Real-World Views of Patching Differ to Health Professionals': An Online Survey of Professionals, Patients, Teachers, Parents and Carers.

Background: Patching therapy is the most common treatment for amblyopia (lazy eye) and is unsuccessful for approximately 40% of patients, leaving them with life-long unilateral visual impairment and increased risk of bilateral visual impairment later in life. Poor adherence to patching therapy is a major contributing factor in treatment failure yet we lack real-world understanding as to why this is a problem outside of controlled research studies.

Methods: In collaboration with patient contributors, we developed an online survey for past patients, parents/carers of children with amblyopia, health professionals, and schoolteachers. The survey included questions about when and where is best for children to wear the patch, the design of the patch, and facilitators and barriers to patching therapy.

Results: We received 631 responses to the survey (259 health professionals, 213 parents/carers, 110 people who patched as a child, 7 teachers, and 42 people matched to multiple categories). Healthcare professionals thought weekday (54.4% versus 14.3% preferring weekend and 31.3% no difference) and school (54.4% versus 21.6% preferred home and 23.9% no difference) patching was more successful. Past patients (52.4%) favoured 'force' as a technique to encourage patching; more than both health professionals (7.7%) and parents or carers (19.7%). Patients rated 'people making fun' of them as an important barrier to patching.

Conclusions: We describe surprising differences in stakeholders' responses to the survey questions about barriers to successful patching treatment. We suggest these differences are used as a guide for further work to explore stakeholder's social experience of patching.