The KeepSight program is having success in reaching people at risk, and at both ends of the diabetes spectrum, after having its most successful year since the start of the program.

Jon Kidd, National Manager of Customer Engagement, Diabetes Australia, said the KeepSight program is reaching people at risk of complications from diabetes, with 42% of participants considered “high risk” and 20% classed as “higher risk”.

More than 385,000 of the estimated 1.5 million Australians living with diabetes have joined the KeepSight eye check reminder program since its launch in 2019. 2023 was one of the most successful years for signups, adding more than 108,000 people – a 50% increase on 2022.

REACHING THOSE AT RISK

Diabetes-related eye disease is the leading cause of vision loss in working age Australians and Mr Kidd said people who have been living with diabetes for over 10 years are “at most risk of all complications”.

“And so, some really, really powerful stats are that around about 42% of the people registered with KeepSight have been living with diabetes for over 10 years, which means we are reaching almost 50% of the people who are truly at most risk.

“And 20% – not of the 42%, but 20% of the total registrants – are considered to be at higher risk. Higher risk basically means that they’ve been living with diabetes for over 10 years, but they’re also on insulin, which is another indicator of risk in relation to complications.

Conversely, he said only around 5% of registrants are people who have been diagnosed with diabetes in the past two years are registered. “This is not surprising given we know people who are newly diagnosed perhaps don’t initially prioritise their eyes as much.”

REFERRALS FROM OPTOMETRY

Some of the newly diagnosed patients are coming in through referral from eye care practitioners, with Mr Kidd calling out founding partner Specsavers, along with Luxottica, Bailey Nelson, and The Optical Co.

The platform now integrates with Optomate practice management software, which has allowed an additional 1,300 practices to automatically register their patients with KeepSight, as well as Oculo and systems operated by Specsavers and Luxottica. Mr Kidd said more practice management systems were expected to be integrated this year, and whereas the process of adding a patient to the referral system was once manual, it is now automated, requiring “literally the click of a few buttons”.

With KeepSight on hand to help optometrists set the process up and sign patients on while they are in the consult room, he said “There’s definitely a huge opportunity for more optometrists to do it more seamlessly and more easily than perhaps when they’ve tried in the past. It only takes a minute.”

Referrals also come through the National Diabetes Services Scheme (NDSS), which is the registry of people in Australia living with diabetes. About 25% of these people need an eye check and are referred to their own optometrists or, if they don’t already have one, to the KeepSight website where they can find a local eye care practitioner.

SUPPLEMENTARY REMINDER

Mr Kidd said reminders from KeepSight always refer people back to their original eye care provider “because, crucially, we understand that continuity of care is important”.

“Typically, an optometrist has a recall of their own, whether they ’re a small practice or whether they're a big one… to follow-up and encourage the person to go back .

“KeepSight acts as a safety net with a reminder coming from a different, trusted organisation – Diabetes Australia – significantly after the date of that appointment.

“So, we send recalls at six weeks after the appointment is expected and then at 10 weeks. If (the patient) hasn’t acted on the recall that’s come from optometry, then this is a different nudge from a different source designed to drive (them) to go back for an eye check . It’s also ‘diabetes talking to diabetes’ which can sometimes be the additional nudge people need to prioritise making an appointment.

“In that reminder we’re saying, ‘this is where we understood your last eye check was, so click here to book an appointment with them, or if you've not had (an eye check), then you can go and find a provider on our website’.

“It’s a safety net; an additional reminder that augments the existing recall. It doesn’t replace it. Diabetes Australia is a trusted organisation for people on the NDSS ( National Diabetes Services Scheme) and people living with diabetes, so it’s coming from a different source and it’s also coming at a considerably different time.”