Adapted from an article written by Dr Joseph Paul, Head of Professional Services, Specsavers Australia New Zealand, for Optometry Connection July issue.
Before KeepSight launched in December 2018, 4.7% of patients who presented to Specsavers for an eye test nationwide had diagnosed diabetes. Since then, the launch of KeepSight and an enhanced Specsavers classification and recall strategy for patients with diabetes has now seen the proportion reach 8.3%; more than 6,000 patients each week across Australia. Since the start of 2019, Specsavers has completed more than 750,000 eye examinations for patients with diabetes. In line with published diabetes prevalence data showing greater prevalence in rural areas, optometrists in CBD locations see the fewest patients with diabetes, with optometrists in suburban and regional locations on average providing care for more than twice as many patients with diabetes as their CBD counterparts.
The graph below shows the volume of patients with diabetes cared for by Specsavers optometrists. From 2019, we have been able to track patients with diabetes returning over time. The percentage of returning patients with diabetes has increased steadily over time, evidence of the success of KeepSight and of changes to Specsavers’ own recall programs.
