Optometrists invited to complete survey on AI in eye care

Optometrists in the UK are invited to complete a short online survey exploring practitioner attitudes to artificial intelligence (AI).

Optometrists, dispensing opticians, ophthalmologists and GPs from both the UK and Malaysia are eligible to complete the survey, which is a collaboration between the University of Leicester and the Malaysian specialist ophthalmic practice, OasisEye.

Primary author and co-investigator, Raees Ismail, shared that the anonymous survey should take around 10 minutes to complete.

Topics covered within the questionnaire include the perceived clinical utility of AI, as well as trust in the technology, reliability and industry validation.

“Artificial intelligence in ophthalmology has moved from research demonstration to commercial deployment within roughly five years. Tools such as IDx-DR, EyeArt, OasisAI Retina Check, and a wide range of OCT-integrated AI modules are now in active use, often with limited prospective evidence in local populations,” Ismail highlighted.

He added that despite rapid deployment of this technology, there are a range of unknowns – including how clinicians within different specialties perceive and use AI tools.

“Most published surveys conflate ophthalmologists with retinal specialists and exclude GPs and optometrists, who are the front-line operators of community screening AI,” Ismail shared.

The research will explore how perceptions of AI differ between the UK, as a high-income country, and Malaysia, as a middle-income country. Both countries also have different regulatory environments and funding structures.

The deadline for completing the online survey is 30 September.