shadowing optometrist question

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trah23

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Well i dont know how to get around this without sounding stupid but here goes. I finally found two optometrists who said theyd be aright with me shadowing them for my entire last year of school. Ofcourse i was excited at having such an opportunity but then something hit me. What exactly does one do when shadowing a doctor of whatever expertise. To put it bluntly, i dont want to look like a ******* on thursday(thats when i start), could someone shed some light on what i should be doing while im there, id greatly appreciate it:)

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Yeah you can politely ask the Optometrist if you can sit in during his eye exams (of course with patient consent) so that you can observe what goes on. That is what I am doing. I don't know if its a private practice you're working at or a chain, but if you don't speak up as to what you are looking for, you might end up working with the receptionist filing patient files and answering calls! :eek:
 
That. would. suck. lol

Im gonna stop by tomorrow and somehow try to smoothly transition our conversation into eye exams and such procedures with me observing. Although i kind of figured id be doing this anyhow since he agreed to let me shadow him.

But hell, i aint taking a chance, thanks for the advice:)
 
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haha no prob man, trust me ull be surprised, I volunteered at a chain telling the Optometrist that I wanted to shadow him...turns out...I didn't even spend a minute with him and his patients. I ended up doing receptionist/front desk work!! So thats how I knew I had to get out of there and now I landed a beautiful position where I am getting shadowing like no tomorrow and learning lots!! Good luck!
 
when ur shadowing the optometrist doing examinations...r u allowed to ask questions about what he/she's doing? would that be considered rude and disruptive? :confused:
 
when ur shadowing the optometrist doing examinations...r u allowed to ask questions about what he/she's doing? would that be considered rude and disruptive? :confused:

When I was shadowing, my OD basically walked me through everything he was doing the first few times. When I had questions, I usually asked after the exam was over. If a patient had something specific that I hadn't seen before, he pointed it out and we talked about it, but only after the exam was over. In my opinion, it's only rude if you're in the situation where you're talking about the patient as if they're not even in the room.
 
when ur shadowing the optometrist doing examinations...r u allowed to ask questions about what he/she's doing? would that be considered rude and disruptive? :confused:

Dont forget that the OD has a job to do, so you dont want to interrupt him/her. Like the above poster mentioned save your questions until after the exam is over.

If you have an OD who is a good mentor/teacher they may take a second or 2 to point something out to you and let you have a look. I was fortunate enough to have a couple Drs do this for me. I also had a few that didn't, so I just waited to ask them things.

How you handle yourself around their patients will have a big influence on your recommendation letter. Make sure you are professional.
 
thank u for ur advices, StushOD and blysssful! that was really helpful :)
 
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