Our annual PMO section offers new opportunities to manage DED

Since we published our last Practicing Medical Optometry (PMO) special section on dry eye disease (DED) in July 2019, much has changed. Due to COVID-19, practices are employing new guidelines, for example, wearing personal protective equipment and ensuring social distancing during visits, just to name two. And as a driver of family members and pets to their health care appointments, I have become accustomed to sitting in the car, rather than in the waiting room, during visits.

EXPLORING DRY EYE

The management of dry eye disease (DED) is also changing. For example, telemedicine visits may be appropriate for the initial consultation or follow-up care. More educational resources are becoming available online. And as Dr. Whitney Hauser writes in her introduction to the PMO (“Modifying DED Diagnosis,” p.16), that due to the pandemic, “these are times of increased digital screen use,” where it would be valuable to survey patients to see whether they are experiencing DED-related issues.

Dr. Scott G. Hauswirth notes that educating patients on diagnostic testing can improve compliance with treatment, “which improves DED outcomes.” In “Discuss DED Diagnostics” (p.21), he provides patient education scripts across three categories: tear quantity metrics, tear quality metrics and ocular surface structural analysis.

Patient compliance with treatment also depends on how well the patient understands the “why” for a specific treatment, writes Dr. Cecelia Koetting in “Educate on DED Therapeutics” (p.24). In addition to providing scripts on the currently available therapies, Dr. Koetting also offers “pro tips” to deepen the patient’s understanding and acceptance of the therapy.

In “How to Create a DED Clinic,” (p.34), Dr. Damon Dierker cautions that “there are really no shortcuts” to becoming an expert in dry eye. Dr. Dierker goes on to explain how to offer advanced DED services in a stepwise approach that covers education, protocols, diagnostics and treatment technologies, marketing and more — all based on his experiences in developing a successful DED clinic.

Sometimes it takes an analogy to help patients understand DED. Dr. Kristen S. O’Brien offers several in “New O.D.” (p.50), bringing up imagery, such as Saran wrap, fire alarms and oil changes. OM