Artificial Intelligence: Will It Have a Major Impact On Eyecare?

Practice, Resources, Technology

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Artificial intelligence is unlikely to produce a robo-eye-doc who will replace you, but it is likely to add a new dimension to the service we can provide to our patients.

AI-Powered Patient History Interview
I can foresee a future in which AI will be able to talk with patients about their reason for their visit when they book their appointment online. Advanced AI systems, with voice activation, would be able to talk to patients to take a case history, gathering the important information, analyzing it and then providing the doctor with a preliminary finding, which the doctor can explore in greater detail when the patient comes in for an in-person appointment.

 Click the image above to view two videos on how artificial intelligence might impact eyecare from a presentation given at the 11th Annual VM Global Leadership Summit that took place at Vision Expo East 2017.

Before the Patient Ever Gets to Office

When the patient makes an appointment, AI technology could take information-finding to the next level. The patient would not just fill out a form online prior to their visit detailing their health history and eyecare needs. It would provide an interactive interview.

The system would have a “voice” that would ask the patient questions, such as family history of eye diseases like macular degeneration and glaucoma, and then would ask the next question based on the response it received. For instance, if the patient said “yes” to having a family history of a particular eye disease, the system would then ask which relative(s) in their family had the disease.

Or the system might ask the patient if they participate in sports, and then if the patient said “yes,” the system might ask the patient to say which sport. Then, the system might ask the patient if they were interested in learning more about the sports sunwear the practice sells specifically for that sport.

The key to effectiveness will be the ability of the doctor and optical staff to sit down together and come up with the most helpful questions to input into the system to ask. It’s like the old saying, “garbage in, garbage out.” AI systems are, by definition, “intelligent,” but not so intelligent that they don’t require the inputting of the right information to use as foundation for its interaction with patients.

Click the image above to watch Andy Karp of Vision Monday and 20/20 magazine share his preview of new and emerging technology presented at the 2017 Consumer Electronics Show.

Lay the Groundwork for a More Productive Visit
Before the patient gets to the office, the transcript, in both written and recorded form, would be sent to the patient’s EHR file, with the eyewear-related information sent to opticians.

In addition to giving the doctor detailed information about family history that they could use to ask more informed questions of the patient, opticians would get a jump start on the sales process. They would know ahead of time to have a tray of sunwear specific to that patient’s favored sport ready to show them during their visit.

Interactive Displays in the Optical
The opticians will be better armed with information about each patient’s needs, and the displays themselves could “talk” to patients.

A patient could pick up a frame to try on, and when they pick it up, and when they put it back on the board, an AI system could say: “We have that frame in other colors” or “If you liked that frame, you may also be interested in X frame.”

The system could have an “Ask me a Question” button for every section of the frame board in which the patient can ask questions about the merchandise like they would type a question into Google, and then the system would either give a response or summon an optician to answer the question.

Data Interpretation Help
Diagnostic equipment produces data that historically the doctor reviewed and interpreted. AI would be able to analyze the data and would provide the doctor with a working diagnosis and treatment plan.

AI might be able to run more in-depth analysis on the data than a human doctor could. AI may be better at looking at images than a human doctor both in terms of speed and precision. This would lead to better patient outcomes and the ability to process patients more efficiently.

For example, fundus imaging. AI would be able to track subtle changes to blood vessels, optic nerves and retinal lesions over time. AI would be able to alert the doctor to these changes earlier. This is essential as early intervention often leads to better patient outcomes.

Boost Marketing Efforts
AI would be able to tap into your EHR data and look for marketing opportunities. It would then be able to generate marketing content to take advantage of that information, and would be able to tell you the ideal channels to broadcast those marketing messages based on information stored in the system on what’s worked best in promotion efforts for your practice and other practices.

You and your staff can already use your EHR to mine data to use for marketing your products and services. What AI offers is a helping hand doing that work. Rather than you having to search for, and then look through the data, yourself, an AI system could do that work for you. It might be able to automatically conduct searches for marketing opportunities, and then analyze the data on its own, to let you know, without searching yourself, of needed products and services that your patients may not be receiving as much of as they should be.

This kind of advanced, data-driven marketing would help build practices. Patients would more easily be given marketing messages that were most relevant to them.

How Expensive Will This Technology Be?
With all the great promise of AI technology, a question still remains of how costly it will be to purchase and implement.

It may be that as the technology emerges, it will be prohibitive for all but the biggest, and most profitable, practices, but that five-to-10 years after its widespread availability, it will become affordable for smaller practices.

The important point is to be aware of the coming opportunities to better serve our patients–and to develop plans to eventually optimize that technology so patients are better served, and our practices get a springboard to growth and profitability.

Have you thought about the role AI could play in our practices? What ideas do you have of how you could use this technology in your own practice?

 

 

JUSTIN BAZAN, OD

is the owner of Park Slope Eye in Brooklyn, N.Y. To contact him: dr.bazan@parkslopeeye.com.

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Tips to Generate Positive Referrals from Friends & Family

Digital Marketing, Marketing, Resources

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Generating positive referrals from patients is a key to practice growth. Since the inception of our practice in 1969, referrals of family and friends have been the greatest contributors to new patient growth.

Measure to Improve
Like any other marketing technique, measuring and quantifying is a must. Measuring enables us to see what works and what does not work. In the case of referrals, specifying who referred a new patient to our practice lets us further develop our “referral tree.”

Certain patients, whom I refer to as “mover and shakers,” will always be more likely to refer than others. Having a feel for this can help us and our staff cater our language and diction to capture more referrals, especially from our more vocal mover and shaker patients.

Consider a 1.4 million gross revenue per year. Average revenue of $350 per patient with 10% attrition = $140,000 or roughly 400 patients in loss.

We currently average five new patients a week: 5 patients x 52 weeks = 260 new patients x $350 = $91,000 in growth.

We can break this down further. Let’s say we have a mover and shaker patient who loves our practice, and gives us five new patient referrals a year (and in fact we have multiple patients that do this). And then let’s say we have a patient who is warm to the practice, but not as passionately supportive, who may give us one new patient referral a year.

Considering our average per patient in our area is about $350, if we have five patients generating five referrals each, that results in 25 new patients. So, 25 x $350 =$8,750 in extra revenue growth.

To get that growth with our other patients, we would need 25 non-mover and shaker patients to refer an average of one new patient. In addition, these patients would need significantly more resources invested into them to get that “push” to refer vs. our mover and shaker patients who only need the regular excellent service and care we give.

With that math in mind, you can see how quantifying and qualifying your referral sources is much more efficient and effective than blanket-marketing campaigns.

The thank-you letter Dr. Neufeld sends to patients after comprehensive exams. He says sending this type of letter encourages referrals.

Impress Patients with Service
We shy away from signage or incentives for referrals. In our opinion, this appears superficial, and thus, we believe patients may view it as superficial as well.

The process of making a good impression starts the second the patient enters our practice. The tone of our receptionist’s voice, the tidiness of the reception area, and the overall ambience of the practice instantly starts to mold the patient experience. This then continues into the exam room.

In fact, the experiences at the front desk, in the exam room, and in the optical, are paramount for satisfying the patient and starting the referral engine. If I have a pleasant patient (which tends to be the majority of my patients), I often mention that I would love to see more individuals like themselves, such as friends and family. I try to link a personal attribute to this, whether it be the ability to consistently arrive on time, pleasantness, or an interesting personality. Our opticians also will often compliment patients who are easy to work with, or have great taste in optical wear, saying that they wish to see more individuals like the patient.

Incentivizing a patient to refer comes down to appealing to the patient. This stems from allowing the patient to develop a deep appreciation for your services and you as an individual. Once this is established, referrals become second nature and nearly unconscious. To do this, both the staff and practitioners must regard the patient as the highest entity, and center their actions on the patient’s welfare. Most important in this – the patient must be aware that this is how the doctor feels about them.

We feel that generating a deep-seeded appreciation for our services and products produces the most genuine reaction from patients. Referrals “from the heart” are more likely to follow through. More so, we believe that incentivizing through discounts or free material may actually hinder an organic progression of referral due to its “gimmicky” nature.

Dale Carnegie’s “How to Win Friends and Influence People” and Robert Cialdini’s “Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion” are two fantastic books that I recommend every private practitioner read. Understanding the psychological science of how an individual develops fondness and appreciation for another is pertinent in developing a consistent patient who will bring their family and friends to see you.

Ask Patients to “Like” Your Practice Facebook Page
We have invited many of our patients and friends to like our Facebook page. We try to post updates twice a week on social media. Most of our updates are informative in nature or relate to community service. We have found that this style of social media posting (rather than just straight advertising) is most likely to inspire a positive interaction and get shared.

As with our other marketing tactics, we measure by survey how many patients we have seen who heard about our practice through Facebook. We have found that boosting informative posts has helped us gain new patients from social media. We recently had a new patient explain that she viewed us as the “most competent eye doctors in the neighborhood” because of the amount of informative material we publish on social media.

About 90 percent of posts are informative in the sense that they give education on eye conditions, eye health, ophthalmic materials or trivia related to optometry. A little less than 10 percent of our posts focus on local community service such as our work with the Rotary Club. By sending messages from both the educational and community service front, we believe that we can project a more well-rounded sense of caring and expertise to our audience

Send Welcome-to-the-Practice Letters
I send a “Welcome to the Practice” letter to every new patient whom we see. Many patients will respond, and a few have even come back in to tell me how nice and personal the letter was.

Turn Frame Selection Into Referral Generation
Our opticians ask the patient if they would like a family/friend “frame consultant,” when a patient is shopping for frames. This can happen one of two ways:

PUT FRAMES ON HOLD. A few frames are put on hold for the patient, and the optician tells the patient to come back with a trusted friend or family member to provide a second opinion and help make the final decision.

SEND FRAMES HOME TO DECIDE. A few frames are sent home with the patient in one of our boxes. The patient is to have a family/friend help them decide which looks the best. (If you do this, remember to always document thoroughly – we have never had a problem with loss doing this).

The frame consultant scenario enables that person to feel like they have an important role in choosing our patient’s glasses, and subsequently, their style. That transfer of authority and responsibility generates interest in our practice, and many times the person serving as a “consultant” will choose to schedule an appointment with us.

 

AARON NEUFELD, OD

is the owner of Los Altos Optometric Group in Los Altos, Calif. To contact: aneufeldod@gmail.com

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How to Retain a Star Employee Who is Wooed by a Competitor

Human Resources, Managing Others

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If you’re lucky, all of your employees are star performers. If you’re somewhat lucky, at least a few are. You may not be the only one who knows how good they are. Former employers, or others, may try hiring them out from under you.

You can hold onto a valued employee–if you have an employee-retention strategy in place, and move quickly. That strategy should include a discussion of  benefits and the expression of how much you appreciate the employee. Sometimes it’s not just about money; it’s about being appreciated, challenged and empowered.

Renegotiate & Motivate with Pay & Long-Term Growth
The first employee whom I almost lost was contacted by a previous employer. She had wanted to work for me because that former employer had under-paid her and treated her poorly. After I hired the employee, I expanded her skill-set, increasing her value both to me, and, as it turns out, others. I paid the employee to match the additional skills she acquired.

The previous office got in touch with the employee, and tried to outbid her current pay rate to get her back into their office. The employee brought this offer to me, and wanted to discuss it, because she said she would rather stay in my office. We negotiated a higher pay rate, thereby keeping her on staff.

Another employee was approached by a recruiter for an internet start-up company (not optically related). She was offered an entry-level position with full benefits. She also brought the offer to me to discuss. After discussing her future goals, we created a plan to move her into an office manager position, in which she has been fantastic.

The last employee was contacted by a headhunter hired by another group practice in the area. They contacted my optician and tried to hire her away with more money. Again, my employee came to me with the offer, and wanted to discuss it. However, there was  bait-and-switch to their offer, in which the final offer turned out to be disappointing, and ultimately, I was able to increase the employee’s pay to maintain her employment.

It Can Be Less Costly Over Time to Raise Pay & Retain
I recommend that you pay valued employees fairly, and even generously, and that you increase their pay if they receive a higher offer from another business.

Finding new staff is time-consuming and frustrating. It slows down work flow, and increases the potential for conflict, with the new employees you add not necessarily gelling as well with your other employees.

If an employee brings value to your office, you should value them in return by offering pay that reflects the revenues and contribution to patient care and service that they deliver. A great optometrist once told me: “Hire slow, fire fast.” I’ve carried that adage with me throughout my career, and it’s always been advice that I wish I had followed better.

Prevent Poaching Attempts With Generous Benefits
I learned that it is of paramount importance that you work toward offering a full panel of benefits to employees (401K matching program, insurance matching, profit sharing). It’s important to remember that the talented people you hire, and profit from, have many other opportunities in the job market. Your pay and benefits package needs to reflect that you understand that they can go elsewhere.

Create an Open-Door/Open-Dialog Culture
I never would have gotten the chance to keep my employees from leaving if they hadn’t felt comfortable enough with me to directly discuss the offers they had received.

If these employees hadn’t felt they were able to talk to me as both a respected friend, as well as an employer, they may not have felt secure enough to discuss with me. You always want to maintain a professional air with employees, but you never want them to feel that you are an authority figure they can’t share work-related struggles and aspirations with. When an employee joins the practice, it’s helpful to emphasize that you welcome ongoing conversations about their feelings working for your practice, and that you want to hear any suggestions they could offer on how you could help them do their job better, or be more happy at work.

It also helps to demonstrate in all your interactions with employees that you are the type of boss who has the patience to listen silently and then discuss in a helpful, how-about-this manner, rather than moving immediately into argument-and-debate mode. The productive, pleasant conversations my employees have had with me over the years led them to feel secure that if they explained the offers they had received, I could discuss it with them in a non-confrontational, non-argumentative, manner, and that I could even be helpful to them.

With that framework of trust laid, I was able to amicably talk through the offers they had received, and point out inconsistencies and downsides.

I learned that recruiters can be deceptive in their offers, or at least what they make their offers sound like. The headhunter who tried to snag my optician quoted crazy-high numbers initially, and then when my optician spoke with her potential new employer’s office manager about pay and benefits, she got a totally different story. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Set Goals With Employees: Show Them Long-Term Picture
It is helpful to set goals for employees, so they have something they are working toward. Rather than focusing solely on performance reviews, I like to talk in terms of goal-setting. It’s nice to have something to strive for, and look forward to.

For example, you might find that a back-office employee is interested in learning about opticianry, and eventually would like to move into a sales role, or you may find that an optician would like to transition to a supervisory role, such as office manager. It’s important to not just note the state of an employee’s work performance, but what their dream position in the practice would be, if it’s not the one they currently have.

I have set out goals for certain employees to move into management positions. They are aware of this, and it gives them something exciting to work toward.

Offer Help Achieving Certifications
Growth opportunities are only available commensurate with the growth of the practice. Until your practice gets to a certain size you may not be able to offer much growth other than financially. Certifications are a great way to motivate staff, and to offer more money for completion. I offer to reimburse staff for certification costs but only if they pass their testing. They are to pay for it upfront, and then will get reimbursed with an extra bonus once they show proof of passing.

Observe Level of Employee Engagement
Employee engagement is easy to observe–as long as you are paying attention to your practice. The practice owners who shift into cruise control, and act like bystanders, are the ones who won’t notice disengagement until it’s too late, and the best employees have left.

I like to explore new ways of improving our office, and I take a proactive role in discussing my ideas with staff, and hearing their ideas. We have weekly office meetings in which I have employees engage in learning activities and discussions.

I buy lunch for the whole staff during our weekly meetings, and we discuss challenges and examples of work well done from the previous week, along with new work systems we could implement, technologies we could be using better, and technology we may want to add to the office. Everyone is encouraged to speak freely with any idea they may have.

Encourage Learning Experiences Inside & Outside Your Office
I encourage shadowing to learn more about our profession in the offices of other healthcare practices we co-manage with and send patients to for consults. Employees whose minds are kept engaged with new information and experiences are less likely to become bored and restless. Encouraging employees to shadow in offices, such as that of eye surgeons, also benefits your own practice and patients, with employees able to better educate patients in what to expect when sent for a procedure like cataract surgery.

 

CASEY PACKER, OD

is a certified optometric glaucoma specialist and therapeutic optometrist, and owner of Lone Star Eye, in Austin, Texas. To contact him: docpacker@gmail.com

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Find Efficiencies in Toric Prescribing

Practice, Products | Services | Industry News, Resources

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When was the last time a patient phoned you up and asked you, “I was wondering if you could tell me the difference between BLINK STABILIZED® Design and prism-ballast design and how that potentially affects the stability of my vision in eccentric positions of gaze?” It’s been a while, right? But why don’t astigmatic patients ask this question when inconsistency of vision with traditional toric lenses is historically one of the main reasons why they struggle with wearing contact lenses?  The reason is people don’t know what they don’t know. BLINK STABILIZED® Design may be established technology to you but for your patient, if explained properly, it could be just the change that takes them from merely surviving with contact lenses to thriving.  Sharing education about unique innovational EYE-INSPIRED™ Designs will make you the essential link between technology and better dynamic visual performance for your patients.  The opportunity to let them know what you know, awaits you if you open the door by asking the right question: How consistent is your vision with your existing toric contact lenses?
-Kent Prete, OD, Calgary Alberta

With a design that is easy to fit and quick to stabilize, ACUVUE® Brand Contact Lenses with BLINK STABILIZED® Design can help your patients consistently see their best.

For the past 10 years, ACUVUE® Brand Contact Lenses for patients with astigmatism, including 1-DAY ACUVUE® MOIST Brand Contact Lenses for ASTIGMATISM and ACUVUE OASYS® Brand Contact Lenses for ASTIGMATISM, have relied on BLINK STABILIZED® Design to satisfy patient needs.

It’s more than just a catchy marketing term. BLINK STABILIZED® Design was inspired by the anatomy of the eyelids and their dynamic interaction with a contact lens during blinks. Scientists used high speed photography to better understand the lens-lid interaction and figure out how to use it as a force for good—stabilizing and repositioning the lens with every blink.

The result was a completely unique design that has four “active zones” or points of stabilization on the outer central periphery, and a minimal pressure zone under each lid. Symmetrical weighting limits the influence of gravity—and that is critical to how astigmatic patients experience these lenses in their daily activities.

Real-World Vision
Prism- or peri-ballasted lenses can perform well in the exam lane when the patient is upright and looking straight ahead, but these gravity-dependent designs are challenged by eye and head movements outside the office. When the head is tilted 90˚ degrees, for example, to align a golf ball or look under a bed, gravity-dependent lenses rotate about 2.5 times more than BLINK STABILIZED® Design lenses do.¹ BLINK STABILIZED® Design lenses have also been shown to provide greater stability than prism-ballasted lenses for large versional tasks such as looking at the rearview mirror and then back at the road while driving.²

These benefits help patients achieve consistent vision throughout the day, making them less vulnerable to visual discomfort and contact lens dropout.

Avoiding Prism
Due to their uneven thickness, toric lens designs that rely on prism- or peri-ballast can have residual prism in the optic zone. My colleagues and I measured the mean vertical prism in  the central 6.0mm zone of eight commercially available soft  toric lenses.

Lenses with BLINK STABILIZED® Design had virtually no vertical prism. The other seven lenses had mean vertical prism ranging from 0.5 ∆ to 1.2 ∆.³

This may be particularly undesirable for patients who wear a toric lens in only one eye. Eye Care Professionals should be aware that an imbalance in vertical prism may create or exacerbate disturbances in binocular vision function.

The Eye Care Professional Experience
Not only can BLINK STABILIZED® Design offer a better patient experience, it also makes it easy to fit
astigmats. ACUVUE® Brand lenses with this design are symmetrical, so they are easy to fit and settle quickly, within 3 minutes. With a high first-fit success rate and wide parameter coverage (more than 98% of spherical and astigmatic eyes can be accommodated by the stock prescription ranges of 1-DAY ACUVUE® MOIST Brand and ACUVUE OASYS® Brand), you can be confident that BLINK STABILIZED® Design lenses will help you meet the needs of your astigmatic patients.

BLINK STABILIZED® Design

  • Quick to settle—in just 3 minutes
  • Symmetrical weighting makes lenses quick to settle with each  insertion and helps keep them  stable during blinking
  • Eye/head movements minimally affect rotational stability
  • Available in reusable and daily disposable ACUVUE® Brand Lenses for ASTIGMATISM to suit a wide range of patient lifestyle and ocular needs

References
1. McIlraith R, Young G, Hunt C. Toric lens orientation and visual acuity in non-standard conditions. CLAE 2010; 33 (1): 23-26.
2. Zikos GA, Kang SS, Ciuffreda KJ, et al. Rotational stability of toric soft contact lenses during natural viewing conditions. Optom Vis Sci 2007;84:1039-45.
3. Sulley A, Hawke R, Lorenz KO, et al. Resultant vertical prism in toric soft contact lenses. Cont Lens Anterior Eye 2015;38(4):253-7.

ACUVUE® Brand Contact Lenses are indicated for vision correction. As with any contact lens, eye problems, including corneal ulcers, can develop. Some wearers may experience mild irritation, itching or discomfort. Lenses should not be prescribed if patients have any eye infection, or experience eye discomfort, excessive tearing, vision changes, redness or other eye problems. Consult the package insert for complete information. Complete information is also available from Johnson & Johnson Vision Care division of Johnson & Johnson Inc., by calling 1-800-267-5098 or by visiting acuvueprofessional.ca.

ACUVUE®, ACUVUE OASYS®, 1-DAY ACUVUE® MOIST, EYE-ISNPIRED™ and BLINK STABILIZED® are trademarks of Johnson & Johnson, Inc.

©Johnson & Johnson, Inc. 2016

Dr. Hamada is Associate Director, Professional Affairs for Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Inc.

 

This article is sponsored by J&J Vision Care Canada.

 

WESLIE M. HAMADA, OD, FAAO

Dr. Hamada is Associate Director, Professional Affairs for Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Inc.

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Awesome Customer Experience is a Journey Worth Taking

Differentiation | Business Strategy, Human Resources, Practice, Training & Onboarding

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At our practice in Fredericton, NB, achieving excellence in customer experience does not happen by accident, nor does it automatically happen by simply hiring friendly staff. It starts with an overarching philosophy on the customer experience, being open to change, and availing ourselves of the many training opportunities provided by our partners and others.

Don’t Sell, Educate and Provide Solutions
Every person who enters our clinic or optical area is looking for a solution and education to protect or improve their vision. Every encounter we have with a patient, be it on the phone, online or in the office, influences this customer experience. Having our team trained and consistently motivated to provide these solutions and to exceed expectations is the only way to create an awesome customer experience.

Our Team will tell you that we help people solve problems and fulfill their needs. We try not to just see to their vision needs but to really get to know people and find out what they require to optimize their visual experience in the world. Sometimes the absolute best solution is more than what their pocketbook can afford, but we pride ourselves on having options available for all budgets. As independents, we have a vast array of product options available and the professional and staff expertise to deliver; not always the case at retailers and box stores.

Training is Empowerment
Knowledge is power, and we give our team every opportunity for training. These opportunities may come from a third party outside the industry, from our buying group or from specific industry partners and suppliers. Providing those opportunities to our staff is incredibly important, as training serves to empower them to use their depth of knowledge and provide great customer service.

Don’t overlook the opportunities that are available to your team through your key suppliers. Each and every training session or customer experience can provide a new insight or action item.  Arranging those opportunities is incredibly important. Essilor Canada offered our practice a Customer Journey Engineering program which we were able to benefit from. It was very comprehensive and didn’t require us to shut down the office or invest a lot of money.

Customer Journey Engineering
Our local Essilor Training and Development Consultant arranged a full 360⁰ practice assessment involving the entire team through their Customer Journey Engineering program.

Click Here to learn more about the Customer Journey Engineering program provided by Essilor Canada.

The consultant spent a lot of time within the practice doing things that I just hadn’t taken the time to do. She sits in on every step of the customer journey listening, observing, and analyzing from the patient’s point of view. She also sits in our waiting room and uses all her senses to observe what people are experiencing when they walk through our door. She provides a report on specific improvement areas and training requirements. This gave us an opportunity to view our practice from a fresh perspective that we could not achieve on our own.

Uncovering Blind Spots
One of the big things that I would not have necessarily realized, but affected how people think about our practice, was at the front desk. We have a beautiful big desk; the control center in the front office. However, the desk was a mess! I know why the desk is a mess, they are being productive and busy, but a patient seeing the desk would say, “What’s going on here?” I never thought about it that way, and didn’t see it as a problem, but that was on top of the consultant’s list to fix! We deployed strategies to move and remove items to clear the space. The Customer Journey Engineering process provided by Essilor was enlightening.

Leadership Training for Associates

We go to school for many years to get our Optometry degree and then hone our skills to become experts at taking care of people’s eyes. Then, there’s this other part of independent practice: running a business and leading a team, for which we often don’t get training.

Reflecting on my own experience of not being provided with business and leadership training, when our Associate Optometrist expressed interest in becoming a partner in our practice we took the initiative to have her do an extensive 6-month leadership program.  If you want someone to buy into your practice and they show promise, give them the tools to succeed and build confidence. Leadership training gave her insights and skills moving forward and makes it easier for her to give input in terms of practice processes and systems.

It’s a Team Approach

We try to create a positive team approach. None of it works if we are just out for ourselves. We like to try to lift our team up and educate them just as best as we can so that they can feel confident in their interactions with our patients and our customers.

We encourage our team to go the extra step, which serves to create trust. That emotional connection people develop to our practice hopefully brings them back time and time again, so we become their go-to for anything to do with their eyes or their eyewear.

I don’t think there will ever be a time when we have it all figured out and can’t learn new approaches or benefit from further training, we are all just works in progress.  The more we educate ourselves, the better we can perform for our teams and our patients.

 

This message is sponsored by Essilor Canada.

 

BRONWYN MULHERIN, OD

graduated from the University of Waterloo School of Optometry in 2004.  She practiced in several different retail and clinical settings in the Ottawa area before joining Downtown Optometry Clinic in Fredericton. She can be reached through downtownoptometryclinic.com

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Dreaming of Starting Your Own Practice?

Webinar

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Canadian Eye Care Business Review is hosting the “Start Me UP!” Webinar October 16, 8 PM.

Join a panel discussion of ODs in various stages of independent practice start-up from planning/building phase to the first
3-5 years in practice.

Hosts:
Drs. Jeff and Tina Goodhew,
Co-Editors of Canadian Eye Care Business Review will host the webinar with panelists.  

Our Panelists Include:
Dr. Laurie Capogna, Family Eye Care, Niagara Falls, ON
Dr. Michael Kreuzer, Edmonton, AB Opening January 2018
Dr. Agata Majewski, Owl Optometry, Roncesvalles(Toronto), ON
Dr. Ritesh Patel, See & Be Seen Eye Care, Liberty Village, Toronto, ON
Dr. Todd Ruhl, Flamborough Family Eye Care, Waterdown, ON

By some accounts the glory days of independent Optometry have faded, yet the dream of professional independence and practice ownership persists.  Learn from your colleagues as they share strategies, challenges and successes as they build the practice of their dreams.

Please reserve your virtual place by registering online.

There is no cost to register thanks to our Sponsors:

 

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Insight with Dr. Netan Choudhry OMD

Insights

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Dr Netan Choudhry is the co-founder/ medical director of VRMTO, which opened in April 2017

He has affiliations with both the University of Toronto and Harvard Medical Schools.

Netan is passionate about multi-modal imaging having one of the most technologically advanced

retina practices in the country. He takes part in numerous clinical trials and research projects,

all with the goal of enhancing high-quality patient care.

 

Dr. Netan Choudhry

Vitreoretinal Surgeon

B.Sc., McMaster University 2000

M.D, Medicine Georgetown University 2005

Vitreoretinal Fellowship, Massachusetts Eye & Ear Infirmary 2011

Toronto, ON

 

Why did you choose your field?

I chose a career in Ophthalmology & thereafter Vitreoretinal surgery for a number of reasons. During my training years, my mentors imparted on me many values. In particular, being precise in my diagnosis and ultimately, treating the whole patient. While we don’t treat patients’ systemic health issues in Ophthalmology, we do see the effects of many of these conditions, such as diabetes and hypertension. The field of retina interested me because so many systemic conditions affect the retina, everything from infections (ex: Tuberculosis) to autoimmune, such as Lupus and even medications.

The integration of technology into the field of Ophthalmology and particularly retina really sets it apart. Being acurated and well-read is key, as the field is changing rapidly. The combination of these elements, along with being able to take care of people both young & old, has made this profession very fulfilling for me and each day validates my decision to be a retina specialist.

What changes do you see coming down the pipe?

The field of ophthalmology & retina is changing rapidly. In fact, personalized medicine is already here. Currently, we have access to genetic testing for various retinal conditions and treatments tailored to people’s unique genetic subtype are being developed. I envision that the future will allow tailoring of therapies to patients in this way and a paradigm shift in how we approach treating retinal and other ophthalmic conditions.

What is the most exciting thing in your field to help patients?

It’s hard to answer that question and not mention anti-VEGF therapy! This has become the mainstay of our practices in treating conditions such as Wet Age-Related Macular Degeneration, Diabetic Retinopathy & Retinal Vascular diseases. Decades ago, we did not have very many options outside of laser for these conditions and would essentially watch as many patients went blind. As a physician, not being able to help patients is really a helpless feeling that none of us enjoy. The introduction of ant-VEGF has not only revolutionized our understanding of these conditions, but empowered us to save vision and in many cases, restore vision. It has forever changed how we help patients with retinal disease.

What is something you have done to set your practice apart?

I think each practice if often a reflection of the provider’s core values. As an academic retina specialist, I enjoy clinical research and scientific writing. Our practice is diverse, with a large catchment area. I have the fortunate opportunity to see people with a variety of retinal conditions from the most common to very rare. I have enjoyed learning from my patients and contributing to the scientific literature via scientific publications within the fields’ most read journals. Providing patients, the opportunity to be seen in an environment where they would have access to novel therapeutic agents through clinical trials is very rewarding as a physician and ultimately allows us to contribute to moving the field of retinal medicine forward.

Last Time You Laughed?

Two nights ago, our son Aramis came running to our room at 2:30am because he had a bad dream. “What is it? My wife (Teresa) and I asked. “A bee is trying to sting my tail!” Hard not to laugh, even though it was in the middle of the night!

Favourite Past/Time Hobby?

I enjoy cooking for my family. Since I was young, I had an interest in being in the kitchen. Whether it was cooking Christmas dinners or being challenged with a new appliance, creating interesting food for my family to enjoy, is my favourite past time. I’m currently working with an emersion circulator and slowly attempting to master sous vide cooking.

Favourite 80’s Jam?

That’s a tough one! So, much great music-for a bald guy, one of the greatest “hair-bands” was Van Halen. Jump! That was my favourite track!  

Tell me something few people know about you?

I started Dj’ing when I was 14 and carried it on for 15 years. I was in high school and was mixing hip-hop (mainly), R&B and some house music. I was fortunate enough to be on the University radio station at McMaster (93.3FM) and made mix tapes which sold at the local record shops. Over those years, I accumulated some 5000 vinyl records, learned to scratch and mix a variety of music. It was really a highlight of my younger years and I would be lying if I said I didn’t miss it!

 

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Motivating Action with Training

Human Resources, Training & Onboarding

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By Martin Lespérance, Director of Training and Development at Essilor Canada

Canadians’ shopping behaviours and visual needs are changing due to new lifestyles, younger generations entering the market, the emergence of e-commerce and the influence of social media. Consumers are expecting their purchase experience to be simple, fast, entertaining, multi-channel and personalized. As a result, this is impacting the way eye care professionals cater to their customers. They need to challenge themselves to adapt in order to attract, engage and retain these changing customers.

Essilor Canada serves close to 3,000 eye care professionals (independents, buying groups, chains) and through many interactions with them, we heard the pressing demand for training.

“We are convinced that continuing education is essential to the growth and success of our business partners and to the evolution of our industry. That is why we have chosen to increase our investment in this area,” explains Pierre Bertrand, President of Essilor Canada.

A New Vision for Training
Because we care about Canadians’ vision, Essilor Canada’s mission of Improving lives by improving sight translates into everything we do, including our trainings. We are committed to be your partner of choice by delivering innovative trainings and market insights that will empower you to grow your business and create value for you and your consumers, so that together we can help them see better, every day.

Our vision for training is that it is a two-way interaction. Benjamin Franklin said it best: “Tell me and I’ll forget, Teach me and I’ll remember, Involve me and I’ll learn.” Beyond the sharing of knowledge, our goal is to get you and your team motivated and passionate about learning so you can all maximize the application of new skills in your daily practice and see results quickly. Ultimately it is about co-creating learning, knowledge, expertise and solutions that will develop your business.

Essilor Academy Canada, Training and Development Programs for Eye Care Professionals
Essilor Canada’s trainings and development programs are now regrouped under the Essilor Academy Canada banner and are offered nationally. This initiative is based on Essilor Canada’s solid training experience, and is designed to meet the needs of eye care professionals dealing with a marketplace in flux due to new consumer expectations.

All the training and development programs combine theory with the acquisition of practical skills and know-how. Topics include sales, team management, team accountability, business development, customer journey engineering (a unique made-in-Canada program), basic optics, innovation and technology, understanding and working with generations, personalities at work, team goals and accountability, and more to come. There is also the possibility to develop on-demand customized trainings to address specific needs.

Essilor Academy Canada’s programs are provided by an outstanding training team comprised of many experienced opticians located in different provinces. This is the largest training team in the industry, dedicated to supporting eye care professionals across Canada.

Courses are offered to all eye care professionals in a variety of formats, from 30-minute online webinars and in-office trainings to large-scale events, such as the Roadshow, while some training programs like Alive Summits and Vision Summits are exclusive to Varilux Xperience partners. Many of the courses are accredited by professional associations, and the webinars are in the process of acquiring accreditation.

“I participated in the Alive Summits and it’s always amazing and rewarding to see Independent eye care professionals join forces to stay on the cutting edge of technology, to be better at what they do, so that the consumers – our patients – benefit from the latest eye-health care initiatives.”
-Dr.Diana Monea, O.D.

“I listen regularly to the webinars because they are an excellent source of information on Essilor products. They also provide very useful tips and tolls to enhance the relationships with the patients. Convenient, clear, easy to listen to, it is a good way to stay informed and updated on the latest trends”
-Dr Morggan Debeats, O.D.

Total Makeover with the Customer Journey Engineering
If you are in for a big change – and big results! – we strongly recommend that you consider embarking on the Customer Journey Engineering with us. Following an IPSOS survey conducted with consumers, we identified 7 points of engagement between you and your customers – before, during and after the appointment. Through a series of working sessions between our Training Consultants and your team, we can identify the hotspots, the opportunities and develop a customized action plan together, along with performance measurements. The results, for those who committed to this journey, have exceeded their expectations with a significative growth in revenues and greater motivation for the in-office team.

To learn more about Essilor Academy Canada training and development programs, please contact essilor.academie@essilor.ca

Photo Caption
From left to right: Martin Lespérance, Christine Rodgerson, Caroline Montreuil, Raymonde Pigeon, Nicky Saund, Julien Simoneau

 

MARTIN LESPÉRANCE

is the Director of Training and Development at Essilor Canada since 2009.

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Price: The Competitive Dimension You Cannot Ignore

Marketing, Pricing, Resources

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By Syl (Silvano) Ghirardi

Syl is a retired Industry Executive and former Optician, previously a C-Level executive with
major International vision care companies in both contact and ophthalmic lenses. Syl keeps
a keen eye on the market and is always willing to share his opinions!

The Canadian optical landscape is changing rapidly. Foreign retailers are pushing into the market. There is inexorable consolidation with independent practices selling to retailer groups. Existing optical chains are merging and the mega-merger of industry giants looms. All of this is happening concurrently, not to mention the disruptive dimensions of the digital realm.

What does it all mean, and what conclusions can be made about the future competitive environment, particularly for the independent ECP? Are these changes benign, or are they worrisome to independent eye care practitioners? If you believe the latter, what are the strategic responses? Let’s look at a few of the major changes and project their likely impact.

Foreign Encroachment on the Canadian Market
According to Retail Insider (R-I), Canada’s largest online retail industry publication, international eyewear retailers are entering Canada in unprecedented numbers. The latest, Michigan-based optical retailer SEE (Selected Eyewear Elements) with 40 US locations, opened its fist Canadian location in Toronto this summer. SEE will tout in-house designed fashion-forward styles without the haute-couture price to encourage multiple-pair sales as fashion accessories under the slogan “hip without the hype”.

The Australian banner Bailey Nelson is also entering the Canadian market in a big way, with plans for 50 new Canadian store openings in the next several years. Bailey Nelson recently (Spring 2017) opened one location in Vancouver’s high-rent retail area and promises two new Vancouver locations and one Toronto area store in the fall. Most of Bailey Nelson’s collections retail between $155 and $185 per frame SV lenses and AR coating included. UK-based Ollie Quinn entered Canada earlier this year with ten locations. Ollie Quinn simplifies the price decision for customers: every frame is $145 (online).

The strategy for each of these new entrants: simple and affordable pricing and technology-friendly ordering offer a clear appeal to the millennial market.

Domestic Players Gird for the Fight
Canadian players were certainly not sitting on their hands. Both FYidoctors and IRIS are making acquisitions of various independent practices across the country. FYidoctors have moved to enhance their Quebec presence under the “VISIQUE” banner, consolidating a newly-minted retail brand presence. In July, New Look Vision Group, which had already begun to expand its national footprint with acquisitions of Vogue, I-Vision and Visions One Hour, made its biggest leap with the announced plan to acquire the 150 store chain IRIS, The Visual Group.

Will Intensified Competition Raise the Market?
As a foundation for growth, the major players are all shoring up their brand identity to take on the retail leaders. It is not unreasonable to assume the players are girding for a battle for the hearts, minds and wallets of Canadian eyewear purchasers. While it is nice, in theory, to dream of increasing the purchase frequency by reducing the purchase cycle and selling more multiple pairs, no marketing programs so far have substantially moved the market needle in these two metrics. Market share may shift a point here and there between players, but lifting the tide for all boats to rise has proven elusive.

What is more likely to happen? Market players will engage in a battle for the patient and the prescription through two of the oldest levers in the commercial world: advertising and price. Use of these levers on a large and sophisticated commercial scale can result in extreme competitive pressures for the independent practice. Pricing promotions will bring more visibility and awareness to the price differential between retail and independents and vast omni-channel ad spending will encourage patients to take their freshly written prescriptions to the websites and stores of the leading retail brands.

Competitive Strategy is a Choice
Most marketing experts agree: price, service and quality – choose two of the three to excel and be close on the third. For independents there is, in practical terms, little choice. Small businesses that try to win on price are likely in for a very rough ride, leaving it critical to provide exceptional service and quality products to stay viable.

While the focus in most discussions is about “service” and “quality” – the third component of competitive strategy is that price must be close. What is close? While it is somewhat arbitrary, I believe in the 15% rule of thumb, e.g. a 15% competitive premium is sustainable so long as quality and service are demonstrably superior. Unfortunately, many independents are quick to ignore this advice, arguing that closing the price gap is nothing more than a trap to reduce profitability. The underlying problem being, as valued customers purchasing higher-end progressive lenses drop out, incoming new patients are insufficient in numbers and value to make up the difference.

Closing the price gap requires careful execution and maybe even disrupting the comfortable supplier relationships that you or your staff have become accustomed to. But ignore the advice at your peril!

Regardless of the answers, choosing a deliberate strategy is a critical choice in any business – no less so for eye care professionals, where over 50% of revenue is still derived from dispensing eyewear. If a significant proportion of customers are walking out, script in hand, and looking for eyewear elsewhere, a strategic rethink and asking yourself hard questions about pricing is an imperative.

 

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Promote Plano Sunwear to Capture Sales Year-Round

Differentiation | Business Strategy, Practice, Products | Services | Industry News, Resources

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Editors Note:

According to VisionWatch Canada (published by The Vision Council) reports, 87% of US consumers wear plano sunglasses, versus only 62% in Canada, a significant difference. It is not a seasonal aberration. The 62% penetration level has held fairly steady through each of the four seasons, since the VisionWatch Canada data started tracking data in 2014.

Learn more, read the  C’MON, EH! CANADIAN SUNGLASS WEAR LAGS BEHIND! article.

Plano sun may jump out at you as a summer-based sales opportunity, but as we head into fall, it’s important to remember, it’s a year-round chance to protect your patients’ eyes while boosting optical revenues.

Sunwear offers a dual opportunity: protect eyes from ultra-violet radiation and blue light, while enabling the wearer to have fun making a style statement. How many fashion pieces offer the wearer both health benefits and style savvy?

Source: VisionWatch, The Vision Council

But despite this great opportunity, many independent optometric practices are still missing out on plano sun sales. The top sellers of plano sunwear, according to The Vision Council’s VisionWatch statistics are sunglass specialty shops, followed by drug/grocery/mass/warehouse clubs, department and specialty stores, optical chains, and sporting goods stores. After all those sellers, come independent opticals, capturing $155 million in sales of plano sunwear in the first quarter of 2017.

Compare that to the $1,703.6 million in plano sun sales captured by sunglass specialty stores. The only plano sun sellers tracked by VisionWatch that ranked lower than independent opticals were flea markets/street vendors.

To help turn that sales-losing trend around, I spoke to my optician friends, and together we came up with this list of plano sun sale promotions and marketing strategies that work:

Discount for Contact Lens Annual Supply Buyers: Offer “25% off non-prescription sunglasses with purchase of a year supply of contact lenses.”

Market to LASIK Patients: “Same-day discount on sunwear for LASIK patients.”

Advertise Wide Inventory: “We sell 150+ sunglasses in our office, and we offer the service of cleaning and free adjustments. Stop back by every 3-4 months for tune-ups to make sure your sunglasses fit comfortably. Purchasing sunglasses from us means also purchasing high-quality customer service.”

Promote Memorable Optical Displays: Post photos of your sunglasses on display in your optical on Facebook and Instagram, with a message like: “Check out our ‘Wall of Sunglasses.’ Drop by and find your perfect pair.”

Offer Superior UV Protection. “Do you know if your sunglasses protect your eyes from the sun? If you buy from us, we guarantee UV protection. Know what you’re getting–and protect your vision.”

Prescribing in the Exam Room Means Selling in the Optical
Let’s back it up to the exam room. Knowing your patients’ sports, hobbies, the amount of driving they do in a week, travel patterns, dry eye problems, sensitivities to sunlight, and their personal style, is the first step. Uncovering those personal details, and prescribing accordingly, makes your optician’s job easier.

Prescribing sunwear should never be about selling; it should be about presenting solutions and improving lives. When you invite a conversation about the patient’s biking, golf game, love of hiking or fly fishing adventures–whatever takes them outside and on the road or trails–you are showing the patient that your prescription is a customized solution, especially for them.

Suggest a Sunwear Demo in Hand-Off
When you hand-off to your optical staff, suggest a demo of the lenses you have prescribed, such as a polarized pair of sunglasses for driving, or a wraparound pair for golf.

Train Staff to Speak Like Plano Sun Experts
Have you had a sunglasses meeting to be sure all your staff is on the same page about selling sunwear? Are you absolutely sure your staff has expert knowledge of tints, ideal lens color choices for sports and other technical details?

Tints. Opticians should be conversant about the benefits of the many different tints of sun lenses. They should be able to match the ideal tint with the patient’s favorite outdoor hobbies and sports.

Driving Sunwear. Be sure opticians can discuss how the right pair of “drivewear” sunglasses can make accidents less likely, and can make the experience of driving safer and more comfortable. Point out the benefits of polarized sunglasses in deflecting glare while on the road, and how polarized lenses compare to photochromatic lenses like Transitions.

Impact resistance. Prepare staff to explain to patients why it’s important that their sunwear be able to withstand impact, and how high-quality sunwear meets FDA standards for impact resistance.

Wraparound protection. The optician should be able to explain how wraparound protection offers a greater UV shield to the eyes, preventing UV rays from getting in at the sides of the eyes.

Blue light protection. Opticians should be educated about what harmful blue light is, and why sunwear that protects against both UV radiation, in addition, to blue light, is important.

Editor’s Note: Comparison of Canadian and American Plano Sunwear Market

 

 

 

 

Source: VisionWatch Canada Q1 2017, The Vision Council

Learn more about the 2017 Canadian Market Overview. Data provided by VisionWatch Canada, distributed by VuePoint IDS with consent of the Vision Council. 

 

 

COLLEEN HANNEGAN ABOC CPO

is a licensed optician, and owner of Spirited Business Advisor, a consultancy that works with small businesses, including independent eyecare practices, on how best to serve customers and generate profitability. To contact her: colleenhannegan@yahoo.com

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