SIGNIFICANCE: The impact of dry eye disease on patients' daily lives is
understood by optometrists, but they seldom use this understanding in their
patient management.
PURPOSE: Dry eye disease can significantly impact a person's daily life
and is known to cause psychological symptoms. Treating and managing patients
with dry eye disease can be challenging, as an approach based solely
on signs is unlikely to reflect patients' true burden. Because optometrists
play a crucial role in the care of dry eye disease patients, it is necessary to
examine their awareness of the negative impact of dry eye disease on patients'
daily lives and how they manage this during their consultation time,
including diagnosis and management.
METHODS: This study has an exploratory, qualitative research design.
Twelve semistructured online interviews were conducted with optometrists
in second-line eye care through a convenience sample. The interviews were
recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed after a thematic analysis.
RESULTS: The main findings were that few optometrists actively asked
about patients' perceived burden, many optometrists did not mention all
the possible treatment options or practical advice that could benefit dry
eye disease patients, and few were aware of the possible help that other
health care providers could provide, besides the optometrist.
CONCLUSIONS: Dutch optometrists are aware of the impact that dry eye
disease can have on their patients' daily lives, but seldom use this information
as part of their management plan.