Optometrists are not Doctors. They can check for cornial abrasions, pappelidema, increased intraoccular pressure/glaucoma (but cannot diagnose the underlying causes and have an insurance company respect their diagnosis), and set a person up with glasses or contacts to improve their vision. They are talented professionals that do a lot for the community, but they are not physicians and they are definitely not Doctors (no matter how many times they may introduce themselves to their clients in that way). I apologize for the honesty in this posting, but I'm not sure why Optometry is even a subject on the Student-Doctor network.
This is frankly, hilarious. Erik.....excuse me...."Dr. Torres," you need to do a little reading before you post, for a couple of reasons. First, while I would never argue that my, or any other ODs diagnostic capabilities could exceed or even meet those of an experienced specialist in ophthalmology, I have no idea where you came up with the concept that insurance companies routinely don't accept an OD's diagnosis. It's a valid point that most ODs spend the majority of their time treating issues related to normal and pathologic refractive problems, but let's not be ridiculous. If I diagnose/suspect and localize a brain tumor or compressive lesion based on a visual field, I'm not going to sit back and say "Hey, that's pretty cool.....don't see that one every day. Well, I guess I'll see you next year. Do you want some artificial tears for that dry eye before you leave?" I REFER her to a specialist for further testing/treatment. That's what a generalist does. The insurance company is not going to call me up an say "Yeah, we're not going to pay for that office visit and field because, well, there's this guy on SDN, and he says you ODs aren't "real doctors" so.......sorry, it's really out of my hands. Maybe just stick to CLs."
Second, you need to work on your spelling before trailblazing on SDN. "Corneal," does not have an "i" in it and your "pappelidema" doesn't even come close. I don't know what a "pappela" is, but I doubt it could become edematous. As for "intraoccular," there's only one "c" in that one. That's a gimme, hoss...are you really working on an MD aaaaaaand a PhD? Nice work with "glaucoma," though. That's a tough one and you nailed it like a pro. Look, I understand that spell-check doesn't have these babies on board and yes, it makes posting a serious challenge for our friends out there with spelling deficiencies, but I think as a true "physician-to-be," you should be able to come on a student doctor forum.......and spell m-e-d-i-c-a-l terms correctly. Are you at some MD/PhD program in the Caribbean or Tijuana, Mexico or something?
What I would suggest is picking up a copy of Grey's Pocket Medical Dictionary. You could keep it with you at all times and it's a great way to look up all those really hard-to-spell items before you take things public on SDN.
