Eye-Connect: Patient-Focused Management of Diabetic Care and Vision Screening and Referral for Diabetic Retinopathy

Program Overview
Diabetic retinopathy (DR)/diabetic macular edema (DME) affect a majority of patients with diabetes, but appropriate management of diabetes, vision screening, and timely referral to specialty eye care can help halt progression of the disease. This curriculum offers practical strategies clinicians can use to empower patients to engage in recommended diabetic eye care (eg, screening, risk factors), a look at the progressive nature of DR to underscore the importance of early intervention, and an overview of novel screening and diagnostic tools that can be used to expedite care.
This activity is provided by Paradigm Medical Communications, LLC.   

 
Presenting Faculty and Steering Committee

	Judy E. Kim, MD, FARVO, FASRS—Chairperson Professor, Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences Vitreoretinal Diseases and Surgery Professor, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences Director, Teleophthalmology and Research Medical College of Wisconsin Milwaukee, WI
	Vivian Fonseca, MD Professor of Medicine and Pharmacology  Assistant Dean for Clinical Research Tullis Tulane Alumni Chair in Diabetes  Chief, Section of Endocrinology Tulane University Health Sciences Center  New Orleans, LA
	Amy Zack, MD Assistant Professor Case Western Reserve University Assistant Professor Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine Family Medicine Staff Vice Chair of Education Cleveland Clinic Community Care Cleveland, OH
	Contributing Faculty  Steven Ferrucci, OD, FAAO Chief, Optometry Section Sepulveda VA Medical Center Professor Marshall B. Ketchum University Fullerton, CA

 

Faculty Reviewers

Justine Filippelli, MS, PA-C
Physician Assistant, Oculoplastic and Reconstructive Surgery
Cole Eye Institute
Cleveland, OH

Debbie Hinnen, APN, BC-ADM, CDCES, FAAN, FADCES
Advanced Practice Nurse
Certified Diabetes Care and Education Specialist
University of Colorado Health
Colorado Springs, CO
 

Group Leaders

Amy Babiuch, MD
Medical Retina Specialist
Avon Lake, OH

Puneet Braich, MD
Clinical Instructor
Clarence Center, NY

Joy Moverly, PA
Program Director
Touro University California

Amy Butts, PA-C
Endocrinology Physician Assistant
WVU Medicine Wheeling Hospital
McDonald, PA

Christian Hermansen, MD
Eye Connect
Regional Medical Director
Penn Medicine Lancaster General Health
Mountville, PA

Komal Motwani, MD
Physician
UNC Health Southeastern
Lumberton, NC

Rehan Hussain, MD
Retina Health Institute
Algonquin, IL

Linda Siy, MD
JPS Health Network
Euless, TX

Daniel Tadeo, MD
Kaiser Health,
Gaithersburg, MD

Sean Conroy, PA
Lane County Hospital
Dighton, KS

Michele Durr, MD
Chief of Medical Staff, Clinical Medical Director
Webster County Community Hospital/Clinic
Red Cloud, NE

Brian Policastro, PA-C
Physician Assistant
Jersey Shore University Medical Center
Ocean, NJ

Lisa Masson, MD
Eye Connect
Associate Professor
UCLA
Los Angeles, CA

Brice Hwang, MD
Physicians Eyecare of Georgia
Atlanta, GA

Sonum Singh, MD
Endocrinology Associates
Springfield, PA

Gopinath Sunil, MD
Endocrinology Specialist
Ampla Health
Chico, CA

Alyssa Owens, MPAS, PA-C
Physician Assistant
Pittsburgh PA

Doug Duffee, MD
Parkview Medical Center
Pueblo CO

Christina Butera, MD
The Eye Center
Sterling, VA

Rufus Sadler, MD
Downcounty Medical
Mount Vernon, NY

Katherine Speckman, MD
Clinical Family Health
BOULDER, CO

Aminta Bhatia, PA
Emory University
Evans, GA

Darlene Fludd, NP
Diabetes Educator
Clemson Rural Health
Orangeburg, SC

Daniel Silverstein, MD LLC
Internal Medicine
Morristown, NJ

Peter Zajac, DO
Family Medicine
Prestonburg, KY

Harneet Ranauta, MD, MPH
Chief Resident
DeTar Family Medicine Residency
Victoria, TX

Shahzaib Anwar, MD
Staff Physician
EBO MD
Cape Girardeau, MO

Jeff Ye, MD
North Atlanta Medical & Digestive Care
Alpharetta GA

Mary Delgado, RN
St. Jude children’s research hospital
Memphis, TN

Linh Le, PharmD
Clinical Pharmacist
Central City Concern
Portland, OR

Judith Slover-Zipf, DNP,MSN,APRN
Nurse Practitioner
JSUMC
Neptune, NJ

Patricia Seabrooks, APRN-BC, PhD
Eye Connect
President/Consultant
Seabrooks and Associates Consulting
Lauderhill, FL

Rachel Azzarelli, PA-C
Eye Connect
Trinity family physician
Tampa, FL

Namrata Dass, MD
Adjunct Clinical Assistant Professor
Premier Endocrinology PLLC
Katy, TX 

Paulette Grey Riveria, MD
Owner/Private Practice
My Doctor’s House
Baton Rouge, LA

 

Rachel Jenson, PharmD
Clinical Pharmacist
UCHealth Memorial Hospital
Colorado Springs, CO

Target Audience
This activity has been designed to address the educational needs of primary care providers (PCPs) (ie, internists, family practitioners, nurse practitioners, and PAs), endocrinologists, optometrists, ophthalmologists, and residents.

Supporter Acknowledgment
This activity is supported by an independent medical educational grant from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this activity, participants should be able to:

• Describe the natural history of diabetic retinopathy DR/DME, with an emphasis on its progressive nature, which underscores the need for earlier diagnosis and treatment to prevent the development of vision-threatening complications
• Recognize key factors for patient education that are needed to catalyze uptake of recommended eye care in patients with diabetes
• Identify collaborative strategies that can be used to enhance the multidisciplinary care of patients with or at risk for DR/DME to foster earlier recognition, treatment, and long-term management of DR/DME across the continuum
• Recognize early signs of DR/DME that warrant referral, based on accurate interpretation of examination and tests, including novel imaging devices
• Devise care plans for patients with diabetes that incorporate eye care screening in alignment with current guideline recommendations
• Summarize new data that demonstrate the importance of early and proactive DR/DME diagnosis and treatment, to provide the rationale for earlier referral

Physician Accreditation Statement
Paradigm Medical Communications, LLC is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

Physician Credit Designation Statement
Paradigm Medical Communications, LLC designates this other/blended activity for a maximum of 3.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Instructions for Participation
To receive a certificate of participation, participants must:

• Follow instructions to register or log in with your professional information and complete the pre-assessment
• View the online activity in its entirety
• Complete and submit the online post-assessment and evaluation. You must answer 70% of the post-assessment questions correctly to earn credit. You will have unlimited opportunities to successfully complete the post-assessment

A certificate of participation will be available for download/printing immediately following your successful completion of the post-assessment and evaluation.

For questions regarding CME credit, contact the Paradigm CME Department at cme@paradigmmc.com.

There are no fees for participating in this activity.

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Disclosure of Relevant Financial Relationships
In accordance with the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education’s (ACCME) Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education, Paradigm requires that all planners, faculty, and others who are in a position to control the content of this activity disclose all financial relationships with ineligible companies during the past 24 months.

All relevant relationships are identified and mitigated according to Paradigm policy prior to individuals assuming their roles, and are disclosed prior to learners’ engagement in the activity. Paradigm is committed to providing learners with high-quality accredited continuing education that promotes improvements or quality in healthcare and not a specific proprietary business interest of an ineligible company.

The content of this activity was independently reviewed to ensure that it is fair and balanced, scientifically rigorous, evidence based, and aligned with the public interest. All relevant relationships have been mitigated.

Steven Ferrucci, OD, FAAO
Advisor: Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc; Notal Vision, Inc; ScienceBased Health; Visible Genomics
Speaker’s Bureau: Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc

Justine Filippelli, PA-C
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Vivian Fonseca, MD
Consultant: Abbott; Asahi Kasei Pharma Corporation; AstraZeneca; Bayer Corporation; Intarcia Therapeutics; Novo Nordisk A/S; Sanofi; Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Ltd
Speakers Bureau: Abbott; Asahi Kasei Pharma Corporation; AstraZeneca; Bayer Corporation; Intarcia Therapeutics; Novo Nordisk A/S; Sanofi; Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Ltd
Research Funding: Fractyl Health, Inc; Jaguar Gene Therapy (paid to Tulane)
Stock Options: Abbott; Amgen Inc; BRAVO4Health; Mellitus Health, Inc

Debbie Hinnen, APN, BC-ADM, CDCES, FAAN, FADCES
Advisor: Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH; Eli Lilly and Company; Intuity Medical; Novo Nordisk A/S; Sanofi
Consultant: Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH; Eli Lilly and Company; Novo Nordisk A/S; Sanofi
Speakers Bureau: Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH; Eli Lilly and Company; Novo Nordisk A/S; Sanofi (expired 2021)

Judy E. Kim, MD, FARVO, FASRS, MD
Advisor: Novartis AG
Consultant: Adverum Biotechnologies, Inc; Allergan, Inc.; Alimera Sciences; Dutch Ophthalmic Research Center (International) BV;  Genentech, Inc.; Novartis AG; Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc
Research Funding: Notal Vision, Inc; Heidelberg Engineering Inc; Optos

Amy Zack, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Michelle Dalton
Independent Contractor: Allergan, Inc.; ZEISS International; Heidelberg Engineering Inc (expired 2021); Notal Vision, Inc (expired 2021); NovaSight; Ocular Therapeutix, Inc (expired 2020); Tarsius Pharma 
Stocks: Abbvie Inc. (sold 1/22); Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (sold 1/22); Johnson & Johnson Services, Inc

Puneet Braich, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships to disclose.

Amy S. Babuich, MD

• Consultant: Genentech, Inc.  
• Research Support: Genentech, Inc.; Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. 

Joy Moverley, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships to disclose

Amy Butts, PA-C

• Speakers Bureau : Bayer Corporation; Novo Nordisk A/S
• Advisory Board: Novo Nordisk A/S

Christian Hermansen, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Komal Motwani, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships to disclose

Rehan Hussain, MD

• Advisory Board: Alimera Sciences

Linda Siy, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Daniel Tadeo, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships to disclose.

Sean Conroy, PA
Has no relevant financial relationships to disclose.

Michele Durr, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Brian Policastro, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Lisa Masson, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Brice Hwang, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Sonum Singh, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Gopinath Sunil, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Alyssa Owens, PA
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Christina Butera, MD
Consultant: Treehouse Eyes

Rufus Sadler, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Aminta Bhatia, PA
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Katherine Speckman, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Darlene Fludd, NP
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose

Daniel Silverstein, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose 

Peter Zajac, DO
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose

Harneet Ranauta, MD, MPH
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose

Shahzaib Anwar, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose

Jeff Ye, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Mary Delgado, RN
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Linh Le, PharmD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose

Patricia Seabrooks, APRN-BC, PhD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose

Rachel Azzarelli, PA-C
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose 

Judith Slover-Zipf, DNP,MSN,APRN 
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose

Namrata Dass, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose

Paulette Grey Riveria, MD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose

Rachel Jenson, PharmD
Has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose

Staff planners from Paradigm Medical Communications, LLC not listed above have no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Gather-Ed staff members have no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

Independent peer reviewer has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose.

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