Alcon announces MARLO updates with anticipated unveiling of new app at SECO 2024

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Launched in 2020, Alcon’s MARLO online platform is now getting an upgrade. The world’s largest eye care device company has announced in a news release that new features of the app will be unveiled during the SECO International meeting, being held from February 28 to March 3 in Atlanta, Georgia this year. The app is available for download in the Apple Store and will be available for Android in late 2024.

“We are proud to debut our new MARLO App at SECO this year,” said Kristen Brotherson, general manager of US Vision Care at Alcon. “Today, 95% of patients access healthcare on their smartphones, and in a recent survey, nearly 44% of patients indicated that they go online to purchase contact lenses.¹ Now, eye care providers can bring the future of eye care to the palm of their patients’ hands with the MARLO App’s seamless reordering, communications, and education offerings.”

MARLO has allowed patients to stay connected to their eye care providers with the ability to order contact lenses 24/7. Now, the app will include features like exam reminders, contact lens tips and reorder notifications. Other features include a vision screener, which records patients’ responses and provides their general vision range, communication regarding the importance of regular comprehensive eye exams, the ability to order contact lenses with Apple iOS features, saves contact lenses prescriptions to Apple Health, educational resources for eye diseases, and a MARLO doctor locator that lists nearby practice that use MARLO. For patient users with Pro or ProPlus memberships, vision screener results can be sent to their eye care providers before their next visit.¹

“As a longtime MARLO user, I am thrilled with how the MARLO App now enhances my patient relationships,” said Jessilin Quint, OD, MBA, MS, FAAO. “Being able to communicate with my patients between exams is an integral part of delivering great, personalized care. My patients will love the MARLO App’s new features and how easy it is to reorder, get exam reminders, and access to a vision screener.”

Research supports mobile apps for eye care, with a boost in patient retention, an increase of new users, and better understanding gained by practices regarding consumer interests.² For eye care providers using MARLO, customizable options are now possible, allowing MARLO websites and app interfaces to be updated with custom practice logos and branding.¹

Information on the Alcon app will be highlighted during the “Digital Eye Care Innovation for Today’s Patient” event with Allied Health Professionals on March 2. For those attending SECO, more information on the app or other Alcon products can be found at the company’s booth #1549.

References:

1. Alcon to Unveil New MARLO App at SECO 2024. Alcon. News release. Published February 20, 2024. Accessed February 26, 2024. https://www.alcon.com/media-release/alcon-unveil-new-marlo-app-seco-2024

2. Yin R, Neyens DM. Who is using a mobile app and who is using a computer to access their patient portals? Proceedings of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society Annual Meeting. Sage Journals. 2022:66,1. doi.org/10.1177/1071181322661316