NanoHacks — Tips For Optimizing Your Eyecare Practice With Nanodropper
NanoHacks is your go-to resource for how to optimize your eyecare practice with Nanodropper.
Visit this NanoHacks series to stay up to date on the latest tips on how to best leverage the Nanodropper Adaptor for your eyecare clinic and patients! For additional resources, visit our healthcare professionals home page.
#101 – How to use Nanodropper
#102 – Get your (FREE) educational materials
#103 – How to talk to patients about Nanodropper
#104 – Can you use Nanodropper w/ Fluress? Learn about compatibility
#105 – You have Nanodroppers in the office. Now what?
#106 – What to do if you encounter a defective Nanodropper
#107 – Nanodropper may actually help reduce side effects of powerful drops (like RKIs)
#108 – Use Nanodropper with your post-operative drops
#109 – Nanodropper Usability Features & Troubleshooting
#101 – How to use Nanodropper
While the Nanodropper Adaptor is safe and easy to use, there is a small learning curve — this is a brand new way to get eyedrops out of those bottles! Follow these quick and easy tips (and watch this video!) to ensure a smooth transition with Nanodroppers attached to your eyedrop bottles.
- Don’t pull the cap straight up. This is no longer a twist-off — open it with a sideways cracking motion (at a slight angle), like a glowstick, so it easily pops off to reveal the blue tip!
- Keep it vertical. The eyedrops are now 60% smaller (or more), so the drop could get caught on the tip if you don’t hold the bottle at 90 degrees. Tipping the bottle completely upside down will get you the same-sized drop every time.
- LESS pressure, MORE patience. Try it out on a tissue or tabletop to get a feel for the new lighter pressure — with microdrops, it’s much easier to get a drop out of the bottle!
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Check compatibility. Visit www.nanodropper.com/compatibility if you’re unsure whether your bottle is compatible. If you can’t find it on our list, give us a call! We’d love to help.
#102 – Get your (FREE) educational materials
Need a little pick-me-up when it comes to Nanodropper? We’ve got you covered. Here’s a peek at some educational materials we can send you for staff and patients. By the way — they’re free!
- Clinic Display. We will send you a display for each practice location that dispenses Nanodroppers to patients. This comes with a non-sterile demo Nanodropper Adaptor, so patients can practice taking the cap on and off, and even squeeze the bottle to see the drop. They can also check compatibility with a QR code on the display.
- Patient Benefits Sheet. Save time in the exam rooms! Keep this card to help facilitate conversations about why patients would benefit from using Nanodropper with their home medication bottles. We are happy to send one per exam lane in your clinic.
- Patient Brochures. This is your one-stop-shop for patient education. Brochures include the most pertinent info for patients regarding use with their home medication bottles.
- Coupon Pads. If you don’t dispense Nanodroppers to patients, we can send a patient coupon pad that provides some quick info on Nanodropper and a discount on their first order through our website!
Shoot us an email at pro@nanodropper.com to request these materials today! / Create your partner clinic account to take advantage of these materials today!
#103 – How to talk to patients about Nanodropper
We know time is precious — and limited — with each of your patients. Here are a couple quick ways to describe Nanodropper, and how it could help patients with their treatment plan. Share this with new staff or anyone who needs a refresher!
- If your patients suffer from any of these issues, they can benefit from Nanodropper:
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- Spend $10 or more out-of-pocket per bottle
- Run out of drops before the end of the month
- Have side effects / tolerability concerns
- Frequent drop users (Smaller drops minimize preservative exposure)
- Difficulty aiming or squeezing the bottle
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- Eyedrops are too big, Nanodropper makes them smaller.
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- Your eyedrops are actually 5 times too large for your eye to absorb.
- The Nanodropper recaptures all that waste and creates a smaller drop.
- You’ll have almost 3 times as many doses per bottle!
- A 30-day supply becomes a 90-day supply.
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- Save money with Nanodropper.
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- However much your medication costs, multiply it by 2. That’s how much you save by using Nanodropper.
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- $ Out-of-Pocket Cost x 2 = $ Savings
- Example: $50 Cost x 2 = $100 Savings
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- Rule of Thumb: Patients who spend $10 or more per bottle will usually save money with Nanodropper!
- However much your medication costs, multiply it by 2. That’s how much you save by using Nanodropper.
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- Need a refresher or some quick training for your staff? Visit the education tab of our site to schedule a virtual, inservice training session! Or email pro@nanodropper.com if you have any questions.
#104 – Can you use Nanodropper w/ Fluress? Learn about compatibility
Sorry, Nanodropper is not compatible with Fluress. BUT, the Adaptor does work with about 90% of all multi-use, preservative containing eyedrop bottles.
We constantly update a list of compatible medications at www.nanodropper.com/comp. (Remember to check the manufacturer for generic medications, see Latanoprost for an example!)
Here are some commonly mentioned medication bottles Nanodropper IS compatible with:
And some that Nanodropper IS NOT compatible with:
#105 – You have Nanodroppers in the office. Now what?
Your box of Nanodropper Adaptors have arrived. What can you do with them now? You’ve got a few options — all of them will benefit your clinic!
1. Attach Nanodropper Adaptors to all your exam lane drops
Your dilation drops like phenylephrine, proparacaine, and tropicamide are compatible with Nanodropper. A 2.5-mL bottle might typically put out around 50-70 drops. With a Nanodropper Adaptor attached, the amount of drops can triple. The same bottle will put out up to 250 drops now, leading to huge financial savings for your clinic.
2. Sell Nanodropper Adaptors to patients who need them
You won’t get rich off selling Nanodroppers to your patients, but everybody wins when you get this device in the hands of patients who A) run out of drops before the end of the month, B) have trouble affording their drops, or C) experience side effects / tolerability concerns.
See NanoHack #103 for tips on talking to patients about Nanodropper!
While the Nanodropper is an extra cost for the patient, over time they will reap significant financial savings from using the device with their medications. Again, Nanodropper nearly triples the amount of drops in a bottle, thus saving the patient up to 2 refills, and alleviates your staff’s emotional burden of fielding early refill request calls.
3. Don’t forget to put out your marketing materials and cheat sheets (See: NanoHack #102)
#106 – What to do if you encounter a defective Nanodropper
Our team prides itself on having taken every step to deliver the highest-quality product for our customers. We always stand behind our products! If you ever find any devices with manufacturing defects, we will replace or refund any inventory that isn’t up to our quality standards.
If you have encountered any problems, please read on for next steps. Some examples of the previously reported issues include:
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Broken base / cap that will not snap back on
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Tip with no, or partially sealed hole
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Device with no tip
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Unassembled units in sterile pouch
1. Let us know!
It is critical that you report any defects and concerns to our team so that we can take the appropriate steps to mitigate the issue. Clinics can email pro@nanodropper.com to report these issues, and patients can reach us at support@nanodropper.com, or call us at (507) 405-5676.
2. Supply information
Our team may request info such as a photo and/or lot number for our records.
3. Get your replacement or refund
We will send free replacements to you, or refund your inventory as needed.
Trust Our 5-Star Customer Support
“Thank you for being so polite and helpful on the phone, as it is a rare find in customer service these days. I’m very hopeful that this could be a product from which many of our patients and clients could benefit, and it’s an added bonus that I can pass along how stellar customer care is at Nanodropper.”
4. What if my patient reports an issue?
If your patient reports an issue with a product you sold them, please process a replacement or refund directly with your patient and then work with us to replace that inventory back to you.
PS: This goes for any problem that you may encounter with our device, including compatibility issues (reminder to always check our compatibility list before selling to a patient, see: NanoHack #104!)
#107 – Nanodropper may actually help reduce side effects of powerful drops
(like Rho kinase inhibitors)
Two of the biggest barriers to patient adherence are early bottle exhaustion (patients run out before they are due for their next refill) or side effects discourage them from taking their drops (like hyperemia or other uncomfortable side effects).
A recently study presented at ARVO and the World Ophthalmology Congress demonstrates that Nanodropper may resolve these issues.
- The study concluded that microdrops delivered with the Nanodropper Adaptor provided non-inferior and superior IOP-lowering efficacy
- Nanodropper also reduced early bottle exhaustion by 80 percent and side effect prevalence by 67 percent.
Another recent study published in the journal Ophthalmology showed those who received microdrops with Nanodropper versus conventional drops also experienced a significantly smaller decrease in heart rate, demonstrating there could be an enhanced safety profile of using a microdrop of timolol compared to a conventionally-sized eyedrop.
“Less is more. Patients often think more is better, but it’s not. Nanodropper is an exciting tool for patients to reduce the size of their eyedrop. When you reduce the size of the drop, you can often reduce the amount of side effects. Nanodropper can allow my patients’ drops to last longer, even 2 or 3 months.”
Constance Okeke, MD
Glaucoma Specialist at Virginia Eye Consultants, Advisor for Nanodropper
#108 – Use Nanodropper with your post-operative drops
Is your clinic a surgery center, or do you refer patients to a surgery center for their more specialized eyecare needs? Nanodropper can help patients who need post-op drops!
We often hear about patients who run out of their post-operative drops before the end of their treatment term. This can lead to post-surgical complications, refill issues, and unexpected costs for patients who are already balancing the cost of surgery and complicated post-op regimens. For your office, this issue often results in administrative burden and reduced patient satisfaction.
A simple solution is to include Nanodropper Adaptors in post-op surgical kits:
- Triple the number of drops per bottle to ensure patients never run out early
- Option to extend a single bottle for bilateral surgeries
- Compatible with common compounded post-op drops from companies like Imprimis and OSRX
- HSA- and FSA-eligible, or include Nanodropper in the cost of the post-op kit
The Nanodroppers are recommended for all patients undergoing cataract surgery who are purchasing the all-in-one ‘premium’ drop, as opposed to the three individual drops. When patients return for their second eye surgery, the process is the same. Honestly, it’s a great invention—our patients love it. I’ve never received a single complaint, only pure joy that they’re not wasting any of the ‘premium’ drops, especially since they cost $65 out of pocket.
Nanodropper-Partnered Surgery Center
#109 – Nanodropper Usability Features & Troubleshooting
Nanodropper doesn’t just make eyedrops smaller — there are many other great, user-friendly features! Here are a few:
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Pop-Off Cap: This cap design is much easier for low-dexterity hands (pop off the cap using a sideways breaking motion, like cracking a glowstick).
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Bullseye: The blue tip and gray base of the Nanodropper create a high-contrast color pattern to help patients more easily see the tip and aim their drops.
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Soft Silicone Tip: The soft medical-grade material is friendlier to the eye in case of accidental pokes!
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Anti-Roll Base: The squared off shape helps bottles not roll off tables or countertops if they are knocked over
- Colored Labels & Dosing Icons: We provide clinics with colored labels corresponding to the various medication classes (since patients remove the original color-coded cap to install the Nanodropper) and dosing reminder icons that help patients remember when to take which drop.
