Myopia management represents a separate category of business growth. A practice that offers myopia management benefits from an influx of new, young patients and by offering a service that is not currently reimbursed by vision benefit plans. Yet there are financial calculations needed before diving in.
Set your expectations: Unlike bringing a new frame line into the optical dispensary, adding myopia management services will require your staff to learn a different workflow. Designated consultation visits built into the schedule will help mitigate running behind on the schedule. These would be reserved for patients who call your office specifically desiring myopia management or for patients who have been identified during their annual examinations as myopia management candidates. On the contrary, it is also possible to create a concise explanation and lean on designated staff members to capture families while in the office for the annual examination, negating the need for an additional consultation visit.
Determine your opportunities and your own strengths: Familiarize yourself with the market demographics. Do other eye care practices in the area focus on young patients already? If so, what are they doing well or not so well? What strengths do your own skills, your staff and your location bring to the equation?
Identify your strategy: It is possible to begin with a small initial investment, and it is possible to invest heavily in technology and equipment that you may not already have. Depending on the business goals and needs, the investments you may need to make can also impact the fees you set, so one approach might be to start small and elevate the level of service as you go.
WHAT YOU’LL NEED
Equipment
Topography/tomography are essential for orthokeratology and specialty contact lens success. To measure axial length, a valuable metric in determining efficacy and helping to educate patients, you’ll need a biometer. Budget approximately $20,000-$30,000 for new equipment and $10,000-$15,000 for used or refurbished equipment. It’s a good idea to ask vendors whether there are maintenance contracts or what maintenance costs might average each year. For cost savings, consider combination equipment; the most appropriate would be a combined topographer/optical biometer. These often include other useful additions like specialized myopia management software.
Determine the uses and ask questions. For example, do you need an optical biometer that can be used for designing custom contact lenses? Not all optical biometers from vendors are built for advanced functionality of corneal topography.
Space
Do you have the space to dedicate to consults and equipment? If you need to renovate the office or carve out additional space, keep those costs in mind, as well. Renovation expenses can be very low, from nearly zero to under $100 for some kid-friendly paint colors, to $20,000 or more if you’re overhauling some space. However, you don’t need any additional space or money to get started.
Staff
Do you have the time–or do you have staff members who can manage your consults and training? If you can redirect staff with some additional education, that’s a low investment with a possibility of a quick ROI. For example, if the front desk person or technician has the bandwidth and the personality to become your “Myopia Treatment Coordinator,” a raise in his or her salary for the extra skills and responsibility is more cost-effective than hiring new staff members.
Compensation for these staff members will vary depending on the responsibilities and scope. Also calculate that doctors and staff dedicated to myopia management may require continuing education courses or additional training to be most effective.
Marketing
Internal marketing through word of mouth referrals and social media are low-cost and effective ways to start. Many of these patients who are connecting with you in the office or through your social media pages already know and trust you for their eye care. Be intentional about advocating for reviews from trusted patients and families.
Hiring a company to revamp a website to include patient testimonials and more information on myopia has an upfront cost, but it can lead to better search engine optimization and having people find your practice.
No matter what you do, keep the stories real and relatable. A mother’s testimonial is going to carry more weight with your patients than an article that’s heavy on science that they might not understand.
Inventory costs
Determine how much your cost of goods sold will increase with inventories of orthokeratology and soft multifocal or dual focus contact lenses, as well as any pharmaceuticals. Develop relationships with your vendors. They understand these scenarios and can help you plan.
Multiple factors will enter into your financial scenario, and it’s a good idea to review the economics of your myopia practice regularly, especially as your competition changes or pricing does. You may need to make some adjustments for patient affordability and other economic fluctuations, but these metrics are all part of the long-term sustainability of your services.
Many of your colleagues have developed an enduring revenue stream from their myopia management services. The next two sections on setting your fees and explaining the value of your services are critically important to the overall success of your myopia management services.
Read more articles in the Getting Started with Myopia Management series. Be sure to check back as the series will be updated regularly with more content.
