Don't Lose Sight of the Importance of Eye Exams-Using Telehealth in Primary Care Centers to Extend Access to Diabetic Retinopathy (DR) Screening

Kentucky’s citizens have some of the poorest health of any state in the country. According to the 2012 America’s Health Rankings, a study from the United Health Foundation (http://www.americashealthrankings.org/KY/2012), Kentucky’s overall health ranking was 44th in the country. Significant statistics that contribute to that ranking include the rate of Obesity (40th), Diabetes (41st) and smoking (50th). The larger urban populations of Louisville, Lexington and the Northern Kentucky corridor have comparatively healthy populations, closer to the national averages for all these metrics, which leaves a relatively small population in rural Kentucky that has significantly worse health statistics that bring the statewide averages to these dismal levels. One of the most prevalent health problems in Kentucky is Diabetes. According to the 2011 National Diabetes Fact Sheet (http://www.diabetes.org/diabetes-basics/diabetesstatistics/? loc=DropDownDB-stats), 25.8 million Americans have diabetes, and over 27% are undiagnosed. Among all the complications resulting from the disease, including heart disease, stroke, kidney disease, nervous system disease and amputation of extremities, blindness is one of the most devastating. Diabetes is the leading cause of new cases of blindness among adults aged 20-74 years old and in 2005-2008 4.2 million (28.5%) people with diabetes aged 40 and older had diabetic retinopathy, and almost 700,000 (4.4% of those with diabetes) had advanced diabetic retinopathy that could lead to severe vision loss. This project is a partnership between the University of Kentucky and the White House Clinics serving rural central Kentucky and the St. Claire Family Medicine Clinics serving rural eastern Kentucky.