Outcomes of an Asynchronous Virtual Glaucoma Clinic in Monitoring Patients at Low Risk of Glaucoma Progression in Singapore.

PURPOSE: To assess the implementation outcomes of a new asynchronous virtual clinic, the Glaucoma Observation Clinic (GLOC), at the Singapore National Eye Center, in monitoring patients at low risk for glaucoma progression.

METHODS

Patients with low risk of glaucoma progression were followed up at GLOC. Visual acuity, intraocular pressure, and visual field testing or optic nerve head imaging were assessed by nurses and technicians, with virtual review of data by an ophthalmologist separately. The implementation outcomes were defined as patient satisfaction, assessed by a nurse-administered questionnaire; the rate of referrals back to the glaucoma outpatient department; the patients' journey time (minutes); the time taken for the specialist review (minutes), and the per capita manpower cost compared with current glaucoma outpatient model.

RESULTS

A total of 377 patients were included, with the majority being glaucoma disc suspects (n = 250, 66.4%) and primary angle closure suspects (n = 54, 14.3%). Most patients (more than 90%) reported being satisfied, and only 7.7% (n = 29) were referred back to the specialist outpatient glaucoma clinic due to possible glaucoma progression. Compared with the glaucoma outpatient clinic, the average journey time in GLOC was 50% less (59.3 mins vs 132 mins), the average time for a specialist review was 3 times faster (5.8 mins vs 19.5 mins), and the per capita manpower cost of GLOC was halved ($20.07 vs $39.78).

CONCLUSIONS

GLOC is a time-efficient, cost-saving, and sustainable model of care for managing patients with low risk of glaucoma progression. It was well received by patients and freed up the conventional clinic to treat patients with complex needs.