Optometric Management spoke with Carla Mack, OD, MBA, FAAO, Dipl AAO, Head, Global and US Professional Education and Development for Alcon and Sandra S. Block, OD, DOS (h.c.), M ED, MPH, FAAO, Dipl AAO, Immediate Past-President, World Council of Optometry (WCO) on the 5-year partnership that is still going strong between the companies. Drs. Mack and Block discussed dry eye disease (DED) and its quality of life ramifications for more than 1 billion people globally, partnership initiatives including the Dry Eye Wheel, and what’s coming next.
OM: You're entering your 5th year of DED education partnership. What are your biggest takeaways so far?
Carla Mack, OD: The WCO and Alcon share a longstanding commitment to advancing optometric education globally. Although 5 years have passed since we launched our DED partnership, the original rationale remains as relevant as ever. DED affects an estimated 1.6 billion people worldwide, and optometrists are often the first point of care for those seeking relief.
The latest TFOS DEWS III reports underscore how rapidly the evidence base is growing. Although this emerging science is exciting, it can also be complex and challenging to translate into a clear, personalized treatment approach. Our shared goal is to equip every optometrist—regardless of their scope of practice or access to advanced diagnostic tools—with the knowledge and confidence to support their patients effectively.
Sandra Block, OD: The WCO is thrilled to have partnered with Alcon in the development, creation, and dissemination of the WCO Alcon Dry Eye Wheel. We are focused on ensuring optometrists are abreast of the best evidence-based means of addressing patient needs. Through their experts, Alcon has helped us provide the most up-to-date science and create guidance for clinicians in ways that make that knowledge easy to integrate into patient care.
OM: What can clinicians take away to use in clinic today?
CM: No matter what format clinicians prefer to learn in, our educational resource platform offers a rich collection of tools curated by a world-renowned faculty—Professor James Wolffsohn, Professor Jennifer Craig, and Professor Lyndon Jones. Their guidance has helped streamline the approach to diagnosing, treating, and monitoring DED, via simplified principles of mitigation, management, and measurement (the 3 Ms).
The platform provides a variety of accessible learning formats, including short on-demand webinars, concise infographics, and the interactive Dry Eye Wheel, which is designed to support the creation of personalized care plans that can also be added to patient records. These resources are intended to empower clinicians at every stage of practice with practical, evidence-based guidance for dry eye management.
SB: Dry eye disease has often been ignored as simple and not a priority. The World Report on Vision highlighted non–blindness-threatening conditions that are among the biggest concerns to our patients. The tools created by our partnership have offered practicing clinicians knowledge about the 3 Ms of DED that can be integrated into practice regardless of the breadth of scope that is available to the local optometrist. More importantly, the information provided is evidence based and includes proven scientific recommendations.
OM: How can clinicians use the Dry Eye Wheel?
CM: The Dry Eye Wheel is an interactive tool that is available in English, Spanish, French, and Chinese. It is designed to help clinicians create personalized care plans by first identifying and mitigating patient risk factors, then guiding them through available diagnostic approaches that inform an appropriate management strategy. The wheel is organized into layered rings that outline treatment options ranging from simple interventions to more moderate and advanced therapies.
SB: The WCO Alcon Dry Eye Wheel is located on the World Council of Optometry website which can be accessed by clinicians in their offices at no cost. They simply select an area of the 3 Ms and they are provided guidance as to how to progress in diagnosing, treating, and managing DED.
OM: What's next for the partnership?
CM: We recently partnered with TFOS and the Centre for Ocular Research & Education (CORE) to develop TFOS DEWS III summary papers, which are now available on our educational resource site. Drawing from these papers, we will be expanding the platform with new interactive tools designed to further support clinicians in building comprehensive, evidence-based DED care plans for their patients.
SB: Alcon and their experts have been intimately involved with the latest updates from TFOS, which will be integrated into the tool and translated into multiple languages for more optometrists to be able to use to care for their patients with DED.