Good morning/afternoon,
Alright Jason K, thanks for your input above. However, if it's really becoming a problem (the shrinking of private practice), what are current optometrist (like yourself) or current students doing about the said issue to aid the future of optometrist?
Most of the profession is doing absolutely nothing. You guys see those successful, established ODs out there and think you can do what they have done. In their own minds, many of them are thanking their lucky stars they came out of school when they did since they know, full well, that you guys don't even have a chance at what they have. Why are they not out trying to save the profession for you? Why should they? Do they owe you something? They're busy trying to make ends meet for themselves. I'm not justifying the fact that optometry has stood by while the rug was pulled out from under us, but that's the reality of why there's been no action. People just figure someone else will take care of it. When that happens, nothing happens.
There are some ODs who are trying to fix things. Unfortunately, the forces that they're up against are blocking them at every turn. The AOA is acting like a childish high school freshman, insisting on board certification despite the fact that about 98% of practicing ODs think it's a total mistake. Does that matter to the AOA? Nope, it will make them a ton of money so it's "full steam ahead." The American Optometric Society was formed in an effort to help the future of the profession, but it's too little too late. They won their lawsuit against the ABO (and the AOA indirectly), but that win is a drop in the bucket. The problem is too far gone. So, why is board certification import? Well, that's the problem - it isn't important at all with regard to the integrity of the profession, although the AOA would have you believe otherwise. When our central arm of action (The AOA) should be out fighting the good fight for us on our behalf, they're instead in a peeing contest, essentially with practicing ODs, about their need to pay thousands of dollars to take an exam that proves they know what they've already proved they know. Instead of dealing with the real issues that face the profession and its future, they're toying around with nonsense because they want the cash-flow from exam fees.....and boy do they need it.
At the core of the problem is the simple fact that we have done ourselves in by not regulating our numbers intelligently. We've created a system like pharmacy in which we have way to many practitioners and the excess simply went into the part of the profession that would eventually drown it out of its initial form. Look at pharmacy now and you'll see what optometry is likely to become in a decade or so - almost entirely commercialized and more and more automated.
Some of us are actually trying to cut the problem off at the knees by
informing would be suckers into the scam. If students were aware of the realities that they only become aware of after several years in practice, the problem might never have taken off. I can't tell you how many ODs I've heard utter the phrase "Man...if I knew then what I know now....."
Most students these days are hoping to pursue a career in private practice. That's precisely why I'm here. I got sick and tired of interviewing students who said "I plan on opening my own office when I get out of school....or I really want to open a group practice with several of my friends...." Students are not able to do those things as they once were, they just don't realize it. If everyone was on here saying "I really want to work at Sam's Club," then I wouldn't be on here warning you about the future. The reality is, students want to go into private practice and unfortunately, it's not going to be around in significant numbers for much longer. I'd give it 10 years before we look just like the PharmDs.
You've got at least one student on here talking about how "All you have to do is go rural..." Sorry, friends, that might help a few of you out partially, but there will be thousands upon thousands of you coming out of school in the next few years.....and you'll all need to find a place to land. There won't be enough room for you. That's the reality. So, where will you go? You'll go into the nearest Walmart/Sam's/Costco/America's Best/Pearle Vision etc, etc and you'll take as many hourly IC positions as you can get. A few of you might find your way into a low-paying, but respectable PP position, but the rest will all follow the inevitable path of commercial crap.
You seem to have a passion with words, why not use it to the benefit of the profession rather than over exposing Pre-Opt students about ALL the pessimistic/negative view of going into optometry?
If you'd stop and think for a second, you'd see that what I'm doing is about the only thing an individual OD can do - warn students about what they're about to get conned into. It's high and mighty to say "Why not just go out there and make a difference?" Well, that's like telling a Palestinian-American to go make peace in the middle east. It's just not going to happen. Take the warnings from the "negative" ODs on here and do with them whatever you please, but as I and others have said before.....don't say someone didn't warn you.
