Blog Vol.2, # 11. The Virtual
Eye Exam?
It is finally here, the
on-line eye exam. In the convenience of
your own home you can download an app that will perform an on-line eye test on
you. In order to cover the legalities of
this, the companies involved have included screening questions for eye health
conditions. While this could provide an
adequate prescription, few people would be well served by the stay-at-home prescription
check.
From the perspective of eye care
professionals, this is far from adequate eye care. If a patient cannot get out, or does not have
access to an eye care professional, on-line care is better than nothing in a
pinch (though there are in-home eye care options). There is no substitute for a
person-to-person, real reality eye exam.
The eye health and overall health of the patient are reviewed, as well
as the interaction between the prescription of the eyes and how well they work
together. The eye care professional takes
a history of overall and eye health and does a thorough examination of the
structures of the eye. Preventive care
is a priority. We frequently discuss
healthy life habits.
It is very surreal that we are
even having this discussion. My guess is
that people have gotten used to on-line shopping and on-line family
get-togethers and on-line everything, so why not on-line eye exams? There
is no doubt that there have been undocumented casualties during Covid due to
the reliance on on-line medical care, diagnosing and treating patients without actually
seeing them is not ideal. There is
serious risk of misdiagnosis. If there
is no other way, then we must carry on virtually, but accessibility, at least
at Burlington Eyecare, has not been a problem, except for a couple of months at
the beginning of the pandemic when we were only able to see emergencies, though
this was still in person.
My fear is that people will have
their eyes tested on-line, thinking that they have had their eyes checked, when
that has not happened. There is risk of undiagnosed, treatable conditions with
long-term consequences, not to mention I know we can do a better job with the
prescription in a real-life eye exam. Preventive
care is key; the health system works best when we are doing our part to live
healthily. This includes regular eye exams
and education on underlying conditions, risk factors, and what to do about it.
Feel free to contact us and
start a conversation in your ongoing pursuit of a healthy life.
Til next week,
the good doctor, Dr. Mark Germain, Burlington Optometrist
