The country’s largest eyecare provider is testing whether introducing intense pulsed light therapy is a viable option for its business and dry eye sufferers. Here are the early results from the pilot phase.
At its most recent clinical conference, Specsavers pulled back the curtain on the early work it is doing to potentially bring advanced dry eye treatment into its clinical workflow.
It’s no small feat, given the network is now responsible for five million patient journeys a year, with each step of the patient visit carefully mapped out to ensure an efficient, effective and easily accessible experience – at scale.
The company, Australia’s largest eyecare provider with 393 locations across Australia, revealed it has been expanding a pilot so more patients can receive treatment to reduce their dry eye symptoms at specific Specsavers practices, using intense pulsed light (IPL) technology.
According to Dr Ben Ashby, Specsavers ANZ clinical services director, the project that launched in May 2024 was to grow to nine practices across the country by the end of last year, with early results and feedback from patients and stores being consistently monitored to determine whether it should go further.
Six months on, Specsavers shares with Insight its early learnings and thoughts on the pilot, how patients are responding, and whether this will lead to a nationwide rollout.
Why advanced dry eye treatment?
Dry eye disease is reported to be one of the most common eye conditions affecting Australians. In fact, it’s thought around one in five, and one in every three people over the age of 65, suffer in this country, with numbers expected to rise as the population ages and screen time increases.
The condition is often under-diagnosed, with many patients struggling with the discomfort of dryness, irritation, and fluctuating vision. Common causes include prolonged digital device use, hormonal changes (especially in women) and environmental factors like dry climates. There’s also meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD), the leading cause of evaporative dry eye.
While traditional treatments like artificial tears and lifestyle modifications remain optometry staples, advanced dry eye treatments such as IPL therapy are proving an effective solution for these patients.
It is specifically effective in treating MGD as the therapy delivers broad-spectrum light pulses, targeting abnormal blood vessels and stimulating the natural flow of oil.
This process is said to enhance the function of meibomian glands, improving tear film stability and reducing the irritation associated with
dry eye.
Dr Ashby says Specsavers has long wanted to offer a wider range of advanced dry eye solutions.
“Dry eye disease can have a profound impact on a person’s quality-of-life, extending far beyond the physical discomfort of itchy, burning, or gritty eyes,” he says.
“While the symptoms themselves are disruptive, the condition can affect daily activities, emotional well-being, work productivity, and social interactions. These symptoms can be relentless, often worsening throughout the day, making it difficult to focus on tasks or enjoy activities. Even simple actions like reading, driving, or watching TV can become challenging, as the eyes may not have the moisture they need to function properly.”
Dr Ashby says Specsavers saw the lack of easily obtained information and “the inaccessible treatment options available for dry eye disease”, prompting the network into action.
“Our ambition for this advanced dry eye treatment pilot is to provide a service that leads to enhanced eye health outcomes for Australians and fits in with our philosophy that the best quality eyecare should be easily accessed by everyone.”
What the early results say
As of January 2025, the nine Specsavers practices offering advanced dry eye treatment services had provided treatment to 319 patients, administering more than 1,000 IPL applications.
As anticipated, the company says early adopters of Specsavers’ advanced dry eye treatment pilot were females aged between 41 and 70 and early trends were indicating “very good compliance with follow-up treatments”. Around 90% of patients reported improvements to their dry eye symptoms after a full course of treatment.
Specsavers ANZ head of professional services Dr Joe Paul says his team have also been monitoring the impact of the treatment – paid for out-of-pocket by patients – by accessing symptom questionnaire responses logged by optometrists when delivering the treatment.
“At each advanced dry eye treatment appointment, optometrists ask their patients about the frequency and severity of their symptoms on that date. The patients then give an answer from zero to five with five being very frequent and the worst severity. This establishes a Symptom Assessment in Dry Eye (SANDE) score,” he says.
“When we compare the average SANDE scores at appointment one versus appointment four, we have observed an obvious change in symptom frequency and severity, showing that the treatment is working for the patients. The mean improvement changes 1.7 points for frequency of dry eye symptoms and 1.6 points for severity of symptoms. This is captured even before the patient experiences the impact of their fourth treatment, so we know the treatment is having a remarkable effect on our patients.”
Specsavers Cranbourne optometrist Ms Linda Zhang has been one of the first to pilot advanced dry eye treatment and says seeing patients experience it and the impact on their lives has been both encouraging and fulfilling.
“In the past I found managing dry eye patients to be quite challenging as many treatments only provided temporary relief instead of addressing the root cause. I wanted to help the patient, but I sometimes felt very limited in the treatment options available to offer truly effective and long-term solutions for the patient,” she says.
“As a result of offering advanced dry eye treatment, my approach to dry eye has become more proactive and comprehensive. I now prioritise early diagnosis and education, emphasising advanced treatments including IPL when appropriate. Understanding the transformative impact these treatments can have has made me more confident in recommending them as part of the personalised management plan.”
Dr Ashby says Zhang’s experience and feedback has been consistent with most optometrists who are now offering these treatment to patients.
“It has been very encouraging to hear the many stories of patients whose eye health outcomes have improved and whose daily lives have been enhanced thanks to their advanced dry eye treatment at their local Specsavers practice.
“As optometrists, our purpose is to change lives through better sight and this pilot is an opportunity to significantly impact a person’s physical comfort and long-term eye health, creating a ripple effect that influences work, relationships and emotional well-being.”
While Dr Ashby can’t confirm whether advanced dry eye treatment would be rolling out nationwide, he indicated it was expected to expand further in the months ahead.
“In this project, we’re working in a fast-moving test and learn situation, where patient outcomes are being monitored and feedback from optometrists and patients is being gathered in real time,” he says.
“We’re continuing with our focus on making the high-quality service as accessible as possible, especially given the current tough economic climate. In the future, we believe that the harsh symptoms of dry eye disease will be a thing of the past for Australians and we’re doing all we can to make that vision a reality.”
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