Career opportunities in optometry

Optometry is a medical science which focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of impairments related to the human visual system. A doctor of optometry, or optometrist, is a person skilled in evaluating the general health of the eyes and who holds an optometry license. Optometrists may examine your eyes to check for health issues and vision adjustments.

They can identify vision problems, eye traumas, ocular anomalies, and health problems including diabetes and high blood pressure. They can also prescribe contact lenses and spectacles to address refractive faults. Patients may receive clinical guidance from optometrists in addition to health evaluations and assessments.

A career in optometry can be very rewarding, with good earning potential and scope for development.

Education requirement to become an optometrist

To become an O.D. (Doctor of Optometry), a candidate must pass the EYECET exam, which is the national entrance exam used to admit students to optometry programmers. An aspirant optometrist begins their education by finishing three or four years of college with a focus on pre-medical courses and receiving a bachelor's degree. That four-year degree should be in a field that is related to optometry, such as biology or physiology. To acquire an O.D., one can finish four years of study at a recognized optometry school. In order to obtain expertise in a specialty like ocular illness or poor vision rehabilitation, they may also do a one-year clinical residency.

Scope of optometrist

Optometric practice has enormous and limitless potential both in India and overseas. It is an exciting and demanding vocation that can lead to personal development, respect from the community, and gives job flexibility, financial success, and limitless chances. The major eye care and health practitioners who are concerned with vision care are optometrists or optometric physicians. They are specialists at identifying refractive errors and prescribing the right treatment.

They handle vision screening (eye testing), diagnosis of visual issues, orthotics and vision training, optometric counseling of patients with partial sight, colour blindness, and genetic vision disorders, as well as designing and fitting of glasses, contact lenses, and low vision aids. In addition, they give patients who complain of visual problems like squinting and other similar ones vision treatment eye exercises.

There are also many different career paths you might take as an optometrist. You have the option of working as a researcher in a variety of industries, a postsecondary educator, an eyewear industry consultant, an occupational/industrial safety programme advisor, or a consultant. People who are interested in working as optometrists can also start their own independent private eye care practices.

Skills required to become an optometrist

Some of the Valuable skills that are important for an optometrist and how they contribute to a thriving practice.

Interpersonal skills

Optometrists are less feared than dentists in the medical field, but both deal closely with patients. You must be able to communicate with people in a calm, professional manner and be at ease in close quarters. All of your professional encounters, including those with office personnel and coworkers, should be interacted in a friendly manner.

Communication skills

For both customer service and medical follow-ups, communication skills are essential. Optometrists instruct patients on crucial information on routine vision maintenance, ocular health and hygiene, and specialized treatment for injury or illness. When referring patients, requesting more details about a patient's condition, or seeking expert guidance, they must also effectively interact with other professionals. Any practice may operate more efficiently with good staff communication, which also keeps patients well informed about their care and any problems they may encounter.

Crtical thinking

An optometrist's career should emphasize the development of critical thinking abilities in the workplace. Critical thinking is important since it implies that you should have the appropriate response to a problem. Another key competency in this field is the ability to weigh the advantages and downsides of various findings, solutions, or approaches to issues. Critical thinking is important because it enables people and organisations to identify problems, generate solutions, and diagnose future problems that may not seem to have a clear answer at first.

Decision making skills

Making a choice between two or more alternative outcomes is known as decision-making. Making decisions involves choosing between various action plans as part of the larger problem-solving process. When making decisions in the field of optometry, one should either use logic or a combination of logic and experience. When choosing the best course of action, take into account the respective costs and rewards.

Problem solving skills

Information, acts, discussions, and procedures that are already flawed or just incapable of performing the needed functions are present in both individual and commercial structures in large quantities. In our work as optometrists, problem-solving equips us with the ability to identify such items and offer solutions. Recognize complex issues, examine pertinent data, formulate and evaluate tactics, and implement solutions.

(The author is the Pro Chancellor, Sharda University)