Sept. 25, 2023 — The Vision Council has recently released three reports in its Focused inSights 2023 series regarding vision equipment use and purchasing, telehealth, and smart eyewear.
 
Focused inSights 2023: Vision Equipment Use and Purchasing reveals sentiments related to lens processing equipment, optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging technology, and single-modal equipment. Here are some key takeaways:

• Seventy-eight percent of respondents reported feeling satisfied with the accuracy of their lens processing equipment, and 68% say they rarely experience any issues or breakdowns.
• Half reported upgrading equipment as needed, 1 in 3 upgrade every six to 10 years, and almost half last purchased equipment five or more years ago.
• Sixty-three percent reported owning some kind of OCT equipment, with 53% owning OCT B only, though respondents did not report a strong preference for either OCT A or B.
• Almost half purchased their OCT equipment two to five years ago.
• Ninety-three percent use their OCT equipment for both diagnostic and monitoring purposes.
• Forty percent of respondents reported owning single-modal equipment, with visual field analyzers and autorefractors as the most common equipment owned.
• More than half of respondents reported replacing their single-modal equipment as needed, with 2 in 3 having made their last purchase two or more years ago. 

Focused inSights Telehealth 2023 offers insights into the evolving role of telehealth in eye care, though its findings revealed telehealth awareness and use for eye care remains low. Here are additional takeaways:

• Those who have used telehealth services for eye care reported doing so because it was more convenient than an in-person visit (35%), it was recommended to them (30%), or it was covered by their insurance (29%).
• The top reasons for choosing telehealth for eye care are renewing a glasses prescription (44%), receiving an eye exam (41%), or renewing a contact lens prescription (39%).
• Twenty-nine percent of respondents who never used telehealth for eye care say they’re interested in using it someday, while 46% are not interested in using these services in the future. 

Considering adults who may not be aware of smart eyewear, the Focused inSights Smart Eyewear 2023 survey defined smart eyewear as eyewear that offers wireless connectivity and features including the ability to answer calls, listen to music, reply to messages, and use a voice assistant. While 56% of adults say they have heard of smart eyewear, only 9% know what it is, and 44% of adults say they have never heard of it.
 
The reports are available here as a complimentary download for members and for nonmembers to purchase.
 
For more information: thevisioncouncil.org.