Struggling to Unlock Space in Your Practice? Wearable Technology Could Be The Key

In the world of eye care, space isn’t just a luxury—these days, it’s gold… Whether you’re running your own show, working as a contracted ECP, or somewhere in between, you want the freedom to design your practice exactly how you envision it. Having to tackle competing demands on your space can throw a wrench in those plans.

For many ECPs, their chronic lack of space is often due to large, bulky machines that require dedicated rooms for testing. But when these are critical diagnostic tools for your practice, what options are there?

It’s tempting to think of these space-hungry giants as a “necessary evil”, but the lack of space can seriously hamper your ability to deliver the stellar care you envision. This squeeze can lead to…

• Longer wait times: Patients left twiddling their thumbs because there aren’t enough rooms.
• Patient Bottleneck: When repeating a test can throw your schedule into disarray and slow down patient flow.
• Unhappy Patients: Let’s be honest—nobody likes waiting. Longer wait times = grumpy patients.

As a result, many eye care professionals are in a constant struggle to balance the need for comprehensive diagnostic capabilities with the practical realities of their physical space.

How Do Other ODs Deal with the Space Issue?

Practices may explore various options to optimize their space, many of which can be time consuming and expensive. Some of these options include:

• Expanding the practice area. Some doctors go big—literally. They rent extra rooms, move to larger buildings, or even build additional space onto their office. While this definitely gives you more room, it comes with hefty costs and time commitments. Plus, your practice might go through some awkward growing pains during transitions or construction phases, affecting your bottom line.
• Training staff to use existing space more efficiently. Another strategy is optimizing how your staff uses the current space. This doesn’t require a massive financial outlay upfront, but it does need continuous commitment to training and adjusting workflows.
• Upgrading practice technology. Some practices upgrade bulky equipment to more compact, efficient versions that can perform multiple tasks in less space. Taking advantage of advances in technology may require an upfront investment but it pays off by streamlining operations, cutting overhead, and saving money in the long run and in some cases increasing revenue from increased patient flow or expanded testing capabilities.

Tech Trends: Why Portable Equipment Could Be Your New Best Friend

From the options we mentioned, upgrading practice technology to smaller and smarter equipment is the clear choice over costly expansions or time-consuming staff training. This approach reduces disruptions, cuts long-term costs, and aligns with the industry’s trend toward more compact, versatile technology, making it an ideal solution for modern eye care practices.

Smaller, portable equipment immediately opens up new possibilities for you and your staff by increasing layout flexibility. Upgrading to compact tech can even create new revenue streams from spaces that were previously off-limits.

Portable equipment not only saves space but also improves patient comfort and accessibility, while enabling streamlined workflows. This innovation opens doors for ECPs to better accommodate wheelchair users, individuals with back pain, and even remote patients confined to bed.

However, when choosing from the array of portable equipment available, maintaining clinical accuracy with portable technology is crucial—it must be efficient and reliable without compromising accuracy or reporting.

Is It Time to Look into the New Generation of Portable Technology?

What compact technology upgrade can start bringing value into your practice? Diagnostic tools are an obvious choice as many include large bulky machines that take up more than their share of space in your practice. Visual field testing is the perfect example.

In the past, building a practice often meant coming to terms with using an entire room in your practice for a Humphrey Field Analyzer (HFA). Today, that space can be freed up with the adoption of newer models of wearable, VR-based visual field devices.

These VRVF options are clinically comparable to the old standard, and the size, portability, and price point are more conducive to running an efficient practice. Plus, as many ECP’s have experienced, previous models of the HFA are no longer supported by the manufacturer, making them feel forced into a newer version of the same big clunky thing.

The “New Standard” in Visual Field Testing

“New” technology like the VF2000 VR-based visual field headset from Micro Medical devices, which has been around since 2018, can help you maintain your high standards of clinical reliability while boosting your practice efficiency and ability to provide comprehensive care to more patients. Plus, current models offer the option to add testing packages like vision screenings, color testing, and more!

Unlike other Visual Field Analyzers, the VF2000 is designed to be intuitive, minimizing the need for extensive technician training while ensuring dependable results. Its self-guided interface leads patients through testing in multiple languages, further improving accessibility and user experience compared to traditional equipment.

Being the first tool of its kind, this device has set a new standard in visual field testing by seamlessly integrating advanced virtual reality technology with traditional visual field standards, revolutionizing how eye care professionals diagnose and monitor vision health.

What are you missing out on with the old HFA? Ready to see how next-gen VF technology can elevate your practice? Click below to learn more about the VF2000 or request a demo to discover how this flexible, cost-effective device can help your practice thrive: