Why I really wish OcuVue™ was already here...

Randal A Serafini, MS

Co-Founder & Chief Operating Officer

My first experience stepping into the shoes of an eye patient.

 Today without OcuVue™:

• 2 months to see an Ophthalmologist

• 3 months more to see a Retina Specialist after seeing the ophthalmologist

• 2.5 hours spent at the Specialist’s office

• 4 rooms needed for different tests and technicians

• 3-4 hours of dilated pupils

• Only 2 minutes looking at my retina!

• 10 minutes total with the Retina Specialist

• Result: No Glaucoma

Our goal with OcuVue™

• 15-20 minutes in PCP office, same chair

• Result: No Glaucoma

We started Retina Technologies when we saw there was an opportunity to simplify vision screening and to truly address a lack of vision testing for underserved populations around the world. Last week I had a chance to see firsthand, both as an eye patient and the COO of this company, why everyone, everywhere, could benefit from a platform like OcuVue™ now – in primary care and in vision specialist environments.

My experience...

Earlier this year, during a routine annual checkup with an optometrist, I was informed that I had an abnormality that was a common indication of glaucoma. The next step would have been a visit to my primary care physician (PCP) in order to get a referral to see an ophthalmologist.  I was, however, a bit unsure as to whether my PCP could accurately assess my retinal health to determine if I needed a referral, and I chose to go directly to an ophthalmologist, a decision that hurt my wallet in terms of out-of-pocket payments. The ophthalmologist confirmed what I already knew and that I would need to see a retinal specialist with a three month wait time for appointments.  Not a good start; two office visits and three months before I could see a retina specialist!

 My specialist appointment was at 1pm on a Thursday afternoon, and the waiting room was about half full.  Not too bad... but little did I know that what would ensue was borderline ridiculous - a 2.5 hour visit for a glaucoma screening!  First, a technician ran tests for visual function and ocular pressure -which required topical anesthetic- only to get inconsistent readings with two different devices for intraocular pressure.  The next test went smoothly (OCT testing to look at the individual layers of the retina), but then I had to wait for 30 minutes because there was a line to use the Humphrey machine needed for my next test to assess the functional health of my visual field.  The Humphrey test took 15 minutes, and at that point I was really getting tired. I could only imagine how exhausting it must be for older people who have to go through this process regularly to monitor their glaucoma. I was then sent back to the waiting room for 15 minutes before getting dilation drops. Back to the waiting room for 30 minutes until my pupils were fully dilated. Finally, the specialist took a look at my retina through a dilated pupil - a task that took all but two minutes, but necessitated dilation that lasted four hours. 

The waiting room on my way out was now completely packed and close to the end of the day. The backup was most probably due to machines like the Humphrey, which are slow and cause clinic choke points. Everyone looked unhappy, including me, who would now have a hard time functioning for the next 4 hours because of light sensitivity and blurred vision from the pupil dilation, and I needed to go back to work.

 This was my first ophthalmology appointment as a patient - and honestly, I would never want to go back unless I absolutely needed to for treatment.  A platform like OcuVue™ would have allowed my PCP to quantitatively tell me from the very beginning that nothing was wrong - which was fortunately the result provided by my Retina Specialist.  Echoed time and again by our team of ophthalmic advisors, ophthalmologists would prefer to spend their time treating… not screening. 

 If there is a silver lining from this all too real experience for most patients, is that it left me even more motivated and excited about how we can change all of this with our OcuVue™ Platform.  OcuVue™ is designed to perform every functional test that I was put through – in one sitting and without wait times. We also have the opportunity to eliminate the dreaded dilation step when our retinal camera module becomes available. As technology gets more portable over time, we can add the other testing modalities, such as intraocular pressure and OCT, as modules that integrate into the OcuVue™ Platform.  

 Imagine if a 2.5-hour visit could be done in about 20 minutes in 1 room with OcuVue™!

 Our vision is only possible with your investment, and I hope you join us on this exciting journey of developing and implementing OcuVue™.  I sincerely believe we are the only viable solution on the market to address every pain point I experienced in my glaucoma scare process.

 I hope everyone is doing well and we look forward to updating you with our progress regularly.

Alex Serafini, Co-founder & COO