MbShea@PWP@English@UMCP

A renewed focus on primary health care has led to greater integration of eye health into worldwide health services. While optometry has increased its scope of practice, it has yet to establish specialized departments. Yet specialization does not relieve a doctor from the duty to ensure that patients receive appropriate treatment suggesting optometry to not be just an eye profession with interest in disease, but an applicable field conscious of updated technology. Moreover, this suggests eye care will gradually be integrated into primary health care, which explains why the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects eye care careers to increase by 24% in the next five years. A demand for more eye specialists challenges younger generations to become more familiar with the role of an eye care professional moving away from the typical understanding that an optometrist only asks ‘which is better, one or two?’. Small interest for the field has been reflected in the quality of pre-optometry preparation guides provided by undergraduate schools deterring prospective pre-health students away from the field. Therefore, my guide aims to provide clarity for students interested in applying for optometry schools particularly in the Mid-Atlantic region. A comprehensive guide including the admission process, requirements, and statistics will potentially direct more students into an eye care profession not exclusive to just optometrists. An overview of additional eye care specialists distinguishing the roles of an ophthalmologist and optician will prove eye care to be a diverse and revolutionizing field.
WC: 242

Reader’s Profile: I imagine a pre-health student skeptical of committing their studies to optometry because of inadequate support from health systems and a lack of research on this field.

Reader’s Response: I understand eye care availability is expected to increase, but I see this happening because of increased nationwide governmental health programs not because there is a demand for integrating eye care into primary health care. Financially, this will be burdensome because I will not be compensated enough from the government as I will only receive a fraction of what I can receive from major eye insurances. Additionally, if the field of optometry is only growing for this reason, I do not foresee any challenges creating diverse roles for optometrist. Finally, if there are no challenges to encourage more research for eye care then I will leave patients with empty answers. This field seems rather troublesome than rewarding.

J -- I think you can meet this audience a bit with talking about how optometric are also first-line care providers who can
detect emerging retinal detachments
suspect/refer for glaucoma
diagnose and treat some conditions like dry eye syndromes.

Look at the overlap, including script writing, with ophthalmology. This may interest the fence sitters.

Also, perhaps work/family balance is better?