Contact Lens Candidates

So now that we've covered some of the legalities of contact lenses, I want to ask, how many of you are asking your patients, "Are you getting contact lenses today?" or, "Are you interested in getting fit for contact lenses?" Honest answers. I'm sure we're all guilty of it at some point.

Contact lenses have evolved and continue to evolve drastically in such a short amount of time. Allow yourselves to create solutions for your patients problems, rather than inhibit the opportunity. So instead, let's start asking our patients, "Are there any occasions where you might prefer to not wear glasses?" or, if a patient is wearing glasses and he mentioned that they are a runner or do karate, anything that alludes to activities where they might benefit from contact lenses. That's where the conversation starts. For example, "Jane, you might benefit from disposable contact lenses and you can use them when you're doing activities like running, which can be a lot more comfortable during that time."

Let me also ask you, can you identify who is a good candidate? The reality is is about 75% of people worldwide need vision correction and there is believed to be over an excess of a hundred million wearers worldwide. There is a large discrepancy between glasses wearers and contact lens users. It may be that patients aren't informed of the potential solutions we have to offer. It's the doctor's job to identify if a patient is a good candidate. It's your job to introduce the conversation. Present it in a way that's intriguing and sounds like you're there to help. Inform the patient of solutions offered at your practice. And for established patients that are returning for re-fits, we should be asking how they are doing, how comfortable are the lenses after a full day of wear, is their vision still clear after a full day of wear, or, if wear time has changed over the past year inform them of new brands that you carry at your office. Some patients utilize their contact lenses as their primary corrective lenses. Other patients opt for contact lenses as an elective option and part-time wear. Remember, we want to inform patients of solutions offered at your practice.