There’s an app for that!

Technology infiltrates just about every part of our lives. While too much can have negative consequences, particularly on the eyes, tech also holds the power to transform how we work and play for the better. When it comes to your optometry business, the right technology can not only enhance your workflow but allow you to better serve your patients, from testing to education to eyewear choice. The following popular eyecare-related apps – a few for you and some for your patients – are either free or available at minimal cost.

Optometrist and DO apps

Embrosa – It can be a real struggle to find the time to effectively market your business. There’s a minefield of tasks to undertake to both inform and grow your audience online. Embrosa, a social media support app, is described by developer Design Eyewear Group as a marketing agency on your smartphone. It allows you to freely use branded content across your customer touchpoints while incorporating handy post-scheduling and personalisation functionality to save you even more time.

Eye Handbook – There comes a point in every optometrist’s career where a patient’s condition stumps them. If you’ve yet to experience yours, the Eye Handbook app might be your saviour. This quick reference guide for various eye conditions and treatments includes a wide range of information covering everything from basic anatomy and physiology to in-depth discussions on glaucoma and macular degeneration. It also features eye calculators, downloadable patient-education videos and journal portals, plus eye testing, practice efficiency and coding tools.

OCTaVIA – Sticking with the reference theme, the OCTaVIA (optical coherence tomography visual atlas) app is a great resource for practitioners as well as any students in your employ. It contains a host of high-quality photos and descriptions of OCTs of healthy and not-so-healthy retinas to assist with diagnoses.

Smart Optometry – When it comes to eye screening and diagnostics, Smart Optometry seems to have its finger on the pulse. Suitable for both smartphones and tablets, this interactive app contains 15 eye tests, such as colour vision, Hirschberg and Aniseikonia, as well as a vertex and visual acuity conversion calculator. Programmed for 11 languages, it also removes a communication barrier.

OpTranslate – Should your practice catchment contain a diverse population, you might find Ocular Media’s tool useful. This app can translate the entire eye exam, including case history, binocular vision testing and diagnosis explanations, into 12 languages.

A few more clever diagnostic apps are:

eyeTilt – the name is fairly self-explanatory!
9 Gaze – for eye motility and strabismus
Paragon CRT Lens Calculator – quickly and accurately calculates a patient’s optimal corneal refractive therapy (CRT) lens parameters

While the IAPB eye health technology guide is not an app, it’s worth a mention for anyone who struggles to understand the ins and outs of eyecare technology. It aims to help people better understand and critically analyse eyecare technology and be comfortable engaging with it in their work. It could be useful for a range of stakeholders, including clinicians, and funders and manufacturers of emerging eye-health tech.

Handy apps for your patients

Seeing AI – Promoted as a talking camera for the blind, Microsoft’s Seeing AI can help patients read documents, money, identify friends, family and objects, as well as scan barcodes. One customer review described it as “a Swiss Army knife for blind people”.

Eye Patient – Patients with eye conditions require a fair amount of education and ongoing management. Eye Patient is aimed at this population, with plenty of information about common conditions such as red eyes, dry eyes, cataracts and diabetic retinopathy.

Chromatic Vision Simulator – A useful tool for those experiencing a colour vision deficiency, the Chromatic Vision Simulator app can be particularly helpful to demonstrate paediatric colour vision conditions to parents, giving them an insight into how their child sees the world.

VisionUp Eye Fitness – This app contains a series of exercises designed to improve eye muscle strength and flexibility. With the prevalence of eye strain on the rise, the developers say a 10-minute eye-yoga session can help eyes feel increasingly “moist, relaxed and bright”. It can also be useful for younger patients who suffer from amblyopia or strabismus, they say.

Before you head off down the rabbit hole of the app world, it is important to ensure any apps you use within your practice comply with relevant regulations and standards for patient privacy and data security. Now, go forth and app-lify!

Focus on Business is supported by The Independent Optometry Group (IOGroup)