Most survey respondents reluctant to purchase eye wear online

ANAHEIM, Calif. – A survey conducted among Canadian residents indicated a strong sense of loyalty to practitioners and concern over ethics of shopping the Internet for eyeglasses and contact lenses.

Alisa Sivak, MA, DipEd, reported at an American Academy of Optometry-sponsored press conference that she “wanted to talk to ordinary people about what they know about eye care in Canada.”

Alisa Sivak

Twenty-five participants in seven “semi-structured group discussions” were asked why they seek eye care, how old you must be and the differences between optometrists and ophthalmologists, Sivak said.

Participants ranged in age from 18 to 71 years, with a median age of 40 years, according to the study abstract.

“One of the things that came out spontaneously in a few of the focus groups was Internet purchasing,” she said. “Fifteen of 25 respondents talked about it. The majority of people don’t purchase eye wear over the Internet either because they don’t wear it or they were reluctant.”

According to the abstract, only two respondents had direct experience with online eye wear purchasing, and another did not even know it was possible to do so.

Perceived benefits included cost and convenience (77%), and concerns included quality in product and education (54%), fitting issues (39%) and ethics (31%), the abstract stated. Respondents older than 40 years were more concerned with quality and ethics than the younger participants.

“We saw a strong sense of loyalty to the practitioner and ethics of shopping online for eye wear,” Sivak said. “In the future, we’re interested in differentiating spectacle and contact lens views and investigating role of age.” – by Nancy Hemphill, ELS, FAAO

Reference:

Sivak A. Patient views on Internet purchasing of eye wear. Presented at: American Academy of Optometry; Anaheim, Calif.; Nov. 8-12, 2016.

Disclosure:

No products were discussed that would require a financial disclosure.