IT’S ALLERGY SEASON again: a perfect time to revisit the topic of dry eye disease treatment with your staff and patients. Addressing a common issue like dry eye syndrome can give a practice a competitive edge, generating revenue streams while boosting patient retention, word-of-mouth marketing and professional development. Clarity Vision of Apex in Apex, NC, has achieved all the above, particularly through the use of intense pulsed light (IPL) therapy.
THE IDEA
The reason for Clarity Vision’s adoption of IPL was simple, according to company president David Holler, OD. “The science behind IPL makes perfect sense — when you understand dry eye disease. It is too easy to lose patients if they [can’t]get relief from conventional treatments. We needed an advanced dry eye treatment to help this large group.”
THE EXECUTION
Onboarding the treatment has required Clarity Vision’s staff to ask more questions, Holler says. “Some patients think we just sell glasses. We all should spend an extra minute to learn more about how patients spend their time and if they have dry eye symptoms.”
The team spent a lot of time on the front end creating a dry eye protocol “that makes sense,” according to Holler — from OTC tears to IPL to punctual occlusion and more — and generating the necessary documents including informed consent forms, quote sheets and a skin-type questionnaire.
Staff are trained on all advanced treatments, including Lumenis’ OptiLIGHT. “Patients will ask our checkout person questions about IPL and also our opticians. It is important that everyone understands what our practice offers,” says Holler. “The extra training must be ongoing — especially for the individuals that are not always in that area of the practice.”
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When it comes to integrating the treatment into their patient flow, the Clarity Vision team devote routine eye exam slots primarily to refracting, dispensing of diagnostic contact lenses, and identifying individuals that need to return for more in depth investigation of disease. The advanced dry eye testing and treatment — along with other specialties like glaucoma treatment — are then handled during designated “medical visit” time slots.
While Lumenis provides a few months of marketing assistance, most of the important marketing comes from within, says Holler, with wall posters, brochures, and team members mentioning the services all proving helpful. A dedicated page on the website and social media posts have brought up the most questions from patients, he says. “Once the program gets rolling then word of mouth is the best marketing.”
THE REWARDS
Holler says the primary benefit of offering advanced dry eye disease treatment is “keeping your patients in your practice.” He adds: “Providing a solution to their symptoms garners loyalty and long-term patients returning for your services. Maintaining a level of trust from our patients for years to come generates professional satisfaction and financial rewards.”
Do It Yourself: Offer Advanced Dry-Eye Treatment
- SPREAD THE WORD. Create a marketing plan that includes internal, external, and digital marketing.
- STOCK UP. Buy all supplies needed before training starts and store it all together, advises Holler. Lumenis provides a list and asks that you have this in place before training begins.
- DON’T RUSH IT. Block off plenty of time to get the training you need with live patients, colleagues, team members, etc.
- EYES PEELED. Make sure your team knows what questions to ask during exam pretesting — and that the doctors are all trying to identify dry eye patients.
- KEEP IN MIND. Contact lens patients who switch from one brand to another may need advanced dry eye treatments or they may never find a contact they are happy with.