Tele-Ophthalmology

Evaluation of a clinical condition is best done when a doctor examines the patient physically.
However in certain situations expert advice can also be sought with the patient and the care provider sitting miles apart with the help of technology.
Telemedicine and more specifically tele-ophthalmology uses imaging techniques to document certain specific structures of the eye, for e.g. retina in diabetics which is then viewed by the ophthalmologist and advice is given whether there is a need for further follow up.

There are 2 main ways this is practiced

1. Store and Forward - where the trained paramedical staff images the patient’s eye condition and keeps the data on a laptop which is later carried to the base hospital or transferred through internet for the specialist to view and advice.
2. Real Time screening - is when the ophthalmologist is able to view the images and discuss with the patient on a virtual platform, giving the satisfaction of a direct consultation.

Tele-ophthalmology helps achieve better reach and also improves the level of monitoring of patients following a procedure. It has been of immense value during difficult times like a pandemic, where crowds in eye hospitals/clinics can be avoided.

Centre For Eye and Health Care has the facilities for tele-ophthalmology which is being regularly used for eye health screening, be it in corporate settings, for busy executives or in remote areas where the less privileged find it difficult to travel to the hospital. Through our charitable arm (The Rangarajan Vision and Health Foundation) we hope to have a bigger reach by setting up vision centres in different regions and use this technology to examine larger numbers.