I have recently been accepted to SCCO and am so sick and tired of reading so many negative responses about optometry in these forums. And most of them are from non-practicing optometrists! So, I am graciously asking optometrists out there on their take of the profession. If you had to do it over again, would you? What makes optometry better than other health professions? What make it worse? Would I be making a mistake entering optometry? Like FOX news says it: please be fair and balanced. Also, please do not respond if you are not a practicing optometrist. Thank you very much for your time.
*Practicing Optometrists Only* What is your take on the profession?
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I second this post, some optometrists need to respond!
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Yes, but I would have been more aware of the role managed care, and in particular access to medical insurances plays in my ability to get compensated for what I'm trained to do.
The patient encounters are generally laid back and low stress. People generally don't have an unusual phobia about going to the eye doctor. There is very little blood and guts. There is very little death. When there is, it's almost never because of something I did, or didn't do. Patients get to keep their clothes on. I don't have to take a lot of after hours call and when I do, it's almost always something that can be handled by simply phoning some medication in.
Oversaturation and the publics general lack of understanding about the importance of eye care. Managed vision care. Lack of insurance plan access. Can get routine sometimes.
Personal choice. You wouldn't be making a mistake per se but you have to have an understanding of what optometry is, and what optometrists do and you have to be comfortable with that. Understand that 90% of optometry deals with refractive and vision correction issues. If cool, sexy disease processes are what you're after then optometry may not be for you. My practice is about as "medical" as an optometric practice can get and most of my day consists of making people see better, or more comfortable through glasses, contact lenses, and in some cases vision therapy.
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Okay, this is my take on Optometry.
Optometry is better than other professions because you get immediate results with most patients. The patient presents with a complaint of blurry vision and, in most cases, you provide them with clear vision. My practice is mostly pathology, so 50 to 60 percent of my patients will not see much better, but I can optimize their vision.
I would do it all over. I run my own business, take care of the patients with the highest regard for their welfare and make autonomous decisions all day long. This is a great profession. You make of it what you want, but there are still lots of opportunities out there. You must be innovative because all the niches have not been filled. Get away from the corporate model and do it yourself. This has been done time after time. I have actually opened two independent practices within the past two years and have employed two new doctors. I am trying to help the oversupply issue by being proactive.
Optometry is frustrating because of the status quo provided by corporate entities. They drag the reimbursements down, sell short the doctors that they associate with and provide a cloud that most cannot relieve themselves from. If we would progress to the idea of providing eye care instead of providing a retail product, Optometry may flourish. Until that happens, things will be very frustrating.
I can't speak for your future. If you are motivated and innovative, Optometry is definately a good possibility. If you want things given to you on a silver platter, don't do it. Too many individuals today do not understand that success takes hard work.
Good luck,
Dr. Gump
1. I opened cold immediately after graduation. It took about 3-4 years to make decent money and now, 10 yrs later, I have my home, car, credit cards, school loans paid off...maxed out my retirement (and then lost 50% of it during the crash 🙁 and have purchased my practice building. The money is great if that is what your after (if you do it right). If your lazy and run to the first Walmart that buys you dinner, you will hate it after a few years. If you expect a private OD to pay you $80/hr you will be greatly disappointed.
2. If your after excitement and stimulation, this field ain't for you. It's "Ground Hogs" day over and over. Like some of the other posters, I set up as a "medical" type optometry practice seeing anything that walked in the door. Still 90% of my time is asking "1 or 2" 20 times per day over and over. There is about 5 diagnoses that you will be explaining over and over and over and over. You'll be explaining cataracts in your sleep. 🙂
3. Your dealing with the public and they are incredible idiots as whole......just as in any other field dealing with people off the streets. If believe your patients will fall all over themselves thanking you for your services, you're kidding yourself. Even if you save their life, they will complain over their $15 copay. Many will lie, cheat and steal to get things from you. They will want as much as they can for free and demand you give it to them. They will leave your office over $5 if they can find a deal better down the road.
4. You will be dealing with employees that are one step out of McDonalds. They won't care and will come and go and you will be constantly training or just doing everything yourself.
5. Insurance sucks. They are the most crooked organizations in the history of mankind making the mafia look like choir girls.
6. Oversupply is only going to get worse with more schools. Technology already allows current docs to see more and more patients with greater ease. So you will be fighting for patients most anywhere you go.
7. There is no such thing as loyaty in optometry, be it patients, employees or your colleagues. It's a dog-eat-dog type profession.
But going back to my original point.........the money is really good. Just good enough for me to try my best to ignore # 2-7 but it's really hard some times. Really hard!
What am I encouraging my children to be? Dentists. Almost no competition, no MD counterparts and less insurance. They are smart.
2. If your after excitement and stimulation, this field ain't for you. It's "Ground Hogs" day over and over. Like some of the other posters, I set up as a "medical" type optometry practice seeing anything that walked in the door. Still 90% of my time is asking "1 or 2" 20 times per day over and over. There is about 5 diagnoses that you will be explaining over and over and over and over. You'll be explaining cataracts in your sleep. 🙂
3. Your dealing with the public and they are incredible idiots as whole......just as in any other field dealing with people off the streets. If believe your patients will fall all over themselves thanking you for your services, you're kidding yourself. Even if you save their life, they will complain over their $15 copay. Many will lie, cheat and steal to get things from you. They will want as much as they can for free and demand you give it to them. They will leave your office over $5 if they can find a deal better down the road.
4. You will be dealing with employees that are one step out of McDonalds. They won't care and will come and go and you will be constantly training or just doing everything yourself.
5. Insurance sucks. They are the most crooked organizations in the history of mankind making the mafia look like choir girls.
6. Oversupply is only going to get worse with more schools. Technology already allows current docs to see more and more patients with greater ease. So you will be fighting for patients most anywhere you go.
7. There is no such thing as loyaty in optometry, be it patients, employees or your colleagues. It's a dog-eat-dog type profession.
But going back to my original point.........the money is really good. Just good enough for me to try my best to ignore # 2-7 but it's really hard some times. Really hard!
What am I encouraging my children to be? Dentists. Almost no competition, no MD counterparts and less insurance. They are smart.
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I think the advice you've gotten so far is spot on. If asked four years ago I would not have hesitated in saying there is no way I would do optometry again.
Today, if asked, I would say that I would do it all again. The only difference between four years ago and today is that I've finally found my niche. You need to find a part of optometry that is attractive to you and make it work. It is not going to be easy but it can be done.
Are you willing to work the dregs of optometry just to be an optometrist? Are you willing to work in that mythical 55K job we keep hearing about just to be an optometrist? Will you be happy doing refractions day in and day out or are you only interested in ocular disease?
I think its interesting that out of the five responses from ODs (including mine) at least two of us are not in traditional optometric practice. To me that doesn't show that optometry is terrible, rather it shows that there are other opportunities out there to use your OD degree if you aren't happy working commercial or doing refractions all day or if your interests grow while you're in school.
Today, if asked, I would say that I would do it all again. The only difference between four years ago and today is that I've finally found my niche. You need to find a part of optometry that is attractive to you and make it work. It is not going to be easy but it can be done.
Are you willing to work the dregs of optometry just to be an optometrist? Are you willing to work in that mythical 55K job we keep hearing about just to be an optometrist? Will you be happy doing refractions day in and day out or are you only interested in ocular disease?
I think its interesting that out of the five responses from ODs (including mine) at least two of us are not in traditional optometric practice. To me that doesn't show that optometry is terrible, rather it shows that there are other opportunities out there to use your OD degree if you aren't happy working commercial or doing refractions all day or if your interests grow while you're in school.
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I would agree with almost all of that. Honestly I would not recommend the profession at this time. That is just my opinion though. If you can find the 1 town in America that isn't oversupplied you have a great shot.
People defending the new schools on here is ludicrous!
1. Oversupply
2. Commercial ODs
3. Insurance discrimination
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Don't go by that. Most optometry jobs, at least the better quality ones aren't posted on line. They are found through word of mouth.
I can only speak for myself but I live in an island country in the South Pacific where I teach nurses to do eye care (refraction, general anterior segment stuff, triage other things according to severity/urgency, operating theatre support, etc.)
When not teaching, supervising, or doing other parts of my job I see patients in a "refraction clinic". That means they are suppossed to be triaged by the complaint of "blurry vision". If they have a red eye, a painful eye, etc they are to be seen at the hospital either in our other clinic or by the local ophthalmologists who work there. Despite this triaging I see a good amount of pathology that I am unable to treat (limited drugs, limited equipment, limited funds). I have to refer to private places for fundus photos and visual fields which the patients can't afford to have done anyway...
So I don't practice optometry as you know it in North America but I do see patients to the best of my ability and I'm getting pretty good at trial frame refractions (a phoropter? What's that!) 😱
No residency but I do have a Master of Public Health.
Without my optometry degree I couldn't do this and this is a step toward my main career goal.
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Great thread, and kudos to the OP who started it. As well - good to hear all the different OD perspectives.
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These responses have been helpful. I would like to request that the optometrists offering their perspective add some indication of their practice mode and neighborhood demographics. Since there are so many ways to practice (corporate, private, partnership, group) in so many different areas (rural, suburban, urban, affluent, blue collar), some might find it enlightening to understand your experiences in context.
Thanks,
Jeff
Thanks,
Jeff
I thought I'd join in on this thread. I joined this forum six years ago as an OD resident, but somehow I either got deleted because of inactivity or forgot what email I had used. Anyway I finished my VA residency and immediately started at my current job as a staff optometrist at the VA hospital in Spokane Washington. Six years later I'll try to give some prospective. Most of my day is spent doing what the VA calls primary care, but what many people call "medical optometry". We have all the clinical privileges that any OD can have. AMD, DM retinopathy, glaucoma, neuro, vascular disease, lumps and bumps; you name it, we manage it. I also see three Low Vision exams per day, in one-hour slots. Our clinic has a student and resident program but I generally don't get involved with them much. Some of you reading this forum probably know me since we've had tons of students rotate through our clinic over the years.
I have to agree with the positive responses you've gotten above. As you know the field of healthcare is booming and there is no end in site. People will pay anything and do anything to stay alive and happy. More and more, healthcare is seen as an entitlement in this country. Optometry is a great niche within the healthcare world; it's clean, it's relatively respected, the hours are good, and you generally get to make your patients happy.
Working at a VA with a student and residency program keeps me "in the loop" as far as seeing what new practitioners are doing. I try to keep tabs on what former students and residents are up to. I have seen new optometry graduates be successful and I have seen new graduates fail in all the practice settings imaginable. I can guarantee you that the optometrists that fail don't fail because of the profession they've chosen. They fail because of the choices they make and unreasonable expectations. And I use the term "fail" rather loosely. I've actually never heard of an unemployed optometrist. At least not in any area where I've worked. Maybe some are not happily employed (working at a glasses emporium for example).
Optometry is not a get rich quick scheme. In fact it's not a get rich at all scheme. If you want to make tons of money someday, become an ophthalmologist or some other surgical specialty; but be prepared for hard work and even greater pitfalls and hurdles along the way.
I definitely encourage every optometry student to consider doing a residency. Unless you know exactly what direction you're headed right out of school, such as starting in your father's private practice, a residency opens up a lot of doors to you in the future.
Okay, so there's some of my prospective. Enough rambling. Peace. ~Mike
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What'd you do the first 3 years before you bought your own practice and what made you make the decision to buy?
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I was working as an associate with a private practice before buying my own practice. I made great money as an associate, but wanted the challenge of practice ownership. I purchased a practice in decline from a OD ready to retire. The practice was seriously dated (~1970s) and delapitated...it was certianly a project to turn things around. Anyway, I ended up almost doubling the gross revenue from the previous owner, and renovated the building and all of the equipmenmt. Now things are running smoothly, and I am very happy.
You are quite naive.
You have to realize that most of the docs who have responded thus far, graduated optometry school when optometry was not as commercial as it is today. Even the admission standards have gotten lower, proving that students are attracted to something else.
The debt they had was VERY low to the amount of debt students have nowadays. Since then, loan rates have doubled, thus making your repayment a huge burden. Something like monthly installments of $1000 every month for 30 YEARS?
Also, consider the amount of graduates being pumped out back then and now. I'm not sure of how many new schools have open, but surely, the opening of three new schools will FURTHER saturate the market, making it hard for you to find a suitable CAREER. Anyone can find a job however.
From what I recall, OD's earned their income by selling frames etc. not by conducting exams. Now, competitors like walmart advertise frames for like 20 bucks and private practitioners are unable to meet such a low charge as they cannot afford it. Thus they are forced to employ associates with a relatively low income.
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We're all aware of your viewpoint. She is not being naive for trying to look ahead and learn about different ways to be successful with this career. Of course the situation will change with time, but saying there's no point in trying to look ahead to figure out what you should do NOW, or while you're in OD school, is not productive.
You're not a practicing optometrist. Let them share their FIRST HAND experiences. Just because someone may have graduated 2, 5, or 20 years ago doesn't mean that they're not dealing with the same saturation and competition issues NOW.
Wow...I made one somewhat optimistic comment in appreciation of the responses and suddenly I am naive...Noone has ever said that to me before..let alone a complete stranger.
& thank you blysssful because your comment is exactly how I feel and I need not write any more regarding gochi's post.
& thank you blysssful because your comment is exactly how I feel and I need not write any more regarding gochi's post.
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There are a lot of negative post regarding the profession. Maybe things are truly that bleak in the US. however most of my graduating class (2003) seem to be doing well, and many, if not most are in private practice. I practice in Western Canada and there are many excellent private practice opportunities, especially in rural locations. I recently hired a new associate, and guess how long it took for him to be fully booked a week in advance?...one day. He will make well over 100k this year. I know that many people hate to hear this because they are bitter and practice in a poor location.
I really like optometry. It has met or exceeded all of my expectations, and I am making more money than I ever though I would.
For all those who have the desire....go for it!
I really like optometry. It has met or exceeded all of my expectations, and I am making more money than I ever though I would.
For all those who have the desire....go for it!
Most optometrist would not share their negative "first hand experiences," which is why I said what I said. It is the truth.
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I tried asking this in a different thread but to practicing OD's:
What are your experiences with solo practice, multiple OD's in the same practice (if area of practice supports patient volume), and joing OD/OMD practice? Pros/Cons, ect.
What are your experiences with solo practice, multiple OD's in the same practice (if area of practice supports patient volume), and joing OD/OMD practice? Pros/Cons, ect.
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I think they're just as willing to share negative experiences as positive ones. Don't act like the ODs on this forum are just cheerleaders for the profession. Pretty much all of them have blatantly said there are negative aspects, and it takes some creativity and effort to be successful in this career.
What you said maybe be a subjective truth in your eyes but that does not mean your opinion is an objective fact about the state of the profession. Learn the difference.
Prove me wrong then.
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Hahah, don't you worry. I will.
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i have never posted in the optometry forum but this sounds just like pharmacy..i think healthcare in general is changing not just our specific prefessions...the talented will succeed and always have a good job
I disagree somewhat with the dentist point...hygenists are moving in like nps in the md world
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I am finishing my second year in Optometry School and I would advise you to speak to several optometrists "face to face" in the real world to get the most honest opinions about the field. There is some compelling opinions on here from some OD's for sure but I have learned the "real world" face to face conversations are far more useful than an internet forum. Make sure you talk to docs in various practice settings. Case in point I know a doc back home who does ALOT of disease--->glaucoma especially. He gets referrals for that purpose all the time. He told me that he when he came on the scene as a new OD he "took a doctor out to eat" once a week---> ophthalmologists, family doctors, rheumatologists, ENT's etc...to establish good relationships with them and now has a nice referral network 5 years later. It was hard work but he is extremely happy with his practice. You will get varying opinions but out of 10 OD's I have had a heart to heart with in "the real world" 8 of them said they would do it again, 1 hates it and is really bored, and the other is not sure. My family is a bunch of MD's and DO's and I am telling you medicine is not a panacea by any means! There is an internist in my family that says her job is like "shoveling s h i t " every day arguing with patients and nurses at the hospital, dealing with headaches on a daily basis, and getting payed $175,000 per year to her is not nearly enough. Another relative of mine is a surgeon and he loves what he does, the respect, and of course the money. We have a Family Practice Doctor in our ranks and he says that now seeing 60 patients a day to maker $160,000 a year is making him reconsider his choice of residency and practice---> he is not happy now. The Dentist in our family(who practices overseas) is very happy but complains of low back pain! Optometry has its problems like any other medical field but it also has many positive aspects to it as well. I like both the medical aspects of the field (glaucoma is very interesting to me) and the refractive aspects as well. Good luck dude!
I've been in private practice 30 years in a suburban area of NYC...and I still love every minute of it. Our scope of practice has expanded so greatly since I started, that I find it hard to believe anybody can't make enough money. Managed care, while not a picnic, has been a boon to my practice. It feeds both medical and optical patients. We now have 4 full time doctors and 4 full time licensed opticians with 20 other support staff. Sure there is competition, but learn from those around you and be active in your local, state and national asociations. You will learn a lot there as I did. Good luck
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Just for fun I was looking up the property owned by the local OMDs in my area. Note this is the midwest and not a fancy area. All of them own houses worth well over $1 million. Just fun info for you all.
Our county has a internet geographical interface that lets you find anything in a couple of seconds. Kind of creepy really!
Our county has a internet geographical interface that lets you find anything in a couple of seconds. Kind of creepy really!
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For anyone who isn't familiar with this part of the country, the kinds of homes you can buy for $1 million are best described by words like "palatial."
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Yeah, we are talking 6-7 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms, 4 car garage on lakefront. Most are well over the $1M. FYI my house is under $200k =).
If they were not lakefront they'd probably have a landing strip or something.
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I believe if you know what the professions are BEFORE you start, then you can make a better decision as to what you want to do. In school, they DRILLED into us to never go corporate and that if you do then you are not a "real doc." When you graduate you will see why many people choose coporate vs. other modalities.
Optometry is a respected profession that touches all age groups, pays well and you have a stable doctor lifestyle (compared to others). If prestige is more important to you then pursue the rigors of medical school and chance a competitive oMD residency (but then you will see that there is always a hierarchy scale), and they have there own problems to tackle.
As an Optometrist you will help people with their most important sensory organ. But there will be times when you wish you had more of an expanded scope of practice to do limited surgical procedures instead of having to refer/consult when it is not necessary.
Yes it gets monotonus at times, but that is with any job and any profession. Depends if you want that ER/Grey's Anatomy lifestyle...
In the end, find out what matters to you most at the end of the day (money, prestige, business owning, etc). Upon graduation you will be paying back close to $1,000 per month in combined school loans.
1) Corporate offers you more money up front but no real room to grow.
2) Private practice offers less money initially but "possibly" a chance to grow with a practice.
3) Hospitals offer you less pay and less room to grow, but some stability in schedule and "respect?"
4) I would not advise starting cold turkey with this economy. Most of the private practicing docs seem to have graduated 10 years ago, and they do not carry the same financial burdens you do.
Yeah...its really difficult to find posts by Optometrists who are willing to share their negative experiences.
Teaching optometry internationally is something I have been thinking about. I wonder if you could give some pointers on how to go about finding out that. I did do a one year post-OD Teaching Fellowship if that helps.
I love going to work every day and have no regrets about choosing optometry.
I own a private practice with 2 locations, do not work nights or weekends, and never miss any of my kids activities. I see patients about 30 hours/week and do my adminstrative stuff at home while earning more than twice the average income for OD's.
However, I think it will be much more difficult (not impossible) for a new grad to get to where I am. With the opening of UIW, Midwestern, & Western U., there will be such a glut of optometrists graduating that it will be a true "buyer's market." Expect commercial optometry to make incredible demands about how and when you practice and PP OD's like myself will be more inclined to pay 1-2 new grads an hourly salary instead of offering partnership.
Remember that the majority of those attending these 3 new schools could not get accepted anywhere else, and that same desperation will lead them to undercut you when applying for jobs in 4 years. I fear the profession is becoming more of a job all the time.
I own a private practice with 2 locations, do not work nights or weekends, and never miss any of my kids activities. I see patients about 30 hours/week and do my adminstrative stuff at home while earning more than twice the average income for OD's.
However, I think it will be much more difficult (not impossible) for a new grad to get to where I am. With the opening of UIW, Midwestern, & Western U., there will be such a glut of optometrists graduating that it will be a true "buyer's market." Expect commercial optometry to make incredible demands about how and when you practice and PP OD's like myself will be more inclined to pay 1-2 new grads an hourly salary instead of offering partnership.
Remember that the majority of those attending these 3 new schools could not get accepted anywhere else, and that same desperation will lead them to undercut you when applying for jobs in 4 years. I fear the profession is becoming more of a job all the time.
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Does anyone know just how bad the saturation is getting? I'm a Bio-Sci Major looking into going into optometry because it was recommended to me by a friend, however it is looking like it's a risky career. I've looked through the internet and there is a lot of bad rep with optometry, such as:
- how it is pumping out too many graduates,
- how Walmart is destroying the profession,
- how the pay isn't what people claim
- and lastly how hard it is to find a job.
The last part is really making me think of choosing another career, as it is really important to me to move back to my hometown and get a job there where my family is. I am willing to travel up to 30-40 minutes away, however I looked at job listings for optometry in MN and they are mainly part time. There are also very few job listings (only 2!).
I really fell in love with the idea of being an optometrist. To be honest, it has been what's kept me sane for my pre-med/pre-opt life. However I can't pick a career which will put my future at risk. So please, tell me how bad it really is out there!
Cheers,
UCIGuy
- how it is pumping out too many graduates,
- how Walmart is destroying the profession,
- how the pay isn't what people claim
- and lastly how hard it is to find a job.
The last part is really making me think of choosing another career, as it is really important to me to move back to my hometown and get a job there where my family is. I am willing to travel up to 30-40 minutes away, however I looked at job listings for optometry in MN and they are mainly part time. There are also very few job listings (only 2!).
I really fell in love with the idea of being an optometrist. To be honest, it has been what's kept me sane for my pre-med/pre-opt life. However I can't pick a career which will put my future at risk. So please, tell me how bad it really is out there!
Cheers,
UCIGuy
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If you go by the odds, you will not get rich being an optometrist. It is very unlikely you will starve, but it is possible you will to some degree, be under-employed.
Many threads/posts exist here regarding the sentiments of practicing ODs regarding the future of the profession - have a look around.
Many threads/posts exist here regarding the sentiments of practicing ODs regarding the future of the profession - have a look around.
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If you are only willing to work 40 minutes from home, I would pick a different career. Why the restriction on location?? Does your mom still wipe your @ss??
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If you lived in minnesota (or any of the upper latitudes), you would know that working further than a 40-50 minute commute is considered very dangerous in the winter. Blizzards and white outs come in a flash and it is recommended by the state not to travel beyond that point. Also, if I have to drive over the 40 minute radius of where my house is, it would take at least an extra 30 minutes to reach any decent sized city where I could get a stable income flow. In addition, everything in MN is crumpled up in one spot, within 40 minutes I can hit over 20 large suburbs and 2 metropolitan cities.
As for the insulting comment. Really? Was it truly necessary?
Also, if you are wondering, "why not just relocate to the city where you would be getting my first gig?". It is because I inherited a house from my parents, and it is important to me live there.
Thanks for the replies,
-UCIGuy
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If you are that geographically restricted, then your best is likely going to be to either buy a practice or start one as soon as you get out of school. (No, this is not impossible.) Worry more about creating a job for yourself than having someone else give you the job.
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Be advised that many of the people that are very active on this site get extremely upset when you say anything negative about the profession. I'm tired of bickering, so I will give you some questions to ask yourself and some starting points for your research. Do not take anyone's word for it as optometrists are notorious for glorifying their scope of practice and the career itself.
A little background on myself, so I do not come off as some guy who is doing poorly and is therefore negative. I am a senior optometrist and shop steward for a premier HMO in the US. I practice in the Ophthalmology department and practice full scope optometry. I make a six figure salary with full benefits for my family, 6 weeks paid vacation, 6 months sick leave, paid CE and paid holidays. I also owned a private practice as well.
I would never do it again, even if you put a gun to my head. I am currently in professional school for a change in career with the full support of my wife who is also a successful professional. With that said, ask yourself the follwoing questions:
1. Are you prepared to incur six figure student loan debt to make an average starting salary of 87,000.00 / year? Remember, that's a monthly student loan payment of 1,000.00, when after taxes, you'll be clearing about 4,200.00/ month. That doesn't include your undergraduate loans, by the way. So, you'll have 3200.00 minus your undergraduate student loans per month. Now time to pay rent, and all of your other expenses. Eight years of education to struggle financially? Hmm...
2. Are you prepared to work at WallMArt or LensCrafters? Chances are, you will be at some point in your career, especially if you are a new grad. Working in a mall until 8 p.m., on Saturdays and Sundays sound good after 8 years of hard work? Hmm...
3. Are you prepared to do an average of 18 eye examinations a day, five days a week for 25-30 years? Based on epidemiology stats, there isn't even that much disease out there. How much of the population has Glaucoma, AMD, Uveitis? The sad truth is that most of what you'll bust your backside learning in school won't be used becuase there simply isn't that much of it out there. so, most of what you'll be doing are routine exams. Anyone who tells you otherwise is lying to you. I work in a very busy, hospital based system, with full hospital privileges and most of it is general eye exams with refraction. Sure, I monitor glaucoma, cataracts and diabetic retinopathy. I treat the ocassional corneal ulcer and discover Keratoconus, but it's really not that often. The big question to ask yourself is, if optometrists are treating all of this disease, why have corneal specialists, retinal specialists, cataract and refractive specialists, uveitis specialists, glaucoma specialists and the like? Optometrists outnumber ophthalmologists 2:1. Is there really that much disease out there that both ophthalmologists and optometrists are busy all day treating this stuff?
Other questions you'll have to ask yourself: Are you prepared to see more patients each year to keep up with dwindling insurance reimbursements? Are you prepared to focus on quantity, rather than quality? Are you prepared to compete with optometric practices opening up on every corner? Are you prepared to compete with WallMart and Costco prices? Are you prepared to compete with "glasses in an hour"? Are you prepared to deal with depressed personalities, geriatrics and people on Medicaid? Are you prepared to work in a system where profit comes first and patient care comes last? Are you prepared for late patients that demand to be seen, CL abusers, and uncontrolled diabetics?
These are just some of the questions you'll have to ask yourself and we haven't even touched on the lack of respect that optometrists get from the medical community and the general public!
Since money seems to be the motivating factor of many students on this site, if you are looking to make real money, do something in business, finance or law. You'll go to school for half the time and make twice the money. You also won't sit in a little dark room all day with people who can't tell the difference between "1" or "2".
Good Luck!
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I think it is valuable to listen to all practicing optometrist's perspective, whether they have positive or negative things to say. The entire premise of the student-doctor network is for willing doctors and students to have open dialogue about their respective professions and to give their take on it.
Just remember to always factor in their perspective. An ultra successful private practice optometrist in the state of Washington (one of the most lucrative states for optometrists) will differ from a recent grad in Southern California struggling to find fill-in work each month. These are two polar conditions and the reality of the average optometrist in somewhere in-between. There are those who not very successful financially but enjoy the profession. There are those like SaveYourself who are very successful financially but have found optometry to be not the career he had imagined it to be (while in school) they he only discovered when he started working.
UCIguy, it would be best to interview as many optometrists in the region you wish to practice and in all modalities of practice. Many of those on the internet enjoy the anonymity of pseudo-names. Khe is the exception who is open about who he is and while is not glowingly optimistic about the profession will agree that if you are an optometrist you at least won't default on your student loans and will never eat out of a dumpster.
I tend to not follow either the exceedingly optimistic or pessimistic. I am skeptical that I won't necessarily make >$200,000 a year yet I am optimistic about the career that I have chosen and know while it is not perfect, there are many careers FAR FAR worse that require even more work and result in less pay.
Just remember to always factor in their perspective. An ultra successful private practice optometrist in the state of Washington (one of the most lucrative states for optometrists) will differ from a recent grad in Southern California struggling to find fill-in work each month. These are two polar conditions and the reality of the average optometrist in somewhere in-between. There are those who not very successful financially but enjoy the profession. There are those like SaveYourself who are very successful financially but have found optometry to be not the career he had imagined it to be (while in school) they he only discovered when he started working.
UCIguy, it would be best to interview as many optometrists in the region you wish to practice and in all modalities of practice. Many of those on the internet enjoy the anonymity of pseudo-names. Khe is the exception who is open about who he is and while is not glowingly optimistic about the profession will agree that if you are an optometrist you at least won't default on your student loans and will never eat out of a dumpster.
I tend to not follow either the exceedingly optimistic or pessimistic. I am skeptical that I won't necessarily make >$200,000 a year yet I am optimistic about the career that I have chosen and know while it is not perfect, there are many careers FAR FAR worse that require even more work and result in less pay.
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Business and finance? You can't be serious. Talk about two crumbling sectors right now. I'm sure all those low and mid level workers at Lehman, Bear Sterns, Citigroup and BofA are really wishing they pursued health care right about now.
And law? Please....lawyers are a dime a dozen. Unless you graduate from an uber high powered law school and get on board with an uber high powered law firm, you'll struggle as much as any OD, scrounging around trying to find contract or real estate work. Even if you are lucky enough to be admitted to and graduate from an uber high powered law school, you'll end up working for some firm 100 hours a week for the first 10 years just trying to rack up as many billable hours as you can doing case "research" (ie sifting through boxes and reams of papework) trying to make partner.
Optometry is no utopia. Believe me I know. I left it for a couple of years before finding my way back. But don't fall into the trap of thinking that the grass is always greener on the other side of some fence. That's crazy thinking there.
Saveyourself, what career have you decided to pursue and what is it about that you are expecting to find more fulfilling than optometry?
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