I agree it will have to be forced. Did the early optometrists voluntarily go back to school to obtain degrees, or go to night school after a long day refracting just because they believed they weren't educated enough?Originally Posted by optical24/7
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Supply and demand. If there are fewer workers, the pay goes up. Formal education would seperate those that view opticianry as a job, and those that view it as a profession. Professionals make more money than workers.
I consider myself a professional, but I have the credentials of a worker. If formal education does become a requirement, it will be gut-check time for me. Will I put my money where my mouth is, or decide to spend more time with my grandkids and my husband?
I do not know how to say this any clearer, but no one is suggesting that current folks, like Darby, have to go back to school. There should be no "gut-check" required. We are looking to the future of the field. Why require education? Because quite frankly most Opticians have no clue what they are doing, and do not even know what they do not know. They have never been exposed to anything beyond what their mentor could teach them. In lectures across America I have found few folks who could find the power of a lens in a given meridian if their lives depended on it. Some have thought Prentice's Rule a PD ruler! We dumb down more with each generation because the old masters who taught us are gone. We must improve the basic services we provide to the public, and truly know what we are doing. "Just wear it a few days, you will get used to it" is not problem solving. We need to learn basic optics, and most do not. Darby above considers herself a professional, and I am sure she is, but what do we base that on? Can we present evidence of our knowledge? Do we have some way to justify the existence of this profession? Now someone will loudly state they have thousands of patients they have done miraculous things for that will support their claim to professional status, but the same can be said for plumbers, or tailors, or even hairdressers! We still have the "trade" mentality (and if that is where we want to be, then so be it) but I hear most people on this board claiming to be a professional and having great skill and knowledge. If we are to truly gain professional status for Opticians, then we must have the requisite education.
Another thing we need to consider for future Opticians is the fact that we can do more than measure PDs, take seg height measurements and tell Mrs. Jones she looks great in that color! ODs now are moving to a more medical model. We can, with proper education and training (for those who do not understand the difference, the training is the hands-on component) play a larger role on the clinical side. Mid-level practice is a viable option. PAs and NPs do a great job, and so can we. Why do we remain stuck?
This same argument took place in the early 1900s when Prentice and others broke away from the prescription opticians of the day to form Optometry. That could happen again, but I and most others do not want to see a split in the profession, we want to make the field better for those coming behind us. What better gift can we give them? We can see the field grow and flourish, and must strategically plan now for the development of future Opticians. It is up to us.
Hmm, I watched a documentary on telly yesterday. It was about the cost of a pair of glasses. Nice. To be honest the documentary was rubbish, they concluded that a brand frame was the same material as €2,- reading glasses. And material price for lenses was compared to clear plastic plating prices.
I couldn't care less for the documentary, but it underlines the point of view for the consumer. Pay nothing get the most.
Of course I had several people in store today asking why our frames were so expensive, quoting the show at points.
I won't defend tha fact that we are actually are making profit. Of course we are. We're not charity!
And bacause cheap-cheap is the credo here, shops emerge with offers like "€50,- for a complete pair of glasses" Yippee, to bad most of your personell don't know their left hand from their right, or how much days are in a week.
I'm exaggerating here, so if you work at such a shop don't feel offended. I started at one too, and I know that quality opticians work there. But it's a dying breed, opticians are replaced with 16 year olds with two weeks education.
Sure you can work in an opticians store, but you can als take pride in your work and become and optician!
(One can start by joining Optiboard ^_~)
I'm glad that in the case of dispensing glasses and examining the eye the client will in the end actually SEE the difference.
This post succinctly points out how NO ONE...not optician, not the public nor anyone else in the vision care field has the slighest concept or appreciation for what a skilled individual brings to the table in added value.
Barry
Again...we have met the enemy and he is us.
Well if no one sees any value, then does value really exist?
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People WANT the best. The best product, best service, and surely the best experience! Now affording it, seeking it, and acknowledging are part of the equation.Well if no one sees any value
, then does value really exist?
Just because there are millions in online sales and Walmart-like stores all around...those successful ($$) operations don't mean people aren't wanting the best, they're just not willing to pay or prioritize it.
Our store wouldn't do millions of our own if this weren't true. Just like most of you are successful as well.
I could only hope there'd be a Walmart put in next to our stores- boy that'd be amazing- for US!
Who are we arguing doesn't see the value? Only people we don't really need as clients anyways.
+1
I think it is a bit more complicated than that.
Most of the eyewear buying ppublic doesnt know what "the best" eyewear (experience) actually is.
B
I'm going to take some heat for this, but the fact is that we've been arguing these points for years with little progress.
I agree that people want the best eyewear and eyecare they can afford. If that means the best they can afford is the lowest priced product in your inventory, so be it. If they're paying for the best they can afford, it is your professional duty to provide the best care you can give.
If you believe that Opticianry is dead, that there is no need for upgrading the education/certification/registration currently available, then go do something else for a living and leave the field to those who regard it as a profession and are willing and eager to move forward, educationally and by certification and regulation.
We had most of what you described in placed when I graduated in 73. But the sad part was that some large Boxes got behind to change our curriculum to make it easier to take the test, so now instead of one of the best testing and licensing we have a Mickey Mouse exam. When I first got my license I checked with Florida and Arizona and both said since you passed the more rigid NY exam we would grant reciprocity to you. So education and a rigid exam go hand in hand not that Mickey Mouse ABO.
Jediron, what do you have against Mickey Mouse anyway?
Wesley S. Scott, MBA, MIS, ABOM, NCLE-AC, LDO - SC & GA
“As our circle of knowledge expands, so does the circumference of darkness surrounding it.” -Albert Einstein
And most may/will never know...unless they visit an Optiboarders' shop :)
Truthfully, we just need to keep optricianry going by providing for those who do come, and that's the definition.
Lol! Nice Wes! Nothing against the Mick but when ever you make anything simpler and easier that's a Mickey Mouse. That's exactly what they did to the NY optical exam with complicity from your major players at that time. So now we have one of the weakest exams that if your a trainee and study the ABO book you can pass. That's ridiculous you have the knowledge of an ant ( no disrespect to the ant ) instead of what we had. What we had to know was anatomy and physiology of the eye, all lenses made up to that point, geometric optics, all phases of contact lenses, fabrication of lenses and we also had a practical exam to show what we knew.
Really! Thats it? Well I guess we can all go home now!
The problem is that the average optician does not dare to exceed in their trade, remains a slave for the employer and is content with his earnings. Why earn a degree in a field that does not require it? The problem is not educating the optician of today but the optician of tomorrow. Why get a degree that simply is not required? Now if the abo and ncle change their requirements then maybe it will be worth it for people to get a degree. So not to bring an old thread but why is it that it cannot be done to simply increase the education requirements of the entry exams to be a degree from here on....I will tell you politics and greed. So until then we can continue to cry all we want about education. You can create all the organizations you want but until you dissolve the current ones and contract with a serious organization to manage the future of the profession it is wasted money. No one cares about your education unless its required to practice your trade. If you live in a licensed state count your blessings and thank every day because at least you have a regulated profession and not simply having a pulse like in the rest of our nation.
+ 1, and IMHO the Abo/ ncle is a joke, always has been. Almost 40 years, and what have they done? Nothing.
I would Ditto all of the above!
As I have been trying to point out in my previous posts. Well said!
Keep in mind, ABO/NCLE are certifying organization, they have no legislative agenda. For that you need to look at other organizations. ( I won't argue their changing testing procedures over the years.)
Ok we won't go over again there testing procedures changing. But as I pointed out before when NY had one of the hardest exams back in the day other states recognized that and would offer reciprocity because you had passed the NY exam. So going on that I would argue for a more challenging exam by either beefing the now ABO up or coming up with a new ABO that at least challenges you to think and study for. I would have at least four parts to the new ABO. Part 1 would be a 100 question exam on Anatomy and Physiology of the eye. Part 2 would be a 100 question exam on Geometric Optics. Part 3 would be a 100 question exam on lenses and contacts. Part 4 would incorporate a practical part where you would have to show what you learned. Like adjustments, knowledge of different lenses, knowledge of different parts of lensometer, show how to take pd's, and basic knowledge of contacts with insertion and removal and basic knowledge of cleanliness. My rant
I agree with you on the exam, jediron. The sad truth is that now only 50% pass this exam on the first try, which is why I went on the warpath again over education. It is not fun getting beat up every other day over these issues, but I remain steadfast that we must do SOMETHING to prepare these young people who are entering this field. All others did it through education, while we continue to operate on a get-it-as-you-can method of training we refer to as apprenticeship. Even the Dept. oof Labor requires classes in their apprenticeship programs. NY was a model 20 years ago, but it is over. Help us look to the future Optician, and make the field better.
But Warren, that takes actual work, not arm-chair quarterbacking with 20/20 hindsight.
Absolutely, and I have for many years. Where have you been?
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