New digital models of care in ophthalmology, during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tham, Yih-Chung; Husain, Rahat; Teo, Kelvin Yi Chong; Tan, Anna Cheng Sim; Chew, Annabel Chee Yen; Ting, Daniel S; Cheng, Ching-Yu; Tan, Gavin Siew Wei; Wong, Tien Yin

COVID-19 has led to massive disruptions in societal, economic and healthcare systems globally. While COVID-19 has sparked a surge and expansion of new digital business models in different industries, healthcare has been slower to adapt to digital solutions. The majority of ophthalmology clinical practices are still operating through a traditional model of 'brick-and-mortar' facilities and 'face-to-face' patient-physician interaction. In the current climate of COVID-19, there is a need to fuel implementation of digital health models for ophthalmology. In this article, we highlight the current limitations in traditional clinical models as we confront COVID-19, review the current lack of digital initiatives in ophthalmology sphere despite the presence of COVID-19, propose new digital models of care for ophthalmology and discuss potential barriers that need to be considered for sustainable transformation to take place.