|
Doctors
of Optometry and Their Education
 Doctors
of optometry are the nation's largest eye care profession,
serving patients in nearly 6,500 communities across the country,
where in more than 3,500 of these communities, they are the
only eye doctors.
- Doctors
of optometry are trained to examine, diagnose, treat
and manage disorders that affect the eye or vision.
- After
attending a university or college for their undergraduate
education, optometry students concentrate specifically
on the structure, function and disorders of the eye
for 4 additional years during their graduate education to
earn their doctoral degree.
- While
concentrating on the eye and visual system, optometrists
also study general health in courses such as human
anatomy, biochemistry and physiology.
- In
addition to their formal, doctoral-level training, all optometrists
participate in ongoing continuing education courses
to stay current on the latest standards of care and to maintain
their licenses to practice. Optometry is one of the only
doctoral-level health care professions to require continuing
education in every state for license renewal.
Prior
to admittance into optometry school, optometrists typically
complete four years of undergraduate study, culminating in
a bachelor's degree. Required undergraduate coursework for
pre-optometry students is extensive and covers a wide variety
of advanced health, science and mathematics courses.
- Optometry
school consists of four years of post-graduate, doctoral-level
study concentrating on the eye, vision and associated systemic
disease. In addition to profession-specific courses, optometrists
are required to take systemic health courses that focus
on a patient's overall medical condition as it relates to
the eyes.
- Upon
completion of optometry school, candidates graduate from
their accredited college of optometry and hold the doctor
of optometry (OD) degree.
- Some
optometrists participate in residency programs following
optometry school. This experience offers doctors of optometry
training in an optometric sub-specialty such as pediatric
optometry, low vision care, or geriatrics.
Optometric
Education in Practice
- Optometrists
must pass a rigorous national examination administered by
the National Board of Examiners in Optometry (NBEO). The
three-part exam includes basic science, clinical science
and patient care.
- All
optometrists are required to participate in ongoing continuing
education courses to stay current on the latest standards
of care.
- Curriculums
and continuing education are updated on an ongoing basis
to reflect technological advances, including surgery techniques,
prescriptive medications and other medical treatments related
to eye diseases and disorders.
- In
addition to being the experts on eye and vision diseases
and disorders, doctors of optometry have the education and
training to diagnose the ocular manifestations of diseases
that affect the entire body, such as diabetes and hypertension.
They also are qualified to evaluate their patients for surgery
when appropriate and often manage their patients' care pre-
and post-operatively.
Related
Links
Ready
for School
http://www.marylandeyes.com/childrens-readyforschool.htm
Information
on Infantsee
http://www.infantsee.org
Locate
an InfantSEE Doctor Near You
http://www.aoa.org/x5428.xml?filter=IS
MOA
in the Community
http://www.marylandeyes.com/community.htm
|
