Alcon sets out to innovate and integrate Korea’s eye surgery environment

Alcon, a global medical device company specializing in ophthalmology, is set to revolutionize eye care in Korea. The company has announced its intention to build a digital eye surgery environment from diagnosis to postoperative treatment in one fell swoop.

Alcon's weapon of innovation is the “Alcon Vision Suite.” A system that integrates clinical diagnostic equipment, digital surgical equipment, and a high-level training system to support ophthalmologists, the Alcon Vision Suite comprises equipment to help plan ophthalmic surgery and calculate intraocular lens degrees, an ophthalmic microscope, a 3D visualization system, and an intraocular pressure maintenance system, providing a stable treatment environment.

The system allows patients to move from diagnosis to postoperative care in a single process, making it convenient for them to receive care while helping doctors manage their time more efficiently with streamlined processes and integrated data to provide the best possible care.

Alcon is confident that the Alcon Vision Suite will improve the patient experience and enhance the efficiency of the medical team, resulting in more accurate and precise diagnosis and treatment.

Korea Biomedical Review recently caught up with Seba Leoni, President of International Surgical Franchise at Alcon, to learn more about the significance of the launch of the Alcon Vision Suite and the importance of building a digital surgical environment.

Question: Please introduce your company to our readers.

Answer: Alcon is a global leader in surgeon eye care with three primary surgeon businesses -- cataract, refractive surgery, and retina. In the 75 years since its founding, the company has been committed to its mission of "We help people see brilliantly" and solving major problems.

Q: How does Alcon assess the Korean market?

A: Global expansion is essential to Alcon, and the company started expanding into overseas markets early on. A case in point is Korea. Last year was the 30th anniversary of Alcon's presence in South Korea.

According to the latest statistics, 9.5 million Koreans are 65 and older. By 2050, the number and potential patients with geriatric eye diseases is expected to more than double to 19 million. It is noteworthy that South Korea's older adults are very active. More than 30 percent of South Koreans 65 and older are employed. Alcon's goal in Korea and the rest of the world is to continue to innovate to ensure that this growing patient population receives the best eye care and outcomes and that everyone, no matter where they go, receives the same high-quality, consistent care.

The Korean market is an integral part of Alcon's growth strategy. In fact, for 30 years, Alcon Korea has built close relationships with Korean ophthalmologists and key opinion leaders, listening to their opinions and incorporating them into Alcon's product development. This has allowed the company to develop more advanced technologies that meet the needs of patients worldwide, including those in Korea.

Q: Alcon recently launched the Alcon Vision Suite. We heard that the company has high expectations for this system. Could you elaborate?

A: Alcon strives to develop products with the best features, services, and digital solutions across our various products. This harmonized and integrated set of products, services, and digital solutions is what the Alcon Vision Suite is all about -- providing a better user experience.

For example, when you use Apple's iPhone and Apple Watch, the user interface (UI) and user experience (UX) are very similar, making it easier and more functional without much training. Likewise, Alcon has similar button structures, UI, and UX between different devices, from preoperative diagnostic devices to surgical devices, to help ophthalmologists, technicians, and other real-world users become intuitive and proficient without much training and education.

A support system is also in place to optimize the experience using the Alcon Vision Suite. It offers a range of solutions to help medical professionals plan eye surgeries more accurately and efficiently. It also provides remote service support. For example, technical service engineers can remotely monitor devices in healthcare centers and proactively detect and take action when issues arise, preventing efficiency losses.

The Alcon Vision Suite increases the overall efficiency of eye care, ensuring that patients can expect the best possible outcomes from the most advanced technology. It also enables more precise planning during surgery, reduces the likelihood of reoperations, and reduces the overall cost of care. In addition to these benefits, using various ophthalmic surgery-related equipment becomes much easier, significantly reducing the need for training for different user experiences on devices. Overall, everything is much more consistent and streamlined, which is expected to help a growing number of patients manage their eye health.

Q: How is the Alcon Vision Suite organized?

A: The Alcon Vision Suite cannot be defined as a single product. It is a process of building an ecosystem. Each ophthalmologist has different surgical equipment needs, directions, and speeds. In organizing the necessary equipment accordingly, the Alcon Vision Suite builds an ecosystem, including examination and surgery). Some doctors may want to start with cataract surgery equipment, add diagnostic equipment and microscopes, and finally, digital solutions. Changing everything at once can be disruptive, which explains why Alcon works with each medical institution to help make technology easier and more comfortable for doctors to adopt.

Ultimately, it's all about integration. The Alcon Vision Suite connects data between the exam and the operating room to increase the efficiency of diagnostic and surgical procedures. For example, in performing cataract surgery, patients may undergo as many as 15 tests at the hospital. With the Alcon Vision Suite, data from patients’ various tests can be linked so that all the necessary information is accessible anywhere, from the examination room to the operating room. Even during surgery, the patient's data can be viewed on a display, allowing the surgeon to understand patients’ conditions better and plan the surgery carefully. In addition, integrating data from multiple diagnostic devices increases efficiency, saving time and reducing the potential for errors in data transfer. This ultimately contributes to improving the quality of care and patient satisfaction.

Q: In recent years, ophthalmology has undergone various changes, led by digital solutions. Is the Alcon Vision Suite a step in keeping with these changes?

A: Yes, it is. Many changes are taking place in ophthalmic surgery, with efficiency being a key focus. Introducing new technologies must be tailored to each hospital’s and their staff’s needs and circumstances. Cataract surgery, in particular, requires a very high level of precision when working with the patient's eye, so ophthalmologists are cautious about introducing new devices. Alcon provides these ophthalmologists with optimized devices and supports them as they move on to the next device.

Alcon also seeks open source, so you can experience some of the benefits (of the Alcon Vision Suite) even if you use other diagnostic or visualization equipment than just the Alcon system. We help you still enjoy some benefits, including automatic information transfer from examination to operating rooms, albeit not as much as when your system comprises only Alcon products.

Q: What are the direct benefits for hospitals of adopting the Alcon Vision Suite system?

A: As mentioned earlier, the Alcon Vision Suite is not a single product but an ecosystem of products and services, which means that you can customize the product to your hospital's situation and get the best service and support from an integrated digital solution, no matter which product you choose. Whether it's diagnostic equipment, cataract surgery equipment, microscopes, or microscopes, we can consult on a device-by-device and configuration-by-configuration basis.

I can assure you that with Alcon products, you will experience "1+1 equals more than 2.” For example, diagnostic instruments, such as Argos, offer the advantage of efficiently examining the patient's ocular metrology while providing accurate measurements. When combined with a digital solution, the data from the examination can be efficiently communicated to the operating room with minimal chance of error. This means you can plan your surgery or daily schedule more quickly.

Q: Alcon is also known for its well-developed training system for medical staff.

A: One of its flagship training platforms is the Alcon Experience Academy. The platform offers various training courses each year, ranging from immersive virtual reality training and online courses to in-person training. In particular, it supports education and training materials across ophthalmology and the latest resources for using Alcon technologies safely and effectively.

What sets Alcon apart from other companies in educating healthcare providers is its Clinical Application Service (CAS) team. This team assists ophthalmologists or healthcare providers with the optimal application of Alcon's technology and provides additional services related to the Alcon Vision Suite. Hundreds of CAS teams are deployed globally to provide specialized services tailored to the needs of our customers. These teams are trained in-house by Alcon and do not work in a sales role. They visit hospitals to provide training on using Alcon's innovations best or assist with questions related to specific devices and their application in a patient's surgery. This specialized training in ophthalmic surgery is a major advantage.

Q: Lastly, what would you like to say to Korean medical professionals?

A: Alcon is committed to providing the highest level of eye care and will support realizing the highest-level eye care possible in Korea, an important market. To do this, we are always willing to listen. Through Alcon Korea, we will actively incorporate your feedback into our ongoing projects to ensure that we continue to develop products relevant to Korean patients.