Originally Posted by
lensmanmd
Rude, it may be, but fairly accurate.
Indulge me for a minute. I operate a lab that has lower than average spoilage and lower than average f-ups, meaning actual lab redos. My staff are all ABOC, though at varying degrees of competence. Some are button pushers, others, like myself, have a fairly thorough knowledge of optics, and its relationship to RX vs frame fit and bio-metrics.
For transparency, I am not state licensed. i operated a lab in Virginia, but as a Maryland resident, I was not able to obtain a VA license, much to my chagrin.
I operate a small to moderate Maryland based lab (1600+ orders/week, all finished), and support both VA and MD. As you may be aware, VA is a licensed state. My biggest challenge is with our VA locations. Not b/c of lab quality, nor lab knowledge, but with lack of understanding on the part of our VA LDOs. This would be understandable with non-LDOs, but I cannot comprehend this from LDOs.
Examples; PX wears frame low on the nose, but no VD adjustments, instead, PRPs are raised to a point where the eyewear is basically unusable (think +10 from datum) 4+D of Aniso with no slabs. Rejecting compensated RXs b/c it doesn't match prescribed......compensation data is provided with every order. This is just from our VA locations, and they are all VA licensed!
So, yeah, as Dick stated, a pulse is all that is needed, along with a piece of paper that says LDO..........I understand Canadian requirements are more stringent. NY, FL, CT, even NJ have stringent requirements, but as a rule, many of our states that do require licensure have become bureaucratic and lax. What is needed here in the US is a national licensure program, or do away with it altogether. This lack of national standards is a joke. The ABO pass rate @ 70% is a joke. A pulse and a few lucky guesses are all that is needed to pass. I received a 98% without studying, with the caveat that I had 15+ years of lab and dispensing knowledge prior to the introduction of computer software.
Please do not take this as a personal attack. I am sure that you are an incredible optician, as most of us here on OB are. What I am asking of you is to open your eyes and understand the freefall that our industry is under. Instead of attacking Dick, or myself, for saying what is true, think about what you can do to elevate everyone around you.
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