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Serve your patients’ eye wear needs online
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 Michael D. DePaolis |
Virtually every day – make that every moment – we witness just how much technology impacts our very existence. We see it personally as well as professionally. Whether e-prescribing, analyzing an ocular coherence tomography scan or downloading a medical reference app, we are constantly reminded of how technology affects our practice. For the most part, we are reminded of how technology makes us better doctors.
Our patients are affected by technology in much the same way. Whether receiving an OCT scan or visiting a consumer health website, they are – for the most part – receiving better health care. This is why so many of our patients readily trust and rely on technology. It is a trend validated by the millions of consumers who turn to the Internet for health care advice and products. It is a practice among our patients who every day – make that every moment – go on-line to purchase supplements, prescription drugs, contact lenses and eyeglasses. Yes, even eyeglasses.
To an extent, we can understand certain online health care purchases. After all, is purchasing a specific brand of omega-3s online really any different than doing so at a local retailer? However, when it comes to purchasing eyeglasses in this fashion we get a little indignant. We do so for good reason. After all, isn’t there more to eyeglasses than the mere prescription? Doesn’t frame size, PD and seg height matter? Perhaps most importantly, isn’t the expertise of a dispensing eye care professional essential? Well, apparently, not as much as we think.
According to a recent Vision Council survey, approximately 12% of all patients interested in new eyeglasses use the Internet in some capacity prior to making a purchase. While this same survey reported that only 2.8% of eye wear buyers actually purchased prescription eyeglasses online, this practice is increasing annually. It is for this reason we must become more actively involved.
The good news is we have been here before. It was not long ago eye care providers dealt with this same issue with contact lenses. The availability of contact lenses online was a much-needed impetus for us to distinguish between professional services and actual product costs and to underscore the fact that contact lenses are prescription medical devices. In short, it provided us a platform to educate patients.
In much the same way, the emergence of online eyeglass sales provides us the same opportunity. Fortunately, we are not alone in this initiative. The American Optometric Association’s Safety and Compliance of Eyewear Sold Online Project Team is studying this very issue. Industry partners such as Essilor’s MyOnlineOptical.com and VSP’s Eyeconic.com are providing practitioners with options by which to participate and compete with other online vendors.
In the final analysis, we are always driven by what is best for our patients. Recognizing that certain patients prefer the comfort and convenience of shopping online, we must be there as well. Only in this fashion will our patients understand the advantages and limitations of buying eyewear online. Anything less than an active commitment on our part is not good for our patients … or our practices.