World Optometry Day Celebration (23rd March, 2022) - Who is an Optometrist?
Greetings guys,
It is an exciting day today and I am happy to come your way once again today with exciting lessons as usual. But today we are going to take a little turn from the usual health conditions and their management etc. Today marks the international day for which Optometry as a profession and Optometrist, in general, is celebrated across the globe.
And so for today, I have decided to share with you everything, well if not everything most of the things I know about the Optometric profession and also celebrates myself as an optometrist and my colleagues as well as my profession. And so come along let's learn about Optometry and Optometrist today. I hope you enjoy yourself and have loads of fun.
What is Optometry? Who is an Optometrist?
Optometry is a primary health care practice or profession which is independent, learned, and regulated across the globe. It entails the practice of comprehensive eyecare of the entire visual system and includes the works of refraction, disease diagnosis, and management as well as rehabilitative conditions of the eye such as low vision and blindness.
Optometrists as basically eye care providers who have undergone intensive training and education to attain the doctor of optometry degree and have been licensed to provide comprehensive eye care which entails all the eye care practices except surgical procedures. And so Optometrist performs comprehensive eye care as well as refractive processes, binocular vision assessment, orthoptic, rehabilitation, etc,
Optometry is a healthcare profession that has many divisions or specialties that one could look at each of which focuses on specifics of the eye including parameters concerning our mental health and our vision. Optometrists work in both public and private sectors and it is quite a new healthcare profession in Africa, in Ghana, it is still finding its feet and can only be accessed in two Universities thus Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology and the University of Cape Coast.
In many of the Eastern and Western Countries, the Bachelor of Optometry degree only takes 3 years some 4 years after which you may further for the Doctor of Optometry (OD) degree. Individuals with a Bachelor's in any of the pure sciences may also branch out to furthering in Optometry provided they have some background in physics.
Other Supporting Eye Care Providers
Whiles today is World Optometry Day let me use this chapter to quickly highlight the fact that it is not only Optometrist that is involved in the eye care service across the globe but rather a whole team of eye care practitioners work together always to get things done. These include;
- The Ophthalmologist
They are medical doctors or officers who have completed their 6-year training in human biology, completed their residency program, and have additional training or specialization in eyecare delivery. Their specialties normally focus on surgical procedures for the eye although there are more specialties in the specialization also however they are also involved in comprehensive eye care delivery.
- The Ophthalmic Nurse
They are specialized nurses who have successfully undergone their general nursing training program and have had additional years of training in eye care. They assist both the Optometrist and ophthalmologist in their work and also assist in surgical procedures.
- The Optician
The optician is the one who deals with the refraction process of eye care is the go-to person of the eye care team when it comes to eye instrumentation, refraction care glazing of lenses, and all other refractive procedures. They are a critical part of the eye care team and ensure individuals can get the needed prescription aftercare from the optometrist.
Getting Your Eyes Checked
As today marks the celebration of world optometry day let me add that most eye care facilities across the nation including the better vision team led by myself location on KNUST campus would be administering free eye care services today and as such would admonish every one of you out there to take advantage of this opportunities.
Your eyes are the window to the world and you need to take good care of them by having regular checkups and doing what is recommended by your eye care provider to keep them healthy at all times. When in doubt always ask because there are so much information out there that could be wrong and the myths are but a whole lot.
Conclusion
And so even as we celebrate the Optometry profession and Optometrist today whom I form part of, I would like to admonish every one of you to make the effort to take of your eyes today. Visit an Optometrist today. Save a Sight. Thanks for reading.
Reference
Edlow, R. C., & Edmonds, S. A. (1983). Interprofessional optometry. Journal of the American Optometric Association, 54(11), 1021–1024.
Smity T. C. (1978). Optometry. Journal of the American Optometric Association, 49(12), 1343.
Wallis N. E. (1992). What are the appropriate skills and knowledge required for the entry-level practice of optometry?. Journal of the American Optometric Association, 63(11), 770–774.
Very true. As we celebrate optometry day ,we should try as much as possible to take care of our eyes. Without our eyes ,we are nothing. Thank you for creating such important awareness
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