Minimizing Patient Eye Drop Confusions Was Job No. 1 for My New Ophthalmology Practice
By Preeya K. Gupta, MD
After 10 years at an academic practice, Dr. Preeya K. Gupta opened her own ophthalmology practice in July. As the founder and managing director of Triangle Eye Consultants, which is “dedicated to providing (patients) the latest treatment advances in cataract surgery, dry eye disease treatments and corneal disease management,” Dr. Gupta and her team immediately began using compounded eye drops from OSRX®.
Being part of an academic institution for the first part of my career provided an ideal foundation for my education and growth. Over time, as with many practices, becoming a higher volume cataract surgeon eventually created stresses in the system such that both doctors and patients were confused about post-operative drops in terms of what was being prescribed and what the patient received. When we opened the doors at Triangle Eye Consultants earlier this year, we decided in our nimble environment to explore some new methods to address some of the major pain-points for patients and clinicians.
As a new cataract and refractive-focused practice, one of our first steps was to begin using compounded eye drops postoperatively. By offering patients a high-quality medication to treat their pain and inflammation after cataract surgery, we’ve been able to streamline their experience by minimizing confusion from complicated instructions and multiple bottles of medication.
Having multiple medications (steroid, antibiotic, NSAID) in one bottle with simplified dosing instructions was the main motivation for us. We’re prescribing prednisolone, moxifloxacin and bromfenac (OMNI by OSRX®) compounded medications. For dosing, we just do one drop three times a day until the bottle is gone. It’s been an amazing experience that has helped us advance patient benefits and simplify how we communicate with patients and their family members. We’ve been able to bypass a lot of the chaos associated with insurance reimbursement, etc. We have customized handouts with personalized information for patients about their surgery, OSRX pharmacy and the process for having the drops conveniently mailed to their home. Our patients do not need to go to the drug store and their postoperative drops are affordable.
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My staff and I have great confidence knowing compounded drops improve patient compliance – which helps them achieve the outcomes we expect. Since starting to prescribe OMNI medications from OSRX, we’re better able to focus our staff time on the patients, not their medications. We are no longer spending extra resources to hire employees to manage prior authorizations and pharmacy phone calls, which distracts from our primary goal of giving patients our full attention while we’re in clinic. I can spend more face-to-face time with my patients, provide better service and a more seamless experience. That is ultimately what the doctor and patient are striving for.
Of course, cost is also a huge factor. With the changing landscape of insurance and variable coverage, it’s difficult to give patients an exact estimate for eye drop costs when sent to a traditional pharmacy. With compounded drops, though, we now have consistent pricing, clarity and can provide more predictability for our patients.
When patients are deciding about surgery, there is a lot of information given to them to consider —lens selection, premium options and more. Our patients appreciate that drops from OSRX are affordably priced so that they can focus on their wellbeing.
Finally, our internal experience for both my staff and me has been excellent and simplified by the OSRX team. They continue to communicate with our team regularly and we feel comfortable contacting the pharmacy with any questions or needs. OSRX continues to provide high-level customer support while expanding their offerings of high-quality medications we need for our patients. I’m grateful to have OSRX and their continued commitment to patients and clinicians as part of my team.
Disclosures:
Professional Disclosure: Dr. Gupta is a medical advisory board member for Ocular Science® (an OSRX affiliate) and has a financial interest in the company.
