Philadelphia Telemedicine Glaucoma Detection and Follow-up Study: Visit 1 and Visit 2 Satisfaction Survey Results

Abstract

Purpose : To assess the satisfaction rates of participants after completing Visit 1 and Visit 2 of the Philadelphia Glaucoma Detection and Follow-up Study.

Methods : Visit 1 consists of a telemedicine eye screening followed by a comprehensive eye exam by a glaucoma specialist in the same setting (Visit 2) several months later. Recruitment is targeted at African Americans, Hispanics, and Asians over 40; adults over 65 of any ethnicity; adults over 40 with a family history of glaucoma; or adults over 40 with diabetes. A survey instrument was created by the Wills Eye research team and an evaluation firm (Westat, Inc, Bethesda, MD USA), and was administered following Visit 1 and Visit 2. The survey asked participants to rate their satisfaction with the telemedicine screening, the eye exam, its duration and convenience, the staff, and the likelihood of attending a follow-up eye exam. The surveys also asked participants to make suggestions on how to improve the eye exam in the future.

Results : This satisfaction survey was administered from 4/1/15 to 11/4/16 across 7 primary care offices and 6 Federally Qualified Health Center. Of the 1012 participants who attended Visit 1, 839 participants (83%) stated that it was very convenient to have their eye screening in their doctor’s office, and 870 (86%) said it was “highly likely” they would recommend the eye screening to friends or family members. A total of 961 (95%) participants stated that they were “highly likely” to return for their next eye exam. For the 341 participants who attended Visit 2 to confirm their diagnosis, 281 (81%) stated it was very convenient to have their follow-up eye exam in their doctor’s office. All participants (100%) stated they were very satisfied or satisfied with the staff who conducted the eye screening and eye exam at Visit 1 and Visit 2.

Conclusions : Participants were highly satisfied with glaucoma screenings occurring in their primary care office, and the convenience positively impacted their willingness to return for further eye appointments. Such findings suggest that if high-risk patients are offered eye screenings in a practice-based setting, adherence rates of eye care may improve.

This is an abstract that was submitted for the 2017 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Baltimore, MD, May 7-11, 2017.