Optician Magician...

[sanswhitecoat]

Still waiting on the lenses for a patient to come in.
RX -13.00 -3.00 094
-8.00 -2.50 059
He insisted on a metal Nike frame, having always worn zyl. I did what any optician would do, advise against, warning patient about center and edge thickness. you know, the "pop bottle" look. Patient insisted. So I ordered him a 1.74 Spectrum lens with EX3 anti glare and transition add on. He paid 903.00.
...Or his father did, rather.
In the lab notes I ask for a roll and polish. It had to be a 50/50 bevel because with that RX he would not have been able to close the temples otherwise.

He has called and called and called in excitement, he is 4 hours away driving distance and all I can think of is how much he has probably romanticized this pair. I have been an optician 5 years and I have never been this nervous about a pair of glasses. Mostly because of how many broken glasses cases I have seen as a result of bullying.
Should I have lied and told him it couldn't be done? He would have just gone elsewhere to someone who would may not have cared.
I did my best, any suggestions going further?

Signed,
an Optician who cares.(Maybe even too much)

[merrymaker]

Sounds like you did the right thing. Eyesize would be nice info to have but it sounds like this is a younger patient. If you gave a reasonable forewarning and you put on all the bells and whistles then you did all you can. This could be a bit of additional adjustment work and more follow up visits than most but I don't think you should have sent them away to another office. That is a great happy patient (and family) to have and will be a nice word-of-mouth recommendation for your office.

Post pics when it arrives!

[Paul Smith LDO]

Hey,
If you think that you are nervous, image his excitement. You did your due diligence. We all need to learn. Even if that means learning thru trial and error. Depending on the "A" along with decentration, -16.00 at the 180 in a thin metal eyewire, may just be enough of a disappointment to this poor guy and bring him back to reality of acetate. I enlist the aid of illustrations to convey edge thickness and place a variety of frame fronts over the lens profile, so that the patient can see just how thick the lenses will be and extend beyond the frame of choice.

[Dr. Bill Stacy]

I agree with everything but would have to know his p.d. and the eyesize + dbl on that frame. If they're within a couple of mm of being equal, you did good. If p.d. is less than around 4 mm or so than that of the eye+dbl he might be disappointed.

[Dustin.B]

That sounds like one nerve racking job for sure and I hope it turns out well. Would it be too much to ask for pictures? I'm very curious to see the end results.

[optilady1]

I know that everyone likes to put high rx's in plastic frames to hide the thickness, but I personally feel that in the long run metal frames work the best for adjustability. I find that having such a flat lens, even with a great edger that can correctly mount such a lens, will still flatten the frame out enough, and after time and heat, the frame will end up spreading and the pt will need to come in more often for adjustments. In addition, if the temples aren't the correct mounting you will be forced to bring the frame in at the bridge instead of the temples.

But I also agree with everyone else, you have done a great job in educating the pt in what to expect. Hope you are both happy with the outcome.

[Caroline]

Gotta manage their expectations. Under-promise and over-deliver.

[sanswhitecoat]

You all have been so helpful and insightful which is why I love this site. I agree with all of your points and Im happy to say his glasses came in and they look phenomenal. The lab did a fine job. How could I post the pics??

[Tallboy]

I know that everyone likes to put high rx's in plastic frames to hide the thickness, but I personally feel that in the long run metal frames work the best for adjustability.

I agree, ESPECIALLY for POW compensated lenses.

I often ask patients what is more important to them edge thickness or optics.