LensCrafters’ New Clarifye Eye Exam

How the company is using proprietary technology to deliver more precise results faster

1 August 2016

Getting your eyes examined ranks up there with having your teeth cleaned—it’s not fun, it’s easy to put off, yet both are incredibly important for your health. LensCrafters has spent the last five years working on Clarifye, their impressive new proprietary digital eye exam that makes it easier for patients and practitioners alike to easily get the most accurate results quickly and comfortably. Here’s how it works, and why you should consider making that appointment you’ve been avoiding.

Clarifye, their patented eye exam, has been rolling out to the majority of their 900+ stores across the country since early July, and to new LensCrafters stores, with the most recent store opening in the heart of Chicago’s South Loop at The Shops at Roosevelt Collection—a new 4,000 square-foot space on the west plaza level of the Collection. There are two components to the exam: diagnosis and consultation. Clarifye uses the most sophisticated group of digital eye exam instruments on the market today—the lens profiler, the vision profiler and a digital projector/phoropter. The vision profiler captures your eye’s unique front surface characteristics (providing better-than-ever results for fitting contact lenses, for example) and helps diagnose corneal diseases. The vision profiler also measures how light passes through your eyes, providing both a very precise starting point for your correction (if you need one). The health of your retina, blood vessels, and the rest of your eye is assessed using digital retinal imaging techniques. The digital projector and phoropter replace the old sign or projection on the wall as well as the old school device with all those dials and switches. It takes only a few minutes to achieve very precise results—including whether your night vision requires a different prescription. The Lens Profiler uses digital technology to quickly and accurately read the prescription off of your old glasses, assuming you have a pair. The doctor is then able to show you the difference between your old and new prescriptions.

The magic happens mostly behind the scenes. Previously the practitioners had to take the results from each device and aggregate them into one place. Now this happens through the Clarifye app, which pulls the data (including images) from each device as it’s recorded. It controls the devices and allows the doctor to more thoroughly, easily and quickly review your results with you, and when you leave the doctor can print and email you your prescription, a summary of your visit along with their notes, and even a referral form if it’s recommended that you see another medical professional. What’s most exciting is the powerful educational content that’s readily available in the app that the doctor can easily share with you. For example, if you (or someone you are with, like a child or parent) are predisposed or have been diagnosed with a condition like glaucoma, there are animations and videos that can show you the difference between normal vision, the current diagnosis, and how it progresses. Many eye conditions are undetectable in their early stages and can be more effectively treated if caught early—one look at these tools and you’ll really understand why it’s so important to get your eyes checked annually.

What Clarifye has achieved is threefold—your results are more precise, more comprehensive and the exam more personalized. It’s removed the things no one likes about getting (or giving) an eye exam—frustrating “which is better, one or two,” questions and little time to speak with your doctor about your needs and concerns. LensCrafters sought out to remedy those pain points. “The goal of this wasn’t for doctors to see more patients in a short amount of time, but to allow them to change what they were doing during that time. The goal is to spend more time on the education, that’s what doctors prefer to do,” says Dr. Ben Chudner (Senior Director, Eye Care atLensCrafters) who has helped develop the Clarifye system and train the practitioners how to use it.

“We are really serious about patients understanding the need for annual eye care,” says Dr. Mark Jacquot, VP and the Clinical Director of Vision Care Operations for LensCrafters. “Some 40 million people in the US have some form of undetected vision or eye health problem.” Hypertension and diabetes can cause problems with the eye, and along with conditions like glaucoma are often undetectable in their early stages, and often result in very serious results, including blindness, if not discovered. “By the end, it’s often too late to intervene,” he notes.

There are things you can do every day for healthy eyes. Here’s what Dr. Jacquot recommends:

Take good care of your body through diet, exercise and good nutrition.

Protect yourself from the sun “what happens to our skin happens to our eyes when it comes to sun exposure,” he says, and notes that many conditions that can appear later in life are caused by sun exposure early on. He recommends that everyone (kids as well) protect our eyes by wearing a good pair of UV blocking (99-100% of UV A and UV B) sunglasses, the larger the better.

Get an annual comprehensive eye exam.