dense vitreous hemorrhage of unknown cause to see a retinal specialist. The patient, however, was reluctant to drive two hours to see one in Seattle, so I called the specialist to discuss possible causes and when the patient should be seen, which has helped me learn how to handle similar situations.”

She adds that she often asks her optometric colleagues for advice as well.

• Followed up on referrals. The Nova Southeastern University graduate says she is also sure to scrutinize the notes of doctors she has referred to and contact them, so she can, “understand what the doctor did and why and expand what I’m able to treat.”
• Read scientific literature and optometric magazines. Dr. Korszen says both contain helpful clinical advice that has increased her comfort level in practicing full-scope optometry.

“Being confident in seeing complex medical patients is definitely getting better,” she says. ■

TELEHEALTH DIABETIC RETINOPATHY SCREENINGS PERFORMED BY O.D.s

Due to advances in technology, the growing epidemic of diabetes, a lack of annual eye exams by diabetic patients and patient difficulty accessing eye care, particularly in urban areas, optometrists, such as those at the UC Berkeley School of Optometry’s Digital Health Center, are providing tele-health screenings for diabetic retinopathy (DR).

Research reveals telehealth screenings do not underestimate the prevalence of DR and that they have the potential to facilitate treatment intervention, so vision loss can be prevented.

Harry M. Green, O.D., Ph.D., F.A.A.O., who has overseen the Center since 2010, says the UC Berkeley School of Optometry’s Digital Health Center works in two ways:

First, it helps statewide primary care clinics — many of which are federally qualified health centers — create DR screening programs by lending them fundus camera equipment, if needed, educating staff on the criteria to screen (e.g. failure to undergo a comprehensive eye exam) and training staff on how to operate the camera and send the image via the Center’s HIPAA-compliant telemedicine platform.

“The second part is the consultation, in which the Digital Health Center’s optometrists assess the retinal images, along with pertinent medical details, and provide a recommendation to the primary care doctor through a report generated by the platform,” explains Dr. Green. “From there, the primary care staff and doctor are responsible for coordinating the referral, if one is recommended, to an eye care provider local to the patient.”

He adds that the Center never self-refers and that primary care clinics pay an agreed-upon fee, as the service is not yet covered. ■

Black History Month

O.D.s REMEMBER FIRST AFRICAN AMERICAN GRADUATE IN OPTOMETRY

H. Edward Welton, O.D., the first African American to graduate from optometry school, inspired those who came after him with his passion for the indigent and minority populations, say those who knew him personally.

“He was always concerned about less fortunate patients having access to quality eye care, and because I had the same concern, I went to work where he did at Northeast Ohio Neighborhood Health Services,” explains LaVelle Jenkins, O.D., F.A.A.O., who first met Dr. Welton while a student at the Ohio State University College of Optometry (OSU), his Alma Mater. “When he retired, I took over his position as chief of optometry for optometric services, and he told me, ‘Remember to listen with your ears and your eyes because patients may tell you things through their expression that they may not say verbally.’ It was great advice!’”

Jacqueline Davis, O.D., F.A.A.O., M.P.H., who was the first African American female to graduate from OSU, and is one of the school’s clinical professors, says that, as a student, she was inspired by Dr. Welton’s graduating class photo and thought, “Ok. If you can do it, I can do it!”

“[Dr. Welton] told me he often had to use the back door to attend professional meetings because of segregation,” says Ernest J. Robinson, O.D., who worked with Dr. Welton at Northeast Ohio Neighborhood Health Services. “But with all he endured, he was never bitter. He loved optometry.”

Dr. Welton graduated from OSU in 1938 and ran private practices in Atlanta and Cleveland before serving as chief of optometry for Northeast Ohio Neighborhood Health Services, according to OSU. To ensure his fellow minority students had access to education, he created scholarships at both his undergraduate school, Tennessee State University, and at OSU. He was also the first African American to become a Fellow of the AAO. He died in 1994 at age 83. ■

TEARLAB SUBMITS 510(K) APPLICATION FOR NEW DIAGNOSTIC DEVICE

TearLab Corp. has announced it’s submitted a 510(k) application to the FDA for its TearLab Discovery Platform in-vitro diagnostic testing system, that measures both tear osmolarity, an ocular surface health biomarker, and MMP-9, an inflammatory biomarker associated with DED. The application covers both the platform and a test card that measures MMP-9, according to a company press release

“The hardware of the Discovery Platform, unlike our current test, not only identifies MMP-9 in addition to tear osmolarity measurements, it can also support a future portfolio of tests for other diseases going forward,” explains TearLab’s CEO, Seph Jensen. “Further, the platform allows for the testing of more than one marker at a time, so that doctors can get a lot of information quickly to guide management of the ocular surface.”

(The TearLab Osmolarity system, currently available, measures tear osmolarity alone.)

The company says it plans to file for waiver categorization with the FDA under the Clinical Laboratory and Improvement Amendments upon receipt of FDA 510(k) clearance, so practitioners can use the test at the point of care. ■

BAUSCH + LOMB RED EYE DROP GETS FDA NOD

As we go to press, brimonidine tartrate ophthalmic 0.025% (Lumify, Bausch + Lomb), has received FDA approval for the treatment of ocular redness.

“We are proud to offer this unique new OTC eye drop to help our physicians and their patients with a new, effective treatment for red, irritated eyes,” says Joseph Gordon, president, consumer healthcare and vision care, Bausch + Lomb, in a company press release.

Low-dose brimonidine, selectively constricts veins in the eye, which increases the availability of oxygen to surrounding tissue, and, thus, reduces the likelihood of loss of effectiveness or rebound redness, Bausch + Lomb says. ■

OCUSOFT TO DISTRIBUTE I-PEN

OCuSOFT Inc. has signed an exclusive U.S. distribution rights agreement with I-MED Pharma, a Canadian company that specializes in DED diagnosis and management, for its I-PEN Osmolarity System. The company recently received an acceptance review notification from the FDA regarding the I-PEN’s 510(k) submission.

The handheld, battery-operated device provides a qualitative measurement of tear film osmolarity to help the practitioner determine the presence of mild, moderate or severe DED.

“[The I-PEN] is efficient and highly reliable, enabling practitioners to diagnose and treat dry eye with confidence,” says OCuSoFT President and CEO Cynthia Barratt, in a company press release. ■