In this episode of Dry Eye Fireside Chat, Damon Dierker, OD, FAAO, and Crystal Brimer, OD, FAAO, discuss how utilizing point-of-care (POC) diagnostics can successfully streamline dry eye disease treatment.
Dr. Brimer owns a dedicated dry eye clinic in Wilmington, North Carolina. She is passionate about education, helping patients, as well as helping doctors successfully bring dry eye services into their practices. Dr. Brimer also runs the Dry Eye Institute, a live, in-person program that is now available on demand.
Common barriers to streamlining dry eye services
Dr. Brimer notes three major barriers:
- Time (or the perception that it will take too much time)
- Staff buy-in
- Difficulty of implementing change
Dr. Dierker highlights a few important steps vital to successfully implementing dry eye services including:
- Identifying barriers in your practice
- Getting the right people involved
- Being open and ready for change
Streamlining the POC testing process is an early and easy step that can enhance the dry eye treatment experience for both the practice and patients.
Utilizing POC diagnostics in practices
Dr. Brimer called the Oculus Keratograph 5M, an advanced corneal topographer, the cornerstone of her practice when it comes to POC testing.
The day of their dry eye evaluation, each patient undergoes roughly 11 minutes of testing at the Oculus 5M, which provides Dr. Brimer with multiple data points that build a clinical picture and help her create a dry eye story she can share with her patients.
Figure 1 is an image of Dr. Brimer’s dry eye clinic, showing the Oculus Keratograph 5M next to a slit lamp.
Figure 1: Courtesy of Crystal Brimer, OD, FAAO.
The value of the dry eye story for patients
Creating and sharing the dry eye story helps patients understand why a particular treatment is necessary and lets them see their improvements during their next visit. One study found that having patients receive direct access to test results appeared to increase their engagement.
Dr. Brimer shows her patients imaging and videos from their diagnostics to educate them on their condition. “Even if they don’t feel better yet, they see that change for themselves and it kind of gives them permission to feel better or encouragement to keep doing their treatments while we’re waiting on those feelings,” she noted.
Where can doctors start if they don’t have a dry eye diagnostic protocol in place?
Dr Brimer reiterated that patient history is critical, though it can be time-consuming. A comprehensive survey, conducted prior to the exam, can be a useful tool to obtain a detailed understanding of a patient’s history and save valuable chair time. The role of this survey is to obtain a deeper understanding of a dry eye patient's history and communicate to them the need for further evaluation.
Lastly, while investing in technology can help streamline the implementation of dry eye treatment and the patient’s buy-in to the diagnosis and treatment plan, “pay per box” methods such as InflammaDry, red thread test, and vital dyes can still be useful tools to strengthen your dry eye evaluations if you don’t have that technology.
Conclusion
Strategically utilizing POC diagnostics can help streamline dry eye disease treatment by creating dry eye stories that encourage patient buy-in and save your practice valuable time.
A solid patient history and a well-thought-out approach to implementing change are also key factors for ensuring success.
