Teleophthalmology and COVID-19: the patient perspective

Golash, Vidushi; Athwal, Sarju; Khandwala, Mona

doi:10.7861/fhj.2020-0139

Cited by 24 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…When asked about changes in practice resulting from COVID-19, many respondents reported telephone and video consultations being used. Whilst this finding was perhaps unsurprising given the widespread use of remote consultations in medicine during COVID, [18][19][20] the numbers of departments planning to continue use of such provisions was quite low. Although there is some data on patient and clinician experience in video consultations in ophthalmology, 21 there is a relative paucity of literature in this area, with service providers potentially lacking confidence that this method of service delivery will be effective in the recovery phase of COVID.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Scope of practice of optometrists working in the UK Hospital Eye Service: Second national survey

Gunn

Creer

Bowen

et al. 2022

Ophthalmic Physiologic Optic

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As the landscape in ophthalmology and related commissioning continues to change, there is a pressing need to re-evaluate the current scope of practice of hospital optometrists working within secondary care in the UK. We aim to establish if the skills or services delivered by optometrists have changed to meet varying demands, and to better understand what changes in practice may have arisen as a result of COVID-19. Method: A survey developed from that used in 2015 was disseminated to 129 optometry Hospital Eye Service (HES) leads in September 2020, including questions on department workforce; core services; extended roles; procedures undertaken within extended roles; level of autonomy; arrangements for prescribing; training and accreditation, and service changes in response to COVID-19.Results: Ninety responses were received (70% response rate) from within England (76%), Scotland (22%) and Northern Ireland (2%). Whole time equivalents within units ranged from 0.4-79.2 (median of 2.5). In comparison to the 2015 survey, there was an increase in the proportion of units delivering extended roles, with glaucoma (88%) remaining the most common extended role, and new areas of practice in uveitis (21%) and vitreoretinal (13%) services. There was increased use of independent prescribing (67%) in comparison to 18% in 2015 and there was an increase in optometrists delivering laser interventions. In response to COVID-19, optometrists were increasingly delivering telephone consultations and there were new collaborations between primary and secondary care.Conclusions: Optometrists' scope of practice continues to develop in the HES with an increased variety of roles and an apparent increase in the number of units employing optometrists, often working in roles historically performed by medical practitioners. Such changes appear necessary in recovery and transformation

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Scope of practice of optometrists working in the UK Hospital Eye Service: Second national survey

Gunn

Creer

Bowen

et al. 2022

Ophthalmic Physiologic Optic

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“…Over the past year, this [11]. High levels of patient satisfaction with remote consultations have been demonstrated within ophthalmology [12] and this should serve as a springboard to further reform the delivery of healthcare that can be responsive to patients' needs. The implementation of remote consultations for emergency ophthalmology at Moorfields, both during and beyond the pandemic, also led to a significant reduction in the number of patients attending hospital [13].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Managing risk in the face of adversity: design and outcomes of rapid glaucoma assessment clinics during a pandemic recovery

Jayaram

Baneke

Adesanya

et al. 2021

Eye

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Background The provision of timely care to the high volume of glaucoma patients stratified as “low risk” following pandemic-related appointment deferrals continues to prove challenging for glaucoma specialists. It is unknown whether stratification as “low risk” remains valid over time, raising the potential risk of harm during this period if left unmonitored. This study aimed to evaluate whether Rapid Glaucoma Assessment Clinics (RGACs) are an effective method of assessing “low-risk” patients in order to identify those who may need an escalation of care, therefore reducing the risk of the future incidents of preventable vision loss. Methods RGACs were developed which comprised a brief advance telephone history by a clinician and then ophthalmic technician-measured visual acuity and intraocular pressure in clinic. We report outcomes from the first month of operation describing attendance patterns, the proportion of patients from this “low risk” cohort requiring escalation and underlying reasons for treatment escalations. Results 639 patients were invited to attend RGACs. 75% attended their booked appointment. Pre-attendance telephone consultations were associated with lower non-attendance rates (13.9% vs 29.3%, p < 0.00001). 15% of patients were no longer deemed to remain at “low risk” with further expedited clinical review scheduled. 10.4% of patients required an escalation in treatment following review. Conclusions RGACs are an effective approach to deliver high throughput clinical assessments for large numbers of “low-risk” glaucoma patients with deferred appointments. They enable the rapid identification and treatment of patients who would otherwise face significantly delayed review reducing the risk of future preventable vision loss.

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“…The utility of telemedicine in oculoplastic surgery is further supported by the increase in clinicians’ and patients’ acceptance of digital technology in health care delivery after the COVID-19 pandemic 34,39,40 …”

Section: Clinical Assessmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Digital Transformation in Ophthalmic Clinical Care During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Kim

Logeswaran

Kang

et al. 2021

Asia-Pacific Journal of Ophthalmology

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COVID-19 has placed unprecedented pressure on health systems globally, whereas simultaneously stimulating unprecedented levels of transformation. Here, we review digital adoption that has taken place during the pandemic to drive improvements in ophthalmic clinical care, with a specific focus on out-of-hospital triage and services, clinical assessment, patient management, and use of electronic health records. We show that although there have been some successes, shortcomings in technology infrastructure prepandemic became only more apparent and consequential as COVID-19 progressed. Through our review, we emphasize the need for clinicians to better grasp and harness key technology trends such as telecommunications and artificial intelligence, so that they can effectively and safely shape clinical practice using these tools going forward.

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Teleophthalmology and COVID-19: the patient perspective

Cited by 24 publications

References 10 publications

Scope of practice of optometrists working in the UK Hospital Eye Service: Second national survey

Scope of practice of optometrists working in the UK Hospital Eye Service: Second national survey

Managing risk in the face of adversity: design and outcomes of rapid glaucoma assessment clinics during a pandemic recovery

Digital Transformation in Ophthalmic Clinical Care During the COVID-19 Pandemic

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