Ophthalmology practice during COVID-19 pandemic: A survey of Indian ophthalmologists

PURPOSE: To assess the ophthalmic practice pattern among ophthalmologists in India amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: An online questionnaire-based analysis was performed among members of the All India Ophthalmological Society (AIOS) and results were analyzed using SPSS software version 20. RESULTS: A total of 2253 responses were received. The majority of the participants (72.6%) were between 30 and 60 years of age and were into private practice (64.7%). During the lockdown, over one-third of participant ophthalmologists reported not attending any OPD patients, whereas a majority (64%) provided only emergency ophthalmic services. During the COVID-19 pandemic, <15% surgeries were performed compared to the pre-COVID-19 era by 81% of participants, whereas elective surgeries were performed by only 4.3%. The proportion of participants utilizing telemedicine in ophthalmology showed a two-fold rise from the pre-COVID-19 era (21.9%) to the COVID-19 pandemic (46%). Over half of the participants reported following the AIOS guidelines, reducing clinic hours, use of screening questionnaires, minimizing staff, and use of breath shield on a slit lamp as precautionary measures to reduce the exposure. Over 95% of ophthalmologists were satisfied (score > 5/10) by the AIOS guidelines for ophthalmic practice during COVID-19. CONCLUSION: COVID-19 pandemic has adversely affected the ophthalmic care services across India with telemedicine emerging as a major rescue. The majority of practicing ophthalmologists are satisfied with guidelines provided by AIOS for ophthalmic care during the COVID-19 pandemic and have implemented the same in their setup.