About SDI

Secure Diagnostic Imaging (SDI) is a medical services solution company developed by doctors for doctors.  SDI is the culmination of 6 years of research and development in the field of tele-ophthalmology.   Unlike other telemedicine companies, SDI sole objective is to assist doctors in delivering eye care to their patients. 

In Canada , as well as other locations around the globe, there is a shortage of specialists to serve the health needs of the population.  SDI stands apart from other tele-ophthalmology projects, where screening is the primary objective.  Instead, SDI enables physicians to provide standard of care evaluation and diagnosis via tele-ophthalmology. It does this by utilizing high resolution, stereoscopic digital imaging coupled with testing of visual acuity and intraocular pressures.  The use of a comprehensive eye examination by teleophthalmology, when compared to a screening examination is beneficial in three ways: 

First, unnecessary referrals are reduced or eliminated.  As an example, diabetics with diabetic retinopathy need only be referred once they develop proliferative diabetic retinopathy with high-risk characteristics, or clinically significant macular edema.  Until the development of treatable disease the patient can be followed at a distance without the need to travel to the consultant's office. 

Second, following treatment, referred patients can continue to be followed post-treatment at a distance without the need for further travel.  For example, having undergone focal laser treatment for clinically significant macular edema, a patient is then followed by teleophthalmology at three months post treatment.  Only if the patient needs laser a second time, do they need travel to the consultant's office once again.

Third, a comprehensive examination by teleophthalmology enables the consultant to plan for necessary testing and treatment at the time of a patient's first visit.  As an example, if a patient is assessed by teleophthalmology and found to have elevated intraocular pressure and enlarged cup to disc ratio, a visual field can be ordered for the day of the patient's referral to the glaucoma specialist.  The teleophthalmology visit becomes the first contact visit with the patient, while the second “office” visit enables the glaucoma specialist to review the findings of the visual field, and commence treatment after discussions with the patient. 

This improvement in efficiency decreases time to treatment as well as costs to the health care system.  It also decreases the number of patients traveling to a consultant's office, while increasing the percentage of patients needing treatment versus no treatment who travel to the consultant's office.