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How Corporate Optometry allows ODs to focus on Patient Care

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Corporate optometry is a great option for ODs who want to practice optometry but do not want to feel overwhelmed by the business aspects of the job.  It is ideal both for optometrists who do not feel they have enough business experience to start their own practices and for those who simply want to focus more on the patient-centric aspect of their career.  Here are some ways that corporate optometry may allow you as an OD to focus on your patient care first and foremost.

1. Your job is to focus on the patient.

As a corporate optometrist, your main focus is to see patients without the distractions of the optical and managing staff. Focusing on the patient is what we went to school for. We don’t have to worry about competition, we can focus on our patients and use the extra time to stay up to date on the latest clinical trends. Corporate optometry allows you to see different types of patients because the volume is usually greater, thus enhancing your clinical skills seeing a wide variety of patients. his is a great way for you as an optometrist to see a wide variety of conditions such as diabetes, glaucoma, and gain experience recognizing and managing these conditions. 

2. Technology

Corporate optometry will provide you will have easier access to resources and discounts from corporate partners.  You will also be able to purchase technology a lot sooner if you are a sublease or the latest technology will be offered to you as an employee. Many young ODs are learning the latest in the eye care. Why not be able to utilize that knowledge by working in a corporate setting? Many offices have digital refracting lanes, optos, octs. Different corporate opticals have different approaches. Don’t lump all corporate opticals as the same!

Corporate optometry may be right for you if you are not interested in the daily practice management struggles that many ODs face with the optical side of the business and managing staff turnover. Retail optometry will continue to grow over the next 10 years. Find which corporate optical is right for you and your career goals.

GROWING YOUR SUBLEASE OD PRACTICE WITH OCULAR TELEHEALTH

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Ocular telehealth—providing on-demand comprehensive eye exams using remote digital connections— is a new concept in corporate optometry. The rapid development of new technologies is creating opportunities for sublease doctors–and providing greater access and better outcomes for patients.

Among the different flavors of ocular telehealth is a model that includes a B2B in-store/practice comprehensive eye exam. The exam begins when an on-site optical assistant collects the patient’s medical and ocular history and performs objective pre-testing and a series of eye health tests such as ocular alignment and motility, [pupil function, color vision, and visual field testing to measure peripheral vision. Following those tests, a remote certified technician subjectively refracts the patient via live video. The resulting exam data and images are then securely forwarded to a remote licensed optometrist for clinical evaluation and the results are discussed with the patient via live video.

Because this new model leverages advances in technology to provide comprehensive testing— and it relies on a licensed eyecare provider—the standard of care is equivalent to that of an in- person exam. In fact, in some ways, the standard of care is enhanced through the use of new technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) that make it possible to enhance retinal images to allow for early detection of eye diseases like diabetic retinopathy.

“AI is a very big thing,” says Chad Overman, OD, clinical advisor for 20/20NOW and former director of professional relations for Walmart Vision Centers. “ AI enhances retinal images in never-before-possible ways to increase the sensitivity and efficacy of exams, and enables eyecare providers to diagnose ocular medical conditions with greater confidence.” The 20/20NOW platform implements EyelogicTM, the company’s AI technology designed to assist doctors in diagnosing diabetic retinopathy in its early stages.

4 WAYS TELEHEALTH CAN GROW YOUR BUSINESS

For eyecare providers that sublease space at optical retail locations , ocular telehealth provides unique opportunities to expand their practice. Here are four important ways it can open the door to additional patients and provide better productivity:

1. OPEN NEW SUBLEASE LOCATIONS. Eyecare providers are always seeking ways to

increase their revenue. Telehealth makes it possible to support adding a new sublease location without the need to staff it with a full-time doctor on-site. By using telehealth, patients in your satellite location can be seen remotely, by either yourself or a 20/20NOW doctor. So, you’re able to conduct exams at more than one location, thus increasing your productivity while expanding your practice’s reach.

2. INCREASE PRODUCTIVITY AT YOUR CURRENT LOCATION. Telehealth can help you

increase productivity and patient volume at your existing location. By adopting a telehealth model, you can open a second exam lane without the cost of adding a second in-person doctor at your location, and/or expand your hours of operations. Because telehealth exams are provided on demand you’ll always have a second doctor available to support overflow and walk-in patients.

3. SERVE PATIENTS WHILE YOU’RE AWAY. Telehealth makes it possible for you to serve patients while you’re away from the office. 20/20NOW’s doctor can provide exam services to patients while you’re on vacation or attending a CE training program—even on weekends or evenings when you’re not physically there.

4. SERVE PATIENTS BETTER. By taking over some of the more time-consuming, routine components of eye exams, telehealth can free you up to do what you really want to do—spend more time with patients and address their medical needs. You’ll serve more patients in a shorter amount of time, while increasing care quality and patient satisfaction.

Telehealth promises to continue to serve as a powerful platform for providing comprehensive eye health exams and for building patient volume and revenues at corporate sublease practices. “Optical telehealth solutions like 20/20NOW are truly the future of optical retail,” says Dr. Overman. “For ODs operating from corporate sublease locations, it will be a great way to increase revenues and lower costs. More important, it will improve quality of care and patient outcomes.”

HIPAA and Sign-in Sheets

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Richard Hom as #Tips4EyeDocs – HIPAA and Sign-in Sheets

Doctors invariably use sign-in forms or computer tablets/terminals to identify patients for appointments or walk ins. Typically, the sign-in form may lie near the reception desk where the patient first engages the office. The question is how much liability to HIPAA violations do sign in sheets expose doctors.

According to CFR 45 CFR 164.502(a)(1)(iii), doctors “may use sign-in sheets or call out patients in waiting rooms, so long as the information disclosed is appropriately limited. Furthermore, HIPAA explicitly permits this, but it should not include any other information about the patient’s medical background.[1]

Unfortunately, the opinions vary on what is potential medical information to be released. There is a possibility that the specialization of the doctor may already by too much information and may expose a doctor to a complaint for a breach. [2] For instance, if there is a space for “reason for visit”, this may exceed the minimum information necessary to identify a patient. The permitted entries are: date, name, arrival and appointment times who the appoint is with.[3]

In summary, use a sign in sheet and call the patient from the reception area. However, limit what you say in public.

 

References

[1] N.a. “Code of Federal Regulations.” Gpo.gov. 7 Jun. 2016. Web. 15 Dec. 2017. <https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CFR-2003-title45-vol1/xml/CFR-2003-title45-vol1-sec164-502.xml>
[2] Ferran, T. “Are Patient Sign In Sheets HIPAA Compliant?.” Blog.securitymetrics.com. 14 Dec. 2017. Web. 15 Dec. 2017. <http://blog.securitymetrics.com/2014/08/sign-in-sheets.html>
[3] Touchstone Compliance. “What the HIPAA Privacy Rule Says about Patient Sign-In Sheets.” Touchstone Compliance. 7 Feb. 2015. Web. 15 Dec. 2017. <https://wwwhttps://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CFR-2003-title45-vol1/xml/CFR-2003-title45-vol1-sec164-502.xml.touchstonecompliance.com/what-the-hipaa-privacy-rule-says-about-patient-sign-in-sheets/>