OPTICAL PRISM | FEATURE
THE CANADIAN ASSOCIATION OF OPTOMETRISTS is the national voice of optometry , providing leadership and support to its more than 5,400 members to enhance the delivery of healthy eyes and clear vision for all Canadians .
Embracing teleoptometry
COVID-19 forced many ECPs to use telehealth for first time
BY DR . HARRY BOHNSACK , President , Canadian Association of Optometrists
Telephone , television , teleoptometry ?
Alexander Graham Bell made it possible for people in different locations to speak over a phone line .
Philo T . Farnham built on that , making it possible for people in one area to see and hear people in another area , with the invention of television .
It ’ s unlikely there is one individual responsible for telemedicine – from which teleoptometry was born , but the concept of a health-care professional providing care using medical and communication technologies can be traced to University of Nebraska clinicians who used it to share neurological exams with medical students .
The COVID-19 pandemic forced a quick reckoning for all health-care providers regarding the provision of care via telemedicine , including optometrists , who in many instances had to consider teleoptometry in practice for the first time .
While a small minority of optometrists had integrated its use in practice prior to March 2020 , it is safe to say that the vast majority were forced to adapt quickly in order to try and meet the visual care and treatment needs of their patients .
Not surprisingly , the diverse challenges involved in providing optometric care across the country meant a different level of integration of teleoptometry in practice . For some eye care professionals , teleoptometry may be confined to providing optometry advice over the phone , while , for others , it means an actual platform that accommodates taking pictures of the eye , enabling therapeutic treatment and follow-up .
The Canadian Association of Optometrists ( CAO ) surveyed its members this spring and nearly three-quarters confirmed that teleoptometry would impact their practice in the near future .
Many supporters of telemedicine , including many eye care professionals , point to the ease of convenience that it provides for patients . And while that is true , integrating it in practice requires professionals to also ensure ongoing quality of care and patient privacy .
While there are certain aspects of eye care that can be done quite well using teleoptometry , and certain situations ( think of people in remote communities who don ’ t enjoy the same access as those in urban settings ), it doesn ’ t accommodate everything that happens during an in-person visit , which is why an in-person eye examination still remains the gold standard for the majority of eye care diagnoses and treatments . OP
34 OPTICAL PRISM | November 2021