This article was originally published in a sponsored newsletter.

I recently lost my all-star contact lens technician to a well-deserved promotion within the clinic. Since the transition was brief, I needed to quickly bring my new lead contact lens technician up to speed. Her training has been a great review of my own orthokeratology process and how I can more efficiently use a technician and other clinic team members to support clinic flow.

Pre-Visit Connections

We have learned that a pre-visit consultation with a trained technician over the phone has significantly improved the quality of visit I have with my patients (and their parents). The technician will call the parent or patient upon receiving referral notes or being notified of a ortho-k consult on the schedule. They review the basics of the ortho-k process, like how the lenses are worn at night, the estimated number of visits, as well as the cost of lenses and services. That allows more time for me to discuss what I am really passionate about, which is the science behind ortho-k and its benefits during the in-clinic assessment. The phone call also starts to build the relationship between the family and technician, which is a valuable foundation for the entire experience.

Evaluations and Follow-ups

In addition to ensuring my technician can confidently capture the required data, like topography and biometry, we reviewed what good quality scans look like and some tips on capturing quality scans on a young patient. We also covered how to teach a patient to insert and remove their lenses, as well as proper handling with care systems and removal tools.

I also made sure that she was aware of the importance of both the art and the science of orthokeratology, so that she can convey it to the patient.

• The art is the fitting of the lens, and watching that myopic refractive error melt away with continued lens use. Being more familiar with typical contact lens fittings, she, as well as many parents, assumed that once the lens was fit and the patient was happy, the process was complete.
• The science is the monitoring of the eye and its risk for myopia progression. Educating her on the importance of monitoring things like axial length has empowered her to call parents when their child is overdue for these visits, and stress the importance of resuming care, much like we would with our glaucoma patients and their IOP monitoring.

Post-Visit Support

Patients using orthokeratology lenses can build quite the list of questions between visits. I made sure my new contact lens technician was familiar with the most common questions that come our way, and plenty of online resources for her to reference to grow her knowledge base. The questions we commonly encounter typically surround care systems, wearing time each night and what to do if the child has a cold or illness. We also reviewed the basis of our fee structure and the year-over-year financial and time commitments to help families plan their future care. She has also been training on laboratory communication and basic lens ordering, should she need to check the status of an order or a patient needs to replace a lost or broken lens.

While the process of training seems daunting, it can be a great way to re-evaluate your processes and get a new take on the program with fresh eyes and energy.