Optometry is DEAD!

[Tippytoe]

---

Members don't see this ad.

Optometry is over. Really. 12 years into it and I'm more convinced than ever that a successful career in optometry is getting more and more impossible. The heyday of optometry was in the 1970's with us having a monoply on eyeglass and contact lens sales. Today, you are competing with everyone and their brother. We are on the downside of the bell curve as a profession. Our entire profession is bought and paid for by politicians. OMDs and opticians could do everything we do.

Let's see. Who are we competing with: Other ODs (one on every corner), OMDs (one on every other corner), pediatricians, family docs, PA/NPs, Lenscrafters, Pearle, JCPennys, Sears, America's Best, 1-800 contacts (and 100 other online CLs sellers)....etc.......AND WALMART. What mom-n-pop place can compete with Walmart? Very few! All of these groups are actively competing with us for every little red eye and EVERY pair of glasses and CLs sold.

There are so many optometrists today that we are only 40% booked. ODs are seeing 10-12 pts per day when they could easily see 20+ (based on all the technology we have). 10 pts per day was fine in 1975 when every pt HAD to buy glasses from their OD or buy $400 conventional contact lenses. I have old records from an OD back then and my numbers are true. The exam was $40 but the average optical sale was $350!

Today you will be lucky to get $60 for an eye exam with Walmart advertising $40 eye exams in their parking lot 'shopping cart corral signs'. For the priviledge of getting your $40 reimbursment you will have to hire a full-time insurance person to file, re-file and then re-re-file the claims. Then she will have to spend 45 minutes in the phone trying to track down why you weren't paid your $40. Then, if you are lucky, your $40 (or $16....whatever the insurance company feels like paying you) will arrive 65 days after you have seen the patient. In the meantime, you patient will have purchased their contact lenses on-line, for less then you can purchase them wholesale. They will find the exact same glasses you sell for 50% off at the ever-present 50% off sale at Lenscrafters (except all they do is boost the price up 75% and then have the sale but your patients don't realize this).

And you can't blame your patients for trying to save money. It's what any normal person would do. But as an OD you will nickle and dime every vendor you have to give you the best price on equipment and optical goods.......but then you will be pissed when a patient wants to walk with their Rx because they can get their contact lenses $5 cheaper elsewhere. Then you will be a hypocrite.

Now with a new school opening every few years, the oversupply will get much, much worse. And the only solution your national association has is to make every OD spend thousands of dollar to become 'board certified' which is a joke to every real board certified specialist in the world. It will mean ZERO! to you, your knowledge and your bottom line. No one cares!

You will have incredible staff turnover because you will not be able to pay them enough or offer them enough benefits. If your really good at training, you will be graciously providing your local OMD center with some really well trained staff. And make no mistake, as back stabbing as most of the OMDs will be, your fellow ODs will do ANYTHING they can go take a patient from you. Why? Because there are not enough patients to go around.

Saying all this, I have done well in optometry so far. Well, financially well that is (while focusing primarily on the medical side of things). And that's certainly not a bad thing. Otherwise, it's mind-numbing work. Unfortunately I see the writing on the wall. Optometry is losing our optical lifeline and we CAN NOT (with a few exceptions here and there) make a living on services alone (without being a OMD refractionist I mean).

Finally, the nail in the coffin-- It's only a matter of time before the all- mighty WALMART realizes they can make MUCH more money having opticians do all their eyeglass and CLs refractions (while sending a retinal image to India for interpretation). I mean, wouldn't you do that if you were them?

If I had to do it again, I'd run away from optometry. It's greatly oversaturated practing by 1975 standards. By 2011 standards we have 70% more ODs then we currently need.

But good luck. Many ODs out there will agree with me (except the brand new ones and the ones living off daddy's trust fund and refracting for pleasure). The student will ignore me. More power to you. You will find out soon enough. Paying off $250,000 school loans no fun.

 

[rainy123]

oh no. are you suggesting that i should quit school now? 😱 this post is VERY depressing for a first year student to read... 🙁

 

[DrSpontaneouz83]

Wow...when you put it like that..pretty depressing!!! But do you think other professions may be experiencing these same problems? I guess, from a financial stand-point, financial success is subjective. I, for one, never walked into this profession thinking I would be driving a rolls royce and living in a castle...I would simply like a comfortable living. I hope something can be done in the near future to give ODs some form of control.

However, as many patients may go for the "cheaper" Rx or CL's, there are also consequences to be paid. Check out this link...hopefully more appreciation and consideration will be given to ODs.
http://www.facebook.com/#!/video/video.php?v=110540779034285&oid=205041502851484&comments

 

[Tippytoe]

The difference between optometry and other health professions is that we have always been 'product-driven'. Of course we do exams and offer other services, but primarly.....historically.......over half of our income has been from selling optical goods. From my reading, this is still sadly true. I have put up the good fight. I don't sell anyone glasses that doesn't want and/or need them. I don't overutilize silly tests. I treat every eye condition to the limits of my license. Initially I was doing well. And it's all about personility. THey can go to any OD and get the same treatment. It's only if they like you do they come back and refer others. So it's mostly a popularity contest.

I can already hear the gung-hos types telling me that ALL profession sells things. They sell their services, their surgeries, etc....... Yea, I know. But they don't sell the same thing Walmart and 1-800 sells. You can't get your root canel or lithotripsy on-line. There is no 1-800-heart-transplant.

But take a dentist. As much as their job probably sucks, they have ZERO competition other than the other dentists down the road. I can hardly even imagine that.

It's all about supply/demand. There is an oversupply of ODs to meet the demand..........even with the fictitous demand made up by the AOA (the mysterious baby-boomers as if they have never seen an eye doctor before). I get referral from primary care docs and PAs and the like.....but the first thing people will do without is new eyeglasse or the eye exam. It's just a luxuary to most people. As soon as their copay goes from $20 to $40, they are done with you until THEY notice their vision is blurry (and you hope they don't see a buy-one-get-one-free commercial in the meantime.

Don't get me wrong. If you want it bad enough, optometry is not the worst job in the world. Just know you will have to work extremely hard. Harder than you think. No, not doing optometry. It's amazingly simple once you know what your doing. All of your time and effort will be to:

1. keep debt down
2. find a good location (by good I mean one without an OD within 5 miles of you).
3. get on insurance panels (Many still do not allow ODs on their panel)
4. get insurance to pay you (not unique to optometry but harder)
5. find enough patients
6. find good employees
7. Buy $300,000 worth of equipment if you want to be anything more than a refractionist.
8. Not feel pressured to work Saturdays, Sundays and evenings.
And much, much more.

So after spending $200,000 on school and $300,000+ on a practice, you've spent half a million + 8 years plus another 5 years getting established (to get to the $100,000+ income). Not terrible.

But what else could you do with $1/2 million and 13 years........open a chain of Subway restaurants? Maybe a AutoZone? A chain of car washes. Most of us, if not openly, at least secretly say, "what if...."

Just saying...........😳

 

[Tippytoe]

Wow...when you put it like that..pretty depressing!!! But do you think other professions may be experiencing these same problems? I guess, from a financial stand-point, financial success is subjective. I, for one, never walked into this profession thinking I would be driving a rolls royce and living in a castle...I would simply like a comfortable living. I hope something can be done in the near future to give ODs some form of control.

However, as many patients may go for the "cheaper" Rx or CL's, there are also consequences to be paid. Check out this link...hopefully more appreciation and consideration will be given to ODs.
http://www.facebook.com/#!/video/video.php?v=110540779034285&oid=205041502851484&comments

Contact lens problems have been around since the invention of contact lenses. Overall they are completly safe. So safe, they should probably be OTC. The only people that have problems with contacts are idiots that abuse them (like most everything else).

Fact is, you can go to about any beauty shop or flea market and get about any contact lens you want nowadays (esp colored lenses). It's not enforced because frankly, the authorites have much bigger fish to fry.

And this is not lost on patients. It doesn't take but paying a few routine CL exam fees to make a 28 year old realize he doesn't need to spend $200 on an exam and refit when he is not changing and he can get Acuvue Oasys on line without an exam (also never enforced).

Just the way it is..............

 

[DrSpontaneouz83]

Appreciate the raw facts that are mostly hidden by the AOA. Hope there is some light at the end of this tunnel. I used to consider entering the real estate market while practicing to have another source of income, but even that market is at an all time low due to the economy. However, a Subway is actually not a bad idea or a gas station with a Subway for that matter.

BTW, I have a friend who is a dentist and he claims he feels there is an oversupply of dentists and it's hard to get a full booked day lately (though I am sure that varies based on location). And with the rate of the technological revolutionaries, I wouldn't be surprised if a 1-800-heart-transplant makes it's way to the market lol. Good luck with your practice buddy!

 

[Tippytoe]

Appreciate the raw facts that are mostly hidden by the AOA. Hope there is some light at the end of this tunnel. I used to consider entering the real estate market while practicing to have another source of income, but even that market is at an all time low due to the economy. However, a Subway is actually not a bad idea or a gas station with a Subway for that matter.

BTW, I have a friend who is a dentist and he claims he feels there is an oversupply of dentists and it's hard to get a full booked day lately (though I am sure that varies based on location). And with the rate of the technological revolutionaries, I wouldn't be surprised if a 1-800-heart-transplant makes it's way to the market lol. Good luck with your practice buddy!

Thank you. I appreciate you not "shooting the messenger". I feel I was fortunate to be able to purchase my office building back in 2002 (will be paid off in 2015). I bite the bullet and am now happy I will be able to add that to my retirement portfolio since it will be nearly impossible to sell my practice for anything more than the assests when I'm near retirement. Conventional optometry practices will be like the ole' fashion soda pop drug stores.............extinct. Unfortunately there is no such thing as "good will" with optometry pratices any longer. It's just too easy to walk into a Super-Mart refraction gig to spend the time and money and effort building your own practice.

My advice to any optometry student: If it's not too late, make sure you go to a state undergrad.......preferable a community college for the first few years followed by a state undergrad. Trust me. In the end no one will care where if you went to Penn State, Harvard or Billy Bob community college. Also work in optometry school as much as you can to keep from taking out too many loans. I did this and am glad I did. I only had $80,000 debt and paid it off as soon as I could.

Again optometry is not he worst job in the world. It's redundent, boring, and frustrating.....but so are alot of $20,000/yr jobs. BUT they don't cost ya hundreds of thousands of dollars and 8 years of your life so.......

 

[Shnurek]

It is true, most things come down to supply and demand. Also most things come down to respect vs. money and work pleasure vs. money. There is a reason why podiatrists and dentists make much more than optometrists. They have barely any overhead competition (OMD's) and their jobs aren't such a pleasure to do (unless you learn to love feet and teeth).

I'd rather make 80k-100k and enjoy what I do than make 150k+ not doing what I enjoy. Also PhD's have to go through 6-10 years after college before they start making ~80k with an average max of about 110k or so (depending if you join a private company or work in a university etc.). So who is getting the better deal?

Personally, I am going to go to a school with 18k tuition, (NYU Dental school is 60k/yr). I have no undergrad loans, I don't pay rent in NYC currently as I reside with my parents and I have a good amount of life savings so if I play my cards right there will be minimal loans.

Would I have gone into optometry if I did not have this financial situation? Probably not, I would have done a PhD. program because they pay you ~30k or something like that per year to learn. Or perhaps PA because they get paid almost as much as optometrists and yet they study for two years less.

Nobody forced you to take that many loans out. It is better to gather wealth first and then buy things. There are plenty of happy and successful ODs out there. But in any case, thank you for sharing your personal story.

I would encourage all future ODs to join ODWire.org - they have plenty of arguments about the state of optometry. I have no doubt that optometrists are intelligent and capable people and they will find a solution to most of these problems.

Almost all professions are suffering now. Technological breakthroughs simplifying many mundane tasks and the economy.

 

[Meibomian SxN]

oh no. are you suggesting that i should quit school now? 😱 this post is VERY depressing for a first year student to read... 🙁

I'd get out now or reconsider. He's speaking the truth.

 

[Avatar Regi]

I'd get out now or reconsider. He's speaking the truth.

Whoa... This is scary. Good thing im still in my second year of undergrad I really wouldn't like this to happen.

 

[Shnurek]

I'd get out now or reconsider. He's speaking the truth.

I'd get out if I was in a for-profit private optometry school and was going to rack up a crapload of loans. Otherwise ain't so bad.

 

[imemily]

Can I see your crystal ball?

I find your opinions hard to believe when there are many opportunities for ODs to make six figure incomes, i.e. walmart. Optometry might be saturated, but what profession isn't? Yes optometry is product driven but that doesn't necessarily mean you have to sell glasses/contacts in order to be successful.

Finally, what do you hope to achieve with your initial post? All you have states are some respectable opinions, but they are just that - opinions.

In order to convince students that Optometry is indeed a dying profession, I think you would need hard facts to prove your claim.

 

[JAZZEYE]

"Optometry is Dead"
"Optometry is Over"

I don't get it Tippytoe... with all due respect I am always skeptical whenever I hear statements as definitive as these.

I have to consider the fact that you have 12 years experience in the real world...but !

Are you saying that Optometry has many challenges and it will be extremely difficult for current students to achieve any subjective success to be considered worthwhile ?

Can you really compare investing in a Subway franchise as a relative alternative to the profession of Optometry ?.... apples and bowling balls.

How many practising Optometrists are there in the US approximately 40,000 ?
What percentage of those will earn a satisfying income while doing something useful that they enjoy ...something they can and should be proud of.

I would imagine that there will be the.. top 1/3.. middle 1/3 and bottom 1/3... just like any profession.

Are you expressing that from your personal experience that this career will fall short of the expectations many have going in...
after they get a dose of the hard times they may experience along the way ?

To say things like... its dead... its over ...is perplexing,
do you mean that literally or are you just going through a frustrating period, having a bad day...
or is this an objective assessment ?

Is there really, no future, no foundation, no need for educated men and women who have dedicated themselves to Optometry...
no unforseen possibilities for growth, no place in the evolutionary process for those trained to be Doctors of Optometry ?

I have to question motive...I always do... people always have a motive for what they say and do.
May I ask what motivated you to make such a post that would be so discouraging for current students ?
Are you trying to enlighten us or save us ? Or just venting ?

I always appreciate the Drs. who contibute to this forum...none of them have too !
Some seem to have a desire to help students avoid some the pitfalls they have experienced and thats good.

But I just don't get why your post has to be so extreme...so hopeless ?

If your not part of the solution your part of the problem...maybe, just maybe the graduating class of 2011 will look back in 12 years and say,
"OK were not where we want to be...but Optometry is not dead yet... its not over like some were saying 12 years ago"...
you make it sound naive to choose to be a little more optimistic than that...
but its not, its practical.

I find your post to be thought provoking...
but also unprofessional and disrespectful of your colleagues and Optometry that has served many, many patients very well.

"What if" you say secretly or openly...what if you would've been unsatisfied with whatever you chose to do because personal satisfaction is personal.

These types of posts accomplish NOTHING but create some more anxiety for students and foster a dog eat dog mentality.

I know, I know...your just the messenger...like the guy a couple weeks ago... who was off by 90 days about when the world will end.

Thats alright, its all good.
Just please... don't wish me good luck, coming from you thats the ultimate insult.

 

[Shnurek]

Saying all this, I have done well in optometry so far. Well, financially well that is (while focusing primarily on the medical side of things). And that's certainly not a bad thing. Otherwise, it's mind-numbing work.

So basically you are happy with your compensation but you hate your job. Want a cookie?

 

[thecgrblue]

So, you don't post for a year, then come on to randomly sing the same tune you were singing almost 3 years ago. Who pissed you off today?

 

[Commando303]

Can I see your crystal ball?

I find your opinions hard to believe when there are many opportunities for ODs to make six figure incomes, i.e. walmart. Optometry might be saturated, but what profession isn't? Yes optometry is product driven but that doesn't necessarily mean you have to sell glasses/contacts in order to be successful.

Finally, what do you hope to achieve with your initial post? All you have states are some respectable opinions, but they are just that - opinions.

In order to convince students that Optometry is indeed a dying profession, I think you would need hard facts to prove your claim.

For one thing, let's get the "six-figures at Wal-Mart" thing straight: yeah, you get six (or close to that) figures, but you put in an ass-load of hours. It's not your total income that's so important, but how much (and what) you have to do to make it.

Second, the fact — not opinion — is, the vast majority of optometrists do earn upward of 60% of their income from sales of products. Yes, there are those O.D.s who practice strictly medical optometry and rake in more than 100k; they're in a very small minority.

Finally, Tippytoe, I really don't get the point behind this incendiary thread of yours: it's another in a perennial list of its kind. It doesn't shed new light on anything, it doesn't help anyone, it doesn't raise or address any interesting questions; you're just complaining. Why?

 

[netmag]

This is just so thick with negativity and BS that it can't be taken seriously at all. Sorry for "killing the messenger" and it's too bad because some of the points have some truth to them. However, it's so over the top that I felt silly that I even read it.

Unless you are:
a.) currently digging in a dumpster behind what used to be your practice OR
b.) seriously quitting tomorrow to start a new and better career

…then the level of excessive negativity of your posts can't possibly be justified and also can't really mean anything to anyone. Many of the things you mention are issues in many other health care professions as well. And yes, if you actually read the Dental forums you'd see that they too feel that they have some issues now.

What really is the point of telling people that you personally are doing well but you hate it anyway and everyone else needs to just look else where? If you really do hate your work then it would seem to be more of a personal problem I think. Just makes no logical sense…

 

[IndianaOD]

It comes down to this for me concerning you students and prospective students:

I would not allow my children to choose optometry at this time.

The problem is there is currently nobody putting in a good fight to make this profession better. I don't see any positive indicators that this ship can right itself.

I respect the optimism of the students but I don't know if it is built on reality. I am optimistic about nearly everything else in my life except optometry. You do get tired of competing against EVERYBODY.

 

[rainy123]

IndianaOD, can you try to join your state legislatives to help make optometry better? Instead of realizing that things aren't getting any better, can we be more active and help make it better for the future so we can actually recommend this profession to our kids and grandkids? Maybe we can first start by finding a way to stop the new schools from happening? I know that this seems impossible, BUT we need to remind ourselves that anything is possible if we just try a little, just a little harder. What do you think?

 

[Shnurek]

IndianaOD, can you try to join your state legislatives to help make optometry better? Instead of realizing that things aren't getting any better, can we be more active and help make it better for the future so we can actually recommend this profession to our kids and grandkids? Maybe we can first start by finding a way to stop the new schools from happening? I know that this seems impossible, BUT we need to remind ourselves that anything is possible if we just try a little, just a little harder. What do you think?

Just state legislation? We need to standardize optometry on a federal level. Use Obamacare to the profession's advantage. Cost containment people - optometrists can do all the medical (non-surgical) things that ophthalmologists can do with 4 years less training because of optometry's more efficient educational model.

 

[Ryan_eyeball]

I'm with tippytoe, and IndianaOD. I would not allow my children to go into this profession.

Do you really want to work every Saturday til noon or 1pm? Do you really want to work til 6 or 7pm two or three nights a week? A lot of OD's will work these type of hours to attract new patients or retain the existing ones.

 

[imemily]

I'm with tippytoe, and IndianaOD. I would not allow my children to go into this profession.

Do you really want to work every Saturday til noon or 1pm? Do you really want to work til 6 or 7pm two or three nights a week? A lot of OD's will work these type of hours to attract new patients or retain the existing ones.

You don't really have to do that when you're working for someone else...you would still make just as much as the owner, perhaps slightly less.

 

[dee39]

What a discouraging thread to read.

 

[KHE]

You don't really have to do that when you're working for someone else...you would still make just as much as the owner, perhaps slightly less.

When you're working for someone else that's ESPECIALLY when you have to do that. That's normally what people get hired FOR. To work crappy hours.

 

[mclem222]

I definitely don't think the profession is dead. I have a thriving practice outside philadelphia where we just hired another OD to have three total. I see 20-30 patients a day, see interesting cases and really love what I do and do well finiancially. That being said, I knew what I was getting into when I went to optometry school. I didn't think I was going to do surgery or do complicated medical management of patients. Getting legislators to change our profession is ok but why is it that no other profession has to do that? Just because people aren't satisfied with what they have chosen doesn't necessarily mean we have to change our profession. This is like a cardiologist being dissatisfied with his career so he tries to get the hospital to give him priveleges to do bypass surgery. It takes away from the training the cardiac surgeon did and the honest truth is that the cardiologist may feel " I can do a bypass just as well" but the reality is that he can't. I knew exactly what I was getting into when I became an optometrist.

In terms of more efficient training, I spent one year after school working with my brother who is an OMD. I read your quote about "more efficient training model". My ego wants to say that is true but the reality of the situation is that it is not true. After training he had seen 2-3K patients and there was a huge gap in our medical ophthalmic knowledge. I am excited about it? no. Do I want to shout that to the world? No. But in the spirit of fairness beyond just trying to pump up my profession, it isn't right to say that. During my year with him, I realized that there were things that I didn't even know I didn't know (if that makes sense).Everybody should recognize their limitations. He sends patients with bad ulcers to Wills for "medical management" because he is not a specialist. There are tons of things that he sends out to others for "medical management" such as hemangiomas, orbital pseudotumor, etc.. because the person is he is sending it to is more trained. To try to sell other medical people that line that we are "more efficient" does our profession a disservice and gives ODs a bad name. Why cant opticians say they are more efficiently trained in refraction and should do that? I think in all our profession is great. Recognize what you are getting into. If you wanted to do neurosurgery, train in neurosurgery. If you wanted to be a OMD, do the OMD thing...Read about what an optometrist does (not the propaganda from the schools but from practicing ODs) and know what you are getting into. It really annoys me when people have personal dissatisfaction in a profession I love and then want to change it by changing laws which makes the rest of the medical community look at us as complete jackasses. oh yeah...I work on Saturdays...but again knew that going in.

 

[Tippytoe]

Believe me or don't believe me (and the other practicing ODs here). Makes little difference to me. I got into optometry just in the nick of time....toward the end...while there was still a little profit to me made. I'm grateful for that. I'll be fine at this point (but mostly from non-optometry related financial stuff).

Unfortunately, back in the early 1990's we didn't have this cool internet to give me opinions and FACTS. All I had to go on was whatever the AOA published and on old over the hill OD I talked to. But you see this was before 1-800, and Walmart, and vision plans going crazy.

Fact is, as optometrist, you are limited in patients. You will get 'left overs'. A large bulk (30%?) of patients will go to ophthalmologists......because they were told to by their PCP, their mother, their friend or their mind.....whatever.... They just must see a 'real doctor'.......even if they have to wait 4 hours for them 🙁

Another bulk (40%) will go to the nearest commercial optical for the latest $35 glasses (and jump through the inconvienent hoop of a refraction exam from the latest OD graduate struggling to pay back his $3,000/month educational loan). And make no mistake, the OD is only there because they can not yet hire opticians to do the exam for $15 instead of $35.

Probably 10% get their care from an urgent care PA or family doc or peds...or just order their contact or glasses on-line, never getting an exam.

So that leaves 40,000 ODs scrambling for the 20% of 'leftover' patients. The ones that don't feel they NEED to see an OMD or are not smart enough to go to Walmart for cheap care. And if you are an OD and end up at Walmart, you will hate yourself and your life. Trust me here.

So when you hear that "50% of the population wears glasses" silly stuff, just remember, your % of that 50% is very, very small.

THUS............the oversupply and infighting and back-stabbing.

So in the words of the great philosopher, Forrest Gump, "That's all I've got to say about that".

 

[thiaeyemd]

Interesting post...I had an OD buddy tell me that he could do a laser blepharoplasty because he had studied CO2 lasers extensively and I quote "How hard could it be?". Not going to comment on what I thought of his statements but mclem was on the right track.... Back to the post thread topic, Most of the ODs I know are very happy....I do just plastics and don't have a full in depth view of the refraction or eyeball world etc... but they seemed to be happy doing what they are doing.

 

[Meibomian SxN]

I definitely don't think the profession is dead. I have a thriving practice outside philadelphia where we just hired another OD to have three total. I see 20-30 patients a day, see interesting cases and really love what I do and do well finiancially. That being said, I knew what I was getting into when I went to optometry school. I didn't think I was going to do surgery or do complicated medical management of patients. Getting legislators to change our profession is ok but why is it that no other profession has to do that? Just because people aren't satisfied with what they have chosen doesn't necessarily mean we have to change our profession. This is like a cardiologist being dissatisfied with his career so he tries to get the hospital to give him priveleges to do bypass surgery. It takes away from the training the cardiac surgeon did and the honest truth is that the cardiologist may feel " I can do a bypass just as well" but the reality is that he can't. I knew exactly what I was getting into when I became an optometrist.

In terms of more efficient training, I spent one year after school working with my brother who is an OMD. I read your quote about "more efficient training model". My ego wants to say that is true but the reality of the situation is that it is not true. After training he had seen 2-3K patients and there was a huge gap in our medical ophthalmic knowledge. I am excited about it? no. Do I want to shout that to the world? No. But in the spirit of fairness beyond just trying to pump up my profession, it isn't right to say that. During my year with him, I realized that there were things that I didn't even know I didn't know (if that makes sense).Everybody should recognize their limitations. He sends patients with bad ulcers to Wills for "medical management" because he is not a specialist. There are tons of things that he sends out to others for "medical management" such as hemangiomas, orbital pseudotumor, etc.. because the person is he is sending it to is more trained. To try to sell other medical people that line that we are "more efficient" does our profession a disservice and gives ODs a bad name. Why cant opticians say they are more efficiently trained in refraction and should do that? I think in all our profession is great. Recognize what you are getting into. If you wanted to do neurosurgery, train in neurosurgery. If you wanted to be a OMD, do the OMD thing...Read about what an optometrist does (not the propaganda from the schools but from practicing ODs) and know what you are getting into. It really annoys me when people have personal dissatisfaction in a profession I love and then want to change it by changing laws which makes the rest of the medical community look at us as complete jackasses. oh yeah...I work on Saturdays...but again knew that going in.

20 years ago you wouldn't even get to use topical diagnostics, let all alone diagnose and treat ANY eye diseases. So be thankful for those who strive against the naysayers of "medical community". Whether or not you want to practice the new laws are up to you, but at least you have the option.

 

[JAZZEYE]

Believe me or don't believe me (and the other practicing ODs here). Makes little difference to me. I got into optometry just in the nick of time....toward the end...while there was still a little profit to me made. I'm grateful for that. I'll be fine at this point (but mostly from non-optometry related financial stuff).

Unfortunately, back in the early 1990's we didn't have this cool internet to give me opinions and FACTS. All I had to go on was whatever the AOA published and on old over the hill OD I talked to. But you see this was before 1-800, and Walmart, and vision plans going crazy.

Fact is, as optometrist, you are limited in patients. You will get 'left overs'. A large bulk (30%?) of patients will go to ophthalmologists......because they were told to by their PCP, their mother, their friend or their mind.....whatever.... They just must see a 'real doctor'.......even if they have to wait 4 hours for them 🙁

Another bulk (40%) will go to the nearest commercial optical for the latest $35 glasses (and jump through the inconvienent hoop of a refraction exam from the latest OD graduate struggling to pay back his $3,000/month educational loan). And make no mistake, the OD is only there because they can not yet hire opticians to do the exam for $15 instead of $35.

Probably 10% get their care from an urgent care PA or family doc or peds...or just order their contact or glasses on-line, never getting an exam.

So that leaves 40,000 ODs scrambling for the 20% of 'leftover' patients. The ones that don't feel they NEED to see an OMD or are not smart enough to go to Walmart for cheap care. And if you are an OD and end up at Walmart, you will hate yourself and your life. Trust me here.

So when you hear that "50% of the population wears glasses" silly stuff, just remember, your % of that 50% is very, very small.

THUS............the oversupply and infighting and back-stabbing.

So in the words of the great philosopher, Forrest Gump, "That's all I've got to say about that".

Still not getting you Forrest...you are obviously knowledgeable and opionated and eloquent at describing the downside, but still over the top conclusions... you recite numbers and statistics as if they tell the whole story ( don't know where you got them from )...but for arguments sake, you know there is more to it than that... each student enters and exits school and enters the real world as an individual with their own set of statistics.

I do think your premise that YOU "just got in at the nick of time" is interesting but narcissistic (softening I can make it, but you can't ).

Optometry could go in a lot of directions everything changes...the world at large is going through some pretty intense changes...who knows ??? there is a lot worst than being an Optometrist...yes some will be totally disatisfied with their career and some will get along... just ok, wunderin' "What if" ...and some will actually be happy with their life.

I think we can agree the question is "what is the realistic chances" of being happy with Optometry as a career choice. The percentages may vary but Optometry is..."Over"... "Dead"... "really really bad choice" is far too extreme to be taken seriously.

 

[Bioflare]

&tl;dr version anyone?

Same old stuff... sure the field is in a decline, but what field isn't? If you want something stable go be a mortician, only certainty is death and taxes amirite?

Most of us I would hope aren't in this profession just for the $_$, we hope to at least do some good.
AND If you're in it for the $'s why the hell did you choose Optometry in the first place? go do dentistry or be a scammer OT/PT and setup a insurance scheme (WIN WIN?)

Thread sucks.

 

[netmag]

No offense to anyone, but realistically many would consider the hours mentioned in this thread not to be horribly "tough" working hours especially in today's environment. Yes, you may have to work a saturday but everything is relative and most of those people get that day off back during the week. That's standard practice for other health care professions too like Pharmacy. In pharmacy, you're not even guaranteed that you'll be able to work day hours.

Even with that, the deal may still be better than what most people get when working for a company or corporation.

Take the average American worker and the hours that they must work to even pay their mortgage and you can see how it really isn't that big of a deal comparatively speaking. Companies pay hourly workers as little as they can possibly get away with. Salaried corporate workers could get paid more but that could also involve 10+ hour days in addition to some things needing to get done over your weekend and you're not going to get any over time for it either.

I'm not complaining about any of that. It is what it is. I'm just saying that if you keep things relative, the grass is not always greener on the other side.

 

[netmag]

For those that say they're steering their children in a different direction, I'd like to hear what those areas are.

i.e. the jobs that aren't boring, pay well (90k+), are 100% recession proof, have no competition, have no oversite from anyone, and you only have to work 4 days a week strictly between 9am and 5pm with no weekends at all.

Did I miss any other criteria mentioned in the thread?

 

[imemily]

OMDs are so classless.


They should just stick to their scope of practice, which is doing surgeries.

If OMDs take the role of ODs, than I think its fair that ODs can assume the role of OMDs, ala Kentucky.

 

[imemily]

Believe me or don't believe me (and the other practicing ODs here). Makes little difference to me. I got into optometry just in the nick of time....toward the end...while there was still a little profit to me made. I'm grateful for that. I'll be fine at this point (but mostly from non-optometry related financial stuff).

Unfortunately, back in the early 1990's we didn't have this cool internet to give me opinions and FACTS. All I had to go on was whatever the AOA published and on old over the hill OD I talked to. But you see this was before 1-800, and Walmart, and vision plans going crazy.

Fact is, as optometrist, you are limited in patients. You will get 'left overs'. A large bulk (30%?) of patients will go to ophthalmologists......because they were told to by their PCP, their mother, their friend or their mind.....whatever.... They just must see a 'real doctor'.......even if they have to wait 4 hours for them 🙁

Another bulk (40%) will go to the nearest commercial optical for the latest $35 glasses (and jump through the inconvienent hoop of a refraction exam from the latest OD graduate struggling to pay back his $3,000/month educational loan). And make no mistake, the OD is only there because they can not yet hire opticians to do the exam for $15 instead of $35.

Probably 10% get their care from an urgent care PA or family doc or peds...or just order their contact or glasses on-line, never getting an exam.

So that leaves 40,000 ODs scrambling for the 20% of 'leftover' patients. The ones that don't feel they NEED to see an OMD or are not smart enough to go to Walmart for cheap care. And if you are an OD and end up at Walmart, you will hate yourself and your life. Trust me here.

So when you hear that "50% of the population wears glasses" silly stuff, just remember, your % of that 50% is very, very small.

THUS............the oversupply and infighting and back-stabbing.

So in the words of the great philosopher, Forrest Gump, "That's all I've got to say about that".

Just wondering, if the issues are so prevalent, than why doesn't the AOA do anything?

Why does the AOA still have members....?

 

[bobbio]

OMDs are so classless.


They should just stick to their scope of practice, which is doing surgeries.

If OMDs take the role of ODs, than I think its fair that ODs can assume the role of OMDs, ala Kentucky.

How can we do what OMDs do when we don't even have the training? What nonsense.

 

[NCiDOC]

Tippy Toe, I am sorry to hear you are having a tough time. I have friends in the profession that say the same thing. They bury their head in the sand and whine to all of their friends and colleagues that will listen to them and drag them right down the drain too.

This profession is what you make of it. It is an opportunity. You can go to school, get out and make some good cash, live a decent life and make positive impact on a lot of people's lives in the meantime. You do not have to get your hands dirty or break your back. You do not have to work ridiculous hours and if you end up owning your own office, you can set your hours how you want to.

I have friends that are perfectly happy making 70-80K/yr in their small town, raising their family. I have other friends making $150-$160K that work for a private optometry office and have built a nice following of patients that they enjoy seeing and building relationships with. I also have friends that own large, multi-location offices that see patients 1-2 days a week and have many associates that do a great job for them and are happy doing it. Those owners can bring $300K-$1m home per year depending on how large their practices are.

So, let me know where your practice is. If you are tired of it and ready to give up, maybe I can find one of these guys to buy it from you and take you out of your misery🙂

Sorry to be so to the point but it sounds like you need a good vacation first and then an attitude adjustment. Get your head on straight and enjoy the second half of your career!

 

[Eyes Only]

While I don't agree with everything in the original post, I can verify from my years in this profession (over 20 now) that things have changed a lot and optometrists in general don't seem to be as satisfied as they used to be.

More ODs are employed than ever before, and as KHE has pointed out, THEY get the worst days/hours. Those of you in optometry school should resign yourselves to working every weekend. The question will be will you work BOTH Saturday and Sunday.

Don't count on the AOA to help you out. I have been a member my whole career but don't see the AOA addressing the real issues to this profession. Instead they obsess over a meaningless board certification that the majority of their membership opposed.

It's interesting to note that the most positive comments are from those in pre-optometry. In other words, those who have had the least exposure to the profession. I suppose shadowing a couple of ODs for a few days makes you an expert on the profession.

Again, the original post is very negative, but provides a good place to start some discussions to help you pre-optoms get some insight into the profession you think you know so much about. Don't enter a profession that you haven't thoroughly investigated. Ask the unhappy ODs what they are unhappy about. The schools and organized optometry aren't going to present a balanced look at the profession, in fact they still promote the idea that there is a shortage of ODs.

 

[ASA1]

I'm guessing most of the discussion on this thread so far has been centered around the state of optometry in the U.S. Any Canadian optometrists have any input? What is the market like in Canada? Is there also an oversaturation problem in Canada too?

 

[Commando303]

It's interesting to note that the most positive comments are from those in pre-optometry. In other words, those who have had the least exposure to the profession. I suppose shadowing a couple of ODs for a few days makes you an expert on the profession.

Well, that's reasonable, isn't it? Of course, those hoping to get into the profession will be the ones most eager to speak praise of it. Add to that, early in their education, optometry students are fed a healthy and routined diet of "optmetry's a great and lucrative profession; good choice!" bull-****.

 

[DrSpontaneouz83]

I was once an optimistic pre-opt student and thought the world of the profession based on many lies fed to us by the AOA and ASCO. Not that I am out and practicing, but let these posts serve you upcoming ODs to question yourselves about the kind of optometrist you want to be. If you are money-driven and chose this career, consider something else. If you thought you would work "regular hours" and not have to use customer-service skills to sell products, again, wrong career. If you are in this career because you want to have people acknowledge you as a "doctor," wrong career...many people, including those of lower socio-economic status and other professionals, for that matter, will in fact not consider you a "real doctor." If you are in this field because you have a passion for the sciences (more specific to optometric education), have a high degree of patience with individuals, and a positive attitude knowing there will be MANY pitfalls, than by all means...enter this career whole heartedly.

I know a lot of happy ODs and many unhappy ODs. It all really comes down to what kind of expecations you walked into optometry school with because the real world has a whole new deck of cards waiting to be dealt. However, do not let people discourage you from pursuing this career. In all fairness...they all had an opportunity at becoming optometrists, so why shouldn't you??? As much as I am against opening new schools and the ridiculous number of students allowed per class in other schools, who are we to play God with someone else's professional career?? At the end of the day this comes down to competition; competition amongst ourselves, competition against other vendors, and competition against medical panels that deem us unworthy of realistic coverage for our services. Is this detrimental to our career?? In certain respects it can be. But there is something positive that comes about this...competition will allow the best ODs (not just limited to scope and competency to practice, but also excellent people skills) to make their way to well-deserved positions around the nation. I can see how this may upset older practicing optometrists because to a certain degree, this "saturation" of ODs may be threatening to their practices or even their jobs. But it's time ODs who really want to work are given the opportunity and the lazy, self-loathing ODs make their way out the door. As much as this career may currently be in a downhill trend, it doesn't necessarily mean you have to indulge in its negativity. Just like in any other career, when things aren't working out as planned, that means it's time to reinvent yourselves mentally and become more consumer savvy. So in conclusion, let the best of the best enter the field..bring your game faces on because we will all be inevitably interviewing for the same "golden positions"...may the best OD get the job. I don't see the field of optometry as dead, it simply needs a shot of epinephrine in it's heart from POSITIVE ODs that can shed a different light on the career. At the end of the day this career has a roof over your heads and food on the table (satisfaction will depend on how much food you want on that table and how high you want that ceiling).

 

[stoikiometry]

(sorry I couldn't contribute anything)

 

[Visionary]

OMDs are so classless.


They should just stick to their scope of practice, which is doing surgeries.

If OMDs take the role of ODs, than I think its fair that ODs can assume the role of OMDs, ala Kentucky.

Oh no you di'int!

I'm sorry, but we have nothing to do with the increase in class sizes and number of optometry schools, despite the apparent oversupply. You're alluding to a scope conflict that has existed for well over 100 years. It's not like ophthalmologists just started refracting and prescribing specs. Very simply, our scope is everything that involves the eye, and our training reflects that. Don't blame us for this. Go back to the OP. Competition abounds for you and us both. Them's the breaks.

 

[IndianaOD]

Oh no you di'int!

I'm sorry, but we have nothing to do with the increase in class sizes and number of optometry schools, despite the apparent oversupply. You're alluding to a scope conflict that has existed for well over 100 years. It's not like ophthalmologists just started refracting and prescribing specs. Very simply, our scope is everything that involves the eye, and our training reflects that. Don't blame us for this. Go back to the OP. Competition abounds for you and us both. Them's the breaks.

With all do respect (and I've spent some time with OMD residents) OMDs have almost no training in refraction, optics, and contact lenses. That isn't even touching binocular vision etc. While I'm not all too happy with how the profession of optometry is going I will say that especially for primary care (routine, diabetic exams, dry eye, red eyes, etc) and annual exams a patient is usually best served by a good OD. Most OMDs just run the non-sexy / non-high dollar procedure cases through techs.

I haven't figured out if mclem222 is an OMD plant, a commercial/retail plant, or what.

 

[Eyes Only]

Oh no you di'int!

I'm sorry, but we have nothing to do with the increase in class sizes and number of optometry schools, despite the apparent oversupply. You're alluding to a scope conflict that has existed for well over 100 years. It's not like ophthalmologists just started refracting and prescribing specs. Very simply, our scope is everything that involves the eye, and our training reflects that. Don't blame us for this. Go back to the OP. Competition abounds for you and us both. Them's the breaks.

Very true!

But for those of you who don't know the history of our professions, just rewrite it to suit your needs...

Look out you British, you're not taking our arms away!

 

[Visionary]

With all do respect (and I've spent some time with OMD residents) OMDs have almost no training in refraction, optics, and contact lenses. That isn't even touching binocular vision etc. While I'm not all too happy with how the profession of optometry is going I will say that especially for primary care (routine, diabetic exams, dry eye, red eyes, etc) and annual exams a patient is usually best served by a good OD. Most OMDs just run the non-sexy / non-high dollar procedure cases through techs.

I haven't figured out if mclem222 is an OMD plant, a commercial/retail plant, or what.

Regarding your first point, I'd counter that, just as the clinical exposure varies between optometry schools, exposure to the aspects you listed varies between residency programs. I'll admit that my contact lens exposure was quite poor, but fortunately I don't have to do much of that. I'd put my refracting skills up against anyone, though. In residency, I was fairly comfortable with binocular vision, but that knowledge base has atrophied with lack of use. I just punt those issues to either the strabismologist or neuro-ophthalmologist, as the case requires.

Regarding your second point, I'm inclined to agree with you. Unfortunately, in my area, the "free-range" optometrists are, for the most part, sequestered by a few high-volume cataract/refractive kickback, er co-management, practices. The rest of us either have an optometrist or two on staff or don't work with them at all. I've only had a handful of inadvertant optometrist "referrals," because the retina docs they usually refer to couldn't see the patient soon enough, prompting him/her to contact me directly. I always send a letter and refer the patient back for routine care, but there's never any reciprocation. Oh, well. I can't speak to how this situation evolved or who is to blame, it just is. Personally, I would prefer the sort of situation you and KHE seem to be in, with optometrists and ophthalmologists interacting and cross-referring. Alas, it will never happen here.

 

[IndianaOD]

Regarding your first point, I'd counter that, just as the clinical exposure varies between optometry schools, exposure to the aspects you listed varies between residency programs. I'll admit that my contact lens exposure was quite poor, but fortunately I don't have to do much of that. I'd put my refracting skills up against anyone, though. In residency, I was fairly comfortable with binocular vision, but that knowledge base has atrophied with lack of use. I just punt those issues to either the strabismologist or neuro-ophthalmologist, as the case requires.

Regarding your second point, I'm inclined to agree with you. Unfortunately, in my area, the "free-range" optometrists are, for the most part, sequestered by a few high-volume cataract/refractive kickback, er co-management, practices. The rest of us either have an optometrist or two on staff or don't work with them at all. I've only had a handful of inadvertant optometrist "referrals," because the retina docs they usually refer to couldn't see the patient soon enough, prompting him/her to contact me directly. I always send a letter and refer the patient back for routine care, but there's never any reciprocation. Oh, well. I can't speak to how this situation evolved or who is to blame, it just is. Personally, I would prefer the sort of situation you and KHE seem to be in, with optometrists and ophthalmologists interacting and cross-referring. Alas, it will never happen here.

Yes, it would be very difficult for me to refer to an OMD that has primary care in house. Almost all of the retina docs I refer to are stand alone and are excellent at returning my patients. Last year I referred to another retinal OMD who did not return my patient and forwarded them on to a general OMD for glaucoma management. I was already properly managing the patient's glaucoma. That retinal doc will never touch one of my patients again and I let him know that. Respect goes both ways.

I almost strictly use general OMDs for cataracts and LASIK. I think a good OD will take care of the rest or know when the patient should be with a sub-specialist (retina, cornea, glaucoma, oncology).

I think we have too many general OMDs out there along with the amazing oversupply of ODs. Around here we have about the proper amount of retinal and corneal specialists. They are kept busy but not too busy to take the urgent cases. There are several general OMDs a little ways from here that basically play optometrist.

anyhoo, back to the misery of the future of optometry grads! 😀

 

[JAZZEYE]

While I don't agree with everything in the original post, I can verify from my years in this profession (over 20 now) that things have changed a lot and optometrists in general don't seem to be as satisfied as they used to be.

More ODs are employed than ever before, and as KHE has pointed out, THEY get the worst days/hours. Those of you in optometry school should resign yourselves to working every weekend. The question will be will you work BOTH Saturday and Sunday.

Don't count on the AOA to help you out. I have been a member my whole career but don't see the AOA addressing the real issues to this profession. Instead they obsess over a meaningless board certification that the majority of their membership opposed.

It's interesting to note that the most positive comments are from those in pre-optometry. In other words, those who have had the least exposure to the profession. I suppose shadowing a couple of ODs for a few days makes you an expert on the profession.

Again, the original post is very negative, but provides a good place to start some discussions to help you pre-optoms get some insight into the profession you think you know so much about. Don't enter a profession that you haven't thoroughly investigated. Ask the unhappy ODs what they are unhappy about. The schools and organized optometry aren't going to present a balanced look at the profession, in fact they still promote the idea that there is a shortage of ODs.

Whyyy !!! you guys always gotta throw that out there......no matter how eff'ed up the original post...your first instinct is to squash any little enthusiasm a student might have for the future of Optometry... this is primarily a STUDENT Doctor network and this is the Optometry forum...do you think all students should be dismal about this profession or they must be idiots because they choose to face whatever they have to deal with...with a bit of optimism even in the face of uncertainty...Jeez...no wonder that SoCal kid went off his rocker.

It only takes an afternoon on here to figure out,
many students will find themselves in huge debt without the cushy well paying career they dreamed about,
okay... the students got that part or they never will..so who benefits by this constant lamenting.

IndianaOD shame on you "anyhoo, back to the misery of the future of optometry grads!" c'mon dude !
...you can't find someplace else to bring that ?

Do any Docs really think its cool for a Doctor to start a thread "Optometry is Dead" on a Student Doctor network...what good does that do anybody ??...thats jacked off !
Thats probably an all time low for any forum on SDN !

The OD's who post on SDN should have a little more to say about that than, the orignal post is a little extreme... but !

"While I don't agree with everything in the original post, I can verify from my years in this profession (over 20 now) that things have changed a lot and optometrists in general don't seem to be as satisfied as they used to be".

is that all you got for students after (over 20 now)...gosh thanks

 

[thiaeyemd]

It is interesting to what Visionary is saying because I tend to agree. I will say as a plastics person that obviously I run away from any refraction sort of thing and have a good relationship with a number of ODs that send me patients. I will say it is interesting in that the state I work in, many ODs send their patients to a large referral center that is part optometry owned even if the patient has to travel large distances (>50 miles). I live in a state that is right outside NY and Philly. I have had to treat several of these patients after complications after surgery (not that their surgeon is bad..but he is definitely far from perfect) Some of their subspecialists are good, some are not but there are great subspecialists right next door but for some reason the docs do not send it to their local person (not me necessarily but the other good people in the state). It is a strange phenomenon because in the rest of medicine the person who gets the referrals are either a. very good at what they do b. very personable and easy to work with not necessarily politically for another specialties interests. It makes me feel as a physician that those docs really treat this whole thing as a business and at the end of the day put their interests ahead of the patient. MDs from outside my practice, I work with are much more likely to send patients to me (though I am in a group with general people) than most ODs. The ODs I do work with have a great relationship.

I do agree with IndianaOD in that (no diss to students) as students it may be hard to see the difficulties that lie ahead in a specialty until you practice it. Sort like a parent telling a child " I know you want to have a kid at 16 but I did that and it was a mistake" and of course the kid saying " You don't know what you are talking about. I am totally ready etc..". I think the practicing ODs have some merit to what they are saying and the students may not have the full experience of the specialty. I am not saying what he is saying is correct but that as a practicing doc, his words probably do have some meaning.

In terms of the glaucoma managment thing..I would agree with you about that but say that probably the guy may not have realized that you were referring the patient or made an oversight. I am pretty sure that he would not want to lose a lifetime of referrals from you to send the patient to someone else for something he has no desire to do. I am sure you were managing the patient fine but that had nothing to do with it. I feel like there is a little bit of sensitivity with my OD colleagues when it does come to managment stuff for patients. For example, I had an ophthalmologist send me a patient with a lesion that he watched for three months that ended up a basal cell ca. I called him up on the phone and said in a kidding but serious way"Mike, what the f@# were you thinking?". He was like "Yeah, that was a really bad call on my part". He still sends me patients and it is all good. I wouldn't have dared done that with an OD colleague of mine because I feel they are more sensitve. If I said that to an OD referral doc or said "That was a mistake" they would hang up the phone after our conversation and then basically never send me a patient again. I would have to say something like," I could see how you would watch that" or "It is a really hard to diagnose that so don't feel bad". Nothing can be done to change that, but something I noticed. Wish I could just keep it real. I think alot of my ophthalmology friends feel that way.

In terms of "play optometrist", I think most general ophthalmologists feel that they (the specialty) were doing refractions and such way before optometry was even a profession and they should do it if they want. I am sure they recognize that ODs may not refer to them but again in our state, those ODs wouldn't refer to them anyway because they tend to send it to that group. As a result, the general OMDs decided that they may as well do the refraction parts now because ODs don't send them patients anyway. As a resident i refracted and retinoscoped 1000s of patients literally and probably fit 200 contact lenses a year. I think that 99.999% of ophthalmologists are totally cool doing that if they wanted to..I am not sure how you got the impression that people don't refract in residency. I also dont know one ophthalmologist who lets a technician do a diabetic check, red eye or dry eye exam. The techs basically check vision and baseline refraction.Not sure who conveyed that information but that is flat out not true.

Also, I don't know any general Ophthalmologist person who feels that they can't get enough business or that there is an oversupply. That being said, most ODs i know are generally happy also. I do think on studentdoctor.net there are a lot of boohooers on the MD and OD side. Maybe that is the population selection for this as people who are unhappy may tend to get on the site more.

 

[mclem222]

I apologize for not sticking to party doctrine and lines just my opinion based on what I think is right or wrong (that still counts for something these days I hope) Heil the Fuhrer....

 

[fivescrew]

If OMDs take the role of ODs, than I think its fair that ODs can assume the role of OMDs, ala Kentucky.

I'm not an Optometrist or a Kentuckian but I'm curious to know, has there been some big medical change in the state? Can Optometrists now perform surgeries or something?

I only ask because as we all know, the golden-boy Tea Party backed Junior Senator from Kentucky is an Ophthalmologist by trade so that brings up an interesting aspect of any potential Optometry scope of practice growth.

BTW for what it's worth to all your OD's. I've been blessed with horrible eyesight and have been very grateful for the kind and thorough care I've received from Optometrists over the years. It may be rough out there for you business wise but you guys are truly experts in your fields and should be proud. Work may not be glamorous but it's needed.