Improving Access to Eye Care in Glaucoma Patients

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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To design and develop a prospective, randomized pilot study utilizing information from electronic medical records to address follow-up adherence and reduce the gap between recommended and actual follow-up adherence in patients with glaucoma. To evaluate the impact of a telephone-based intervention on follow-up adherence in patients with glaucoma using a randomly assigned comparison with usual care.

Detailed Description
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The Wills Eye Health System (WEHS) proposes to conduct a pilot study to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of a telephone-based intervention to improve rates of follow-up exams in patients with glaucoma. The prospective, randomized, controlled trial entitled Improving Access to Eye Care in Patients with Glaucoma will utilize cohort data from 2013 electronic medical record information to reduce the gap between recommended and actual follow-up utilization of eye care services in glaucoma patients. Patients with glaucoma will be recruited from the Wills Eye Glaucoma clinic who were seen between 3/1/13 and 10/31/13. A recall list will be generated for patients who have scheduled follow-up appointments from 9/1/13 to 11/30/13. These patients will be randomly assigned to the Usual Care group or Intervention group. The primary outcome will be successful attendance at a follow-up appointment within an appropriate time frame. This intervention is based on a CDC funded project at Wills to improve access to eye care in patients with diabetes. Thus, this pilot study will test the efficacy of a telephone-based intervention to improve follow-up adherence in patients with glaucoma by improving access to eye care.

Official Title
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Improving Access to Eye Care in Glaucoma Patients a Prospective, Controlled, Randomized Trial

Conditions
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Glaucoma

Intervention / Treatment
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* Behavioral: Reminder letter Intervention


Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria: Attended Wills Eye Glaucoma Clinic from 9/1/12 and 10/31/13 Exclusion Criteria: Any medical condition that would preclude the subject from providing reliable and valid data. Recommended to f/u in less than 1 month time period.

Ages Eligible for Study
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Minimum Age: 21 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study
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All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Design Details

Primary Purpose: Other
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: None (Open Label)


Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| Placebo Comparator: Usual Care<br>Patients in this group do not receive any letters or phone calls after missing follow-up appointment. | Behavioral: Reminder letter Intervention<br>* Patients in this group receive letters and phone calls to reschedule missed follow-up appointments.<br>|
| Active Comparator: Reminder Letter Intervention<br>Patients in this group receive letters and phone calls after missing follow-up appointment to reschedule the appointment. | Behavioral: Reminder letter Intervention<br>* Patients in this group receive letters and phone calls to reschedule missed follow-up appointments.<br>|

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Adherence to Follow-Up | Whether patients adhere to follow-up appointments at 28 weeks. | 28 weeks | 

 Terms related to the study
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Keywords Provided by Centre Hospitalier Valida
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Glaucoma, Eye Care, Community Outreach