Top

Published in:

Open Access 01-09-2020 | Coronavirus | Commentary

Ophthalmology Practice During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic: The University of Pittsburgh Experience in Promoting Clinic Safety and Embracing Video Visits

Authors: Andrew M. Williams, Gagan Kalra, Patrick W. Commiskey, Eve M. R. Bowers, Brian R. Rudolph, Mary D. Pitcher, Kunal K. Dansingani, Vishal Jhanji, Ken K. Nischal, José-Alain Sahel, Evan L. Waxman, Roxana Fu

Published in: Ophthalmology and Therapy | Issue 3/2020

Abstract

The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic has led to widespread change as public health strategies for containment have emphasized social distancing and remaining at home. These policies have led to downscaled clinic volumes, cancellation of elective procedures, enhanced personal protective strategies in the clinic, and adoption of telemedicine encounters. We describe the evidence-based practical approach taken in our ophthalmology department to continue delivering eye care during the pandemic by rescheduling visits, enhancing clinic safety, and adopting virtual video encounters.

Wang C, Horby PW, Hayden FG, Gao GF. A novel coronavirus outbreak of global health concern. Lancet. 2020;395(10223):470–3.PubMedPubMedCentral

American Academy of Ophthalmology. New recommendations for urgent and nonurgent patient care. 2020. https://www.aao.org/headline/new-recommendations-urgent-nonurgent-patient-care. Accessed 8 Apr 2020.

Cheema M, Aghazadeh H, Nazarali S, et al. Keratoconjunctivitis as the initial medical presentation of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Can J Ophthalmol. 2020. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcjo.2020.03.003.

Lu C-w, Liu X-f, Jia Z-f. 2019-nCoV transmission through the ocular surface must not be ignored. Lancet. 2020;395(10224):e39.PubMedPubMedCentral

Wu P, Duan F, Luo C, et al. Characteristics of ocular findings of patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Hubei Province, China. JAMA Ophthalmol. 2020. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamaophthalmol.2020.1291.

Guan W-J, Ni Z-Y, Hu Y, et al. Clinical characteristics of coronavirus disease 2019 in China. N Engl J Med. 2020;382:1708–20. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2002032.

Xia J, Tong J, Liu M, Shen Y, Guo D. Evaluation of coronavirus in tears and conjunctival secretions of patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection. J Med Virol. 2020. https://doi.org/10.1002/jmv.25725.PubMedPubMedCentral

Seah IYJ, Anderson DE, Kang AEZ, et al. Assessing viral shedding and infectivity of tears in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients. Ophthalmology. 2020. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ophtha.2020.03.026.

Seitzman GD, Doan T. No time for tears. Ophthalmology. 2020. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ophtha.2020.03.030.PubMedCrossRef

10.

Parrish RK, Stewart MW, Duncan Powers SL. Ophthalmologists are more than eye doctors—in Memoriam Li Wenliang. Am J Ophthalmol. 2020. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajo.2020.02.014.PubMedPubMedCentral

11.

Jørstad ØK, Moe MC, Eriksen K, Petrovski G, Bragadóttir R. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak at the Department of Ophthalmology, Oslo University Hospital, Norway. Acta Ophthalmol. 2020;98(3):e388–9.PubMed

12.

American Academy of Ophthalmology EyeWiki. Coronavirus (COVID-19). https://eyewiki.org/Coronavirus_(COVID-19). Accessed 14 Apr 2020.

13.

Romano MR, Montericcio A, Montalbano C, et al. Facing COVID-19 in Ophthalmology department. Curr Eye Res. 2020. https://doi.org/10.1080/02713683.2020.1752737.PubMed

14.

Chan W, Liu D, Chan P, et al. Precautions in ophthalmic practice in a hospital with a major acute SARS outbreak: an experience from Hong Kong. Eye. 2006;20(3):283–9.PubMed

15.

Lai THT, Tang EWH, Chau SKY, Fung KSC, Li KKW. Stepping up infection control measures in ophthalmology during the novel coronavirus outbreak: an experience from Hong Kong. Graefe's Arch Clin Exp Ophthalmol. 2020;258(5):1049–55.

16.

Olivia Li J-P, Shantha J, Wong TY, et al. Preparedness among ophthalmologists: during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. Ophthalmology. 2020;127(5):569–72.PubMed

17.

Rathi S, Tsui E, Mehta N, Zahid S, Schuman JS. The current state of teleophthalmology in the United States. Ophthalmology. 2017;124(12):1729–34.PubMed

18.

Host BK, Turner AW, Muir J. Real-time teleophthalmology video consultation: an analysis of patient satisfaction in rural Western Australia. Clin Exp Optometry. 2018;101(1):129–34.

19.

Rimmer RA, Christopher V, Falck A, et al. Telemedicine in otolaryngology outpatient setting—single Center Head and Neck Surgery experience. Laryngoscope. 2018;128(9):2072–5.PubMed

20.

Thelen-Perry S, Ved R, Ellimoottil C. Evaluating the patient experience with urological video visits at an academic medical center. mHealth. 2018;4:54. https://doi.org/10.21037/mhealth.2018.11.02.PubMed

21.

Viers BR, Lightner DJ, Rivera ME, et al. Efficiency, satisfaction, and costs for remote video visits following radical prostatectomy: a randomized controlled trial. Eur Urol. 2015;68(4):729–35.PubMed

22.

Karthikeyan SK, Thangarajan R, Theruvedhi N, Srinivasan K. Android mobile applications in eye care. Oman J Ophthalmol. 2019;12(2):73.PubMedPubMedCentral

23.

Perera C, Chakrabarti R, Islam F, Crowston J. The Eye Phone Study: reliability and accuracy of assessing Snellen visual acuity using smartphone technology. Eye. 2015;29(7):888–94.PubMedPubMedCentral

24.

Phung L, Gregori NZ, Ortiz A, Shi W, Schiffman JC. Reproducibility and comparison of visual acuity obtained with SightBook mobile application to near card and Snellen chart. Retina. 2016;36(5):1009–200.PubMed

25.

Tofigh S, Shortridge E, Elkeeb A, Godley B. Effectiveness of a smartphone application for testing near visual acuity. Eye. 2015;29(11):1464–8.PubMedPubMedCentral

26.

Tsui I, Drexler A, Stanton AL, Kageyama J, Ngo E, Straatsma BR. Pilot study using mobile health to coordinate the diabetic patient, diabetologist, and ophthalmologist. J Diabetes Sci Technol. 2014;8(4):845–9.PubMedPubMedCentral

27.

Brucker J, Bhatia V, Sahel J-A, Girmens J-F, Mohand-Saïd S. Odysight: a mobile medical application designed for remote monitoring—a prospective study comparison with standard clinical eye tests. Ophthalmol Ther. 2019;8(3):461–76.PubMedPubMedCentral

28.

Hwang CJ, Eftekhari K, Schwarcz RM, Massry GG. The aesthetic oculoplastic surgery video teleconference consult. Aesthetic Surg J. 2019;39(7):714–8.

29.

Rayner S, Beaconsfield M, Kennedy C, Collin R, Taylor P, Murdoch I. Subspecialty adnexal ophthalmological examination using telemedicine. J Telemed Telecare. 2001;7(1_suppl):29–31.PubMed

30.

Simon DP, Thach AB, Bower KS. Teleophthalmology in the evaluation of ocular trauma. Mil Med. 2003;168(3):205–11.PubMed

31.

Woodward MA, Bavinger JC, Amin S, et al. Telemedicine for ophthalmic consultation services: use of a portable device and layering information for graders. J Telemed Telecare. 2017;23(2):365–70.PubMed

32.

Woodward MA, Musch DC, Hood CT, et al. Tele-ophthalmic approach for detection of corneal diseases: accuracy and reliability. Cornea. 2017;36(10):1159.PubMedPubMedCentral

33.

Gordon HS, Solanki P, Bokhour BG, Gopal RK. “I’m Not Feeling Like I’m Part of the Conversation” patients’ perspectives on communicating in clinical video telehealth visits. J General Internal Med. 2020. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-020-05673-w.

34.

United States Department of Health and Human Services. COVID-19 and HIPAA: Disclosures to law enforcement, paramedics, other first responders and public health authorities. https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/covid-19-hipaa-and-first-responders-508.pdf. Accessed 9 Apr 2020.

35.

United States Department of Health and Human Services. FAQs on Telehealth and HIPAA during the COVID-19 nationwide public health emergency. https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/telehealth-faqs-508.pdf. Accessed 9 Apr 2020.

36.

Zimmer-Galler IE, Zeimer R. Telemedicine in diabetic retinopathy screening. Int Ophthalmol Clin. 2009;49(2):75–86.PubMed

37.

Andino JJ, Castaneda PR, Shah PK, Ellimoottil C. The impact of video visits on measures of clinical efficiency and reimbursement. Urol Practice. 2020. https://doi.org/10.1097/UPJ.0000000000000149.

Title: Ophthalmology Practice During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic: The University of Pittsburgh Experience in Promoting Clinic Safety and Embracing Video Visits
Authors: Andrew M. Williams
Gagan Kalra
Patrick W. Commiskey
Eve M. R. Bowers
Brian R. Rudolph
Mary D. Pitcher
Kunal K. Dansingani
Vishal Jhanji
Ken K. Nischal
José-Alain Sahel
Evan L. Waxman
Roxana Fu
Publication date: 01-09-2020
Publisher: Springer Healthcare
Keywords: Coronavirus
Triage
COVID-19
Published in: Ophthalmology and Therapy / Issue 3/2020
Print ISSN: 2193-8245
Electronic ISSN: 2193-6528
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40123-020-00255-9

Live Webinar | 27-06-2024 | 18:00 (CEST)

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Reserve your place

Live: Thursday 27th June 2024, 18:00-19:30 (CEST)

WHO estimates that half of all patients worldwide are non-adherent to their prescribed medication. The consequences of poor adherence can be catastrophic, on both the individual and population level.

Join our expert panel to discover why you need to understand the drivers of non-adherence in your patients, and how you can optimize medication adherence in your clinics to drastically improve patient outcomes.

Prof. Kevin Dolgin

Prof. Florian Limbourg

Prof. Anoop Chauhan

Developed by: Springer Medicine

Obesity Clinical Trial Summary

At a glance: The STEP trials

A round-up of the STEP phase 3 clinical trials evaluating semaglutide for weight loss in people with overweight or obesity.

Developed by: Springer Medicine

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Springer Medicine

Abstract

Please log in to get access to this content

Other articles of this Issue 3/2020

Therapies Based on Nanoparticles for Eye Drug Delivery

Individualizing Therapy for Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration with Aflibercept (VITAL): A Two-Year Prospective, Interventional Single-Centre Trial

Chest X-ray and Uveitis Evaluation in a Population with Low Incidence of Sarcoidosis

Management of Full-Thickness Macular Hole in A Genetically Confirmed Case with Usher Syndrome

Unexplained Visual Loss After Silicone Oil Removal: A 7-Year Retrospective Study

Risks Posed to Corneal Transplant Recipients by COVID-19-Affected Donors

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Live: Thursday 27th June 2024, 18:00-19:30 (CEST)

At a glance: The STEP trials