How many opticians out there demonstrate polarization by holding up two polarized lenses and rotating them in opposite directions? In case you haven’t heard, there now an app for that.

How many optometrists have their patients make a notation every time they administer their medication? There’s an app for that too.

And how many office managers call patients to remind them of their eye exam the next day? Yes, there’s also an app for that. (In fact, there are a number of them.)

These familiar scenes seem almost archaic in the age of mobile health, where many routine functions of the eyecare practice are being managed by mobile applications. As with other aspects of m-health, tech-savvy consumers are causing this shift. These consumers are ready to try anything that offers them speed, convenience and enhanced functionality. Their increasing appetite for apps has created a fast-growing and remarkably diverse range of products and services. Visit any online app store, and you’ll find an impressive range of apps that can be used to locate doctors, educate patients and professional staff, make appointments, access electronic health records, virtually try-on frames and experience lenses, remind patients when to take their meds and more.

As a technology editor, I try to stay abreast of the latest optical apps. But there are so many available now that it’s hard to know about them all. So I could use some help from readers. Please e-mail me and let me know what apps you’re using to manage your practice or business, and what you find APPealing about them. I’ll report what I learn in a future column.

Andrew Karp
Group Editor, Lenses and Technology
[email protected]