Victorian optometrists can now book virtual appointments with ophthalmologists for patient management advice through the Victorian Virtual Specialist Consults (VVSC) service.
The Victorian Government recently announced an expansion to the VVSC to include ophthalmology.
In collaboration with the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital, this service supports optometrists by providing direct online access to an ophthalmologist for patient management advice.
Although aimed at optometrists in regional and remote areas, it is available to all Victorian optometrists, including those based in metropolitan areas.
Appointments can be booked on Monday afternoons, through the online booking platform.
OA said with increased use of this service, it will likely expand to include additional days.
Optometry Australia said optometrists can make use of this new service in two main ways:
- A joint consultation where the patient, optometrist and online ophthalmologist are all present simultaneously. Although the VVSC provides this service free of charge and does not bill Medicare, optometrists may be able to claim item numbers 10945 or 10946 if the relevant Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) criteria are satisfied.
- An in-person discussion with the ophthalmologist about a patient case or management plan without the patient present.
This second type of consultation, which does not have an MBS number, may be useful for conditions such as:
- glaucoma diagnosis or progression,
- differential diagnosis of macular pathology (including suspected macular neovascularisation),
- post-operative complications,
- lid disorders,
- peripheral retinal lesions,
- pigmented lesions, and
- possible retinal dystrophies, etc.
OA said with increased use of this service, it will likely expand to include additional days.
A step-by-step guide on using the service is available on the OA website.
