Are residencies required?

[caliodhopeful]

After getting your degree from an optometry school, do you have to do a residency as well similar to those completed by medical students? just wondering, thanks...

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[rpames]

No, residencies are optional.

 

[Dr.Jekyll]

Would it look better on a job application if you've done a residency?

 

[WildOrchids27]

Would it look better on a job application if you've done a residency?

Of course! Any kind of related work experience would definitely look good on your resume.

 

[rpames]

If you are looking to go into academia the residency is a must. If you are planning to just work for a corporate setting, the residency would probably not help much. They are not looking for someone to specialize in anything, they just want someone to spin dials as fast as they can. If you plan to open an office in an area where there are a number of eye care practices around, a specialty will help separate you from the rest of the lot. Also, when a large practice is looking looking to add a doc, they generally are looking for someone who can bring something new to the office.

So can can help or not, depending on what mode of practice you are looking at.

 

[Dr.Jekyll]

Would you do a residency at a hospital, or would it be with a private practice?

 

[JG777]

Would you do a residency at a hospital, or would it be with a private practice?

it really depends on what you want to do a residency in. i'm sure ocular disease, you'd work in the VA hospitals. each school has a location where you do a specific residency.

 

[vtrain]

It depends on the type of residency. For instance, an ocular disease residency can be done at the Bascom Palmer Eye Instiute, a refractive and oc surgery residency can be done at the private practice OMNI of Baltimore or you can do a primary care residency at a Veteran's Hospital in Brockton, Massachusetts. It varies quite a bit. For a complete listing of residencies refer to:

http://www.optometryresident.org/List_header.htm

 

[r_salis]

It depends on the type of residency. For instance, an ocular disease residency can be done at the Bascom Palmer Eye Instiute, a refractive and oc surgery residency can be done at the private practice OMNI of Baltimore or you can do a primary care residency at a Veteran's Hospital in Brockton, Massachusetts. It varies quite a bit. For a complete listing of residencies refer to:

http://www.optometryresident.org/List_header.htm

vtrain -- did you do a residency or go straight into practice?

 

[vtrain]

vtrain -- did you do a residency or go straight into practice?

I applied for the residency at Bascom Palmer but didn't match. As a result, I went straight into practice after graduation.

I believe residencies will definitely help you to be more marketable. For instance, if you want to work at a multi-disciplinary ophtho practice, it definitely will help if you have a disease residency under your belt. More and more ophthos are becoming aware of the post-grad training available to optometrists. I know peds residents are in huge demand right now.

Residencies definitely open more doors for you, be it through academia, private practive, etc. If you plan to work commercial the rest of your life, then it wont make much of a difference if you do one or not.

The bottom line is do it because YOU want to be a better optometrist. A residency DOES NOT mean more pay, unlike in medicine (ie like an MD doing a fellowship). Also, don't do a residency if you feel as though your skils as a clinician aren't up to par yet. Every new grad feels that way. At least I did.

 

[r_salis]

Also, don't do a residency if you feel as though your skils as a clinician aren't up to par yet. Every new grad feels that way. At least I did.

How long was it before you started feeling comfortable with your proficiency? All the new ODs I talk to say they didn't feel prepared when they graduated -- I guess that's just par for the course.

 

[cpw]

How long was it before you started feeling comfortable with your proficiency? All the new ODs I talk to say they didn't feel prepared when they graduated -- I guess that's just par for the course.

I like that right off I'm starting out with docs who've been out about ten years. They're both great !! For now it's nice to be able to have them come look at stuff and get a second opinion.. even if it's just to say "stop asking me.. you're right.. you know what you're doing .. now let me go drink my coffee!" But it's definitely a confidence booster having another doc there.. at least at first.

 

[vtrain]

How long was it before you started feeling comfortable with your proficiency? All the new ODs I talk to say they didn't feel prepared when they graduated -- I guess that's just par for the course.

Can't say. I only practiced a month before I went onto med school. Had I got accepted to Bascom, my answer would have been assuredly different. Talking to my friends in practice, most feel comfortable with the bread and butter cases about 6 months out, but there will always be the cases where you need a more experienced clinician. But keep in mind things will change depending on how you practice. My friend who is a few years out recently started working for a LASIK doc and had to be trained on how to manage those patients. So I get the feeling, you will never feel 100% confident because there will always be that one case or new procedure or new practice that will keep you on your toes. As cpw said, an experienced OD who can act as a mentor is invaluable. In my limited experience, real world optometry can be quite different than what they taught us in school.

 

[JennyW]

If you are looking to go into academia the residency is a must. If you are planning to just work for a corporate setting, the residency would probably not help much. They are not looking for someone to specialize in anything, they just want someone to spin dials as fast as they can. If you plan to open an office in an area where there are a number of eye care practices around, a specialty will help separate you from the rest of the lot. Also, when a large practice is looking looking to add a doc, they generally are looking for someone who can bring something new to the office.

So can can help or not, depending on what mode of practice you are looking at.

My experience was the exact opposite.

I did not do a residency in vision therapy, but I studied it a lot, and used it a lot in practice. I had a lot of experience with it, and tried for about 4 years to find a practice to join so that i could "add" vision therapy to it and bring my skills to their office.

No offices were looking for someone to bring something new to the office. Most of them just wanted to maintain the status quo and I could tell that most of them were uncomfortable with a new doctor having a knowledge base that wasn't shared by the rest of the doctors on staff. This is why I just fiinally opened my own office. (in retrospect, I should have done this much sooner)

Most offices don't want to make the time and financial commitment to adding a new specialty because it really does require a major shift in thinking for an office. Most of them just want to do more and more of the same thing they are already doing.

For those students considering residencies, I would not count on using your skills to make yourself more "marketable" to a private practice, though I know this is some of the speech you will hear from your schools. I think that way of thinking is wrong. I would count on using your skills to open your own office and make that office unique from other offices around you.

Jenny

 

[wrx04]

Jenny,
When you say you should have opened up your own practice much sooner, how soon out of school do you believe would've been the best? Do you think it is good to work with other docs (private or commercial) for a couple years after you graduate to get some experience under your belt before starting your own practice?
I am positive private practice is what I want to do, but how I'll get there is what I have to figure out.
Thanks alot.

 

[rpames]

Jenny,
When you say you should have opened up your own practice much sooner, how soon out of school do you believe would've been the best? Do you think it is good to work with other docs (private or commercial) for a couple years after you graduate to get some experience under your belt before starting your own practice?
I am positive private practice is what I want to do, but how I'll get there is what I have to figure out.
Thanks alot.

Obviously Jenny has more experince then I do in this, but I know a couple people who opened their own office right away and worked there part time, and somewhere else part time. You don't have to be all-or-nothing right away.

 

[JennyW]

Obviously Jenny has more experince then I do in this, but I know a couple people who opened their own office right away and worked there part time, and somewhere else part time. You don't have to be all-or-nothing right away.

The point I was trying to make was not that you need to be an "all or nothing" person with respect to opening your own office.

The point I was trying to make was that students considering residencies should not consider them because they think it will make them more marketable to a practice, because most practices aren't really looking to add a specialty because it requires such a dynamic shift not only in how the office runs, but in the philosophy of the office and very very few offices want to do this. Most other doctors that I worked for simply wanted someone to do more of the same thing they are already doing and just wanted to "add capacity."

Students who think they should be doing a residency to "market themselves" should be doing it to market themselves to the public, by opening their own office, not to market themselves to other doctors.

Jenny

 

[Richard_Hom]

Obviously Jenny has more experince then I do in this, but I know a couple people who opened their own office right away and worked there part time, and somewhere else part time. You don't have to be all-or-nothing right away.

There are many avenues to successful private practice. I did practice privately for almost 18 years. Much of that time, I spent one or two days "moonlighting" at various other practices or jobs. It is possible.

But back to the notion of residencies. Residencies are more useful for "employed" institutional practice than any private optometric or ophthalmologic practice. Institutions do not have the flexibility as smaller operations to terminate an employee (the over 25 rule). Thus they may formalize their entrance requirements at a much higher level that a private practice. One of the most useful measures for screening optometric candidates is the possession of a residency. However, I don't believe that the residency is that much more of an advantage compared to an optometrist who has 10 years of experience.

IMHO of course,
Richard Hom, OD,FAAO
San Mateo, CA

 

[rpames]

The point I was trying to make was not that you need to be an "all or nothing" person with respect to opening your own office.

The point I was trying to make was that students considering residencies should not consider them because they think it will make them more marketable to a practice, because most practices aren't really looking to add a specialty because it requires such a dynamic shift not only in how the office runs, but in the philosophy of the office and very very few offices want to do this. Most other doctors that I worked for simply wanted someone to do more of the same thing they are already doing and just wanted to "add capacity."

Students who think they should be doing a residency to "market themselves" should be doing it to market themselves to the public, by opening their own office, not to market themselves to other doctors.

Jenny

I understand what you were saying, I was not trying imply that you were saying one had to go all-or-nothing. I was just giving another option. Sorry if it came off differently.