Factors That Affect Telehealth Utilization and In-Person Glaucoma Care During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Huther, Alexander; Roh, Shiyoung; Ramsey, David J.

doi:10.1016/j.ogla.2022.07.006

Cited by 2 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…Our results are consistent with prior studies that demonstrate that telephone-based outreach is an effective intervention to return OAG patients to eye care, including those LTF after the outbreak of COVID-19 9,12 . However, such interventions when undertaken by physicians are difficult because of time constraints, and they are prone to variations in provider judgment.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

“…Loss to follow-up is unfortunately a common occurrence for patients with glaucoma 4–9,12 . Our study demonstrates that a targeted telephone outreach strategy, which included calls placed after-business hours, is an effective and financially viable method to re-engage LTF patients with OAG who were identified by means of an EMR-based report.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 82%

“…Finally, a novel aspect of our engagement effort was to offer each contacted patient the option of a hybrid telehealth visit. The intent of that option was to take advantage of the experience gained with technology-enabled remote evaluation of glaucoma patients, which was accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic 9,11 . We found that a decisive 93% of patients who accepted care preferred scheduling a traditional visit with their established glaucoma specialist rather than a hybrid visit that utilized telehealth.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Evidently, patients with OAG value seeing their doctor face-to-face, despite the wait time in the clinic and the potential risk of COVID-19 exposure. Nevertheless, patient preferences may shift over time and telemedicine may serve as a pathway to bring certain patients back for traditional eye care 9,16 …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Patient-reported barriers to follow-up care include lack of understanding of the necessity of eye care, especially in the absence of symptoms, cost of examinations, long clinic wait times, forgetfulness, and difficulties scheduling appointments 4–7 . The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic presented additional logistical challenges to health care delivery by dramatically limiting in-person care and disrupting existing patterns of follow-up 8,9 . In response to this public health emergency, several innovative patient care efforts have been piloted, such as drive-through intraocular pressure (IOP) checks, 10 telemedicine visits for chronic disease monitoring, 9 and hybrid visits that combined in-office testing with telemedicine 11 .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Targeted Telephone-Based Outreach Reconnects Glaucoma Patients With Subspecialty Care

Sharma

Roh

Ramsey

2023

Journal of Glaucoma

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Précis: A personalized telephone-based intervention is a costeffective method to return overdue patients with open angle glaucoma (OAG) to subspecialty care. Patients who accepted care overwhelmingly preferred in-person appointments with their provider instead of hybrid visits with telehealth.Purpose: To evaluate the effectiveness of a telephone-based outreach strategy to reconnect OAG patients with subspeciality care.Patients and Methods: Established patients with OAG who were seen before March 1, 2021, but had not returned for care in the following year were contacted via a telephone-based intervention. Patients lost to follow-up (LTF) were offered the option of an inperson visit or a hybrid telehealth visit, which combined in-office testing of vision, intraocular pressure, and optic nerve imaging with a virtual consultation with their glaucoma specialist on a separate date.Results: Of 2727 patients with OAG, 351 (13%) had not returned for recommended care. Outbound calls reached 176 of those patients (50%). Nearly half of all patients contacted readily accepted care, with 71 scheduling in-person appointments (93%) and 5 selecting hybrid visits (6.6%). Medication refills were requested by 17 of those 76 patients, representing nearly a third of the 56 patients who were treated with topical glaucoma medications. Assessment of the program 90 days later found that 40 patients had returned for care, 100 patients had transferred or declined further care, and 40 patients were identified as deceased, lowering the LTF rate to 6.4%, with 15 patients still scheduled for future visits. On the basis of an average call duration of 2.8 ± 2.0 minutes, the added cost of returning a patient with OAG to care by the program was $28.11.Conclusions: Providing targeted outreach by telephone is an effective and cost-efficient strategy to reconnect OAG patients LTF with subspecialty care.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 82%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Targeted Telephone-Based Outreach Reconnects Glaucoma Patients With Subspecialty Care

Sharma

Roh

Ramsey

2023

Journal of Glaucoma

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Recent developments of telemedicine in glaucoma

Jo,

Pasquale

2024

Current Opinion in Ophthalmology

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Purpose of review Telemedicine has an increasingly significant role in the fields of ophthalmology and glaucoma. This review covers recent advancements in the development and optimization of teleglaucoma techniques and applications. Recent findings Glaucoma monitoring and diagnosis via remote tonometry, perimetry, and fundus imaging have become a possibility based on recent developments. Many applications work in combination with smart devices, virtual reality, and artificial intelligence and have been tested in patient populations against conventional “reference-standard” measurement tools, demonstrating promising results. Of note, there is still much progress to be made in teleglaucoma and telemedicine at large, such as accessibility to internet, broadband, and smart devices, application affordability, and reimbursement for remote services. However, continued development and optimization of these applications suggest that the implementation of remote monitoring will be a mainstay for glaucoma patient care. Summary Especially since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, remote patient care has taken on an important role in medicine and ophthalmology. Remote versions of tonometry, perimetry, and fundus imaging may allow for a more patient-centered and accessible future for glaucoma care.

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Factors That Affect Telehealth Utilization and In-Person Glaucoma Care During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Cited by 2 publications

References 7 publications

Targeted Telephone-Based Outreach Reconnects Glaucoma Patients With Subspecialty Care

Targeted Telephone-Based Outreach Reconnects Glaucoma Patients With Subspecialty Care

Recent developments of telemedicine in glaucoma

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