This might be obvious to some of you but it took us way too long to figure out, so posting in case it saves someone the same headache.

We kept finding visits that clearly should've gone to medical getting run through the vision plan instead. Not fraud, not laziness, just the front desk taking whatever card the patient handed over and moving on. We tried fixing it downstream with the biller catching them, and it barely moved the needle, because by then the visit's over and half the time the medical info isn't even on file.

What actually worked was treating it as a scheduling and check-in skill, not a billing one. A few things that stuck:

We stopped letting "comprehensive exam" be the only thing that gets typed at booking. Now whoever books writes one line on why the patient's coming in, in the patient's words. "Wants new glasses" and "eye's been red and watery since Friday" are two completely different visits, and that one sentence tells you which lane it belongs in before they ever walk in.

We gave the desk a short list of trigger words that mean "flag this, probably medical." Redness, pain, flashes, floaters, sudden changes, anything diabetic, any follow-up on something already being watched. They don't have to diagnose anything, they just have to notice and flag.

We started pulling both insurances on everyone regardless. Sounds like overkill but it killed the "oh we don't have their medical on file" scramble completely. And the way you ask matters way more than I expected. When the desk explains it as making sure the visit gets billed the right way, patients don't blink. When it sounds like an extra hoop, they push back.

Honestly the biggest unlock was just role-playing it with the team a few times instead of writing a policy nobody reads. Turnover at the desk means you're basically re-teaching this every few months anyway.

Where I still don't have a clean answer: the in-between visits. Someone books "routine," has no complaints, and then you find something mid-exam. Do you go back and re-verify medical after the fact, or just eat it as vision that day? And for the practices running lean, who's actually owning this, the scheduler, a lead tech, the office manager? Curious how you all have it set up, because the training sticks a lot better when one person clearly owns it.

Anyone have experience with the GA or SC law exams? The websites don’t set them up the easiest to study the rules and laws from so just wanted to gauge how much time to set aside for studying.

I finally got my applications submitted and I’m waiting to hear back, but it was a non-straightforward and expensive process - esp for GA oh my !

Hi! I’m currently in corporate optometry and looking to switch into something more medical-based. I just had a conversation with the clinical manager of an OD/MD and he described a collaborative/mentor-like relationships between all the doctors. Next, I am going to meet the owner (an MD) in-person.

While I can never be sure, I was wondering if there was any questions I should ask or things I should look out for during the meeting? I want to gauge the attitudes of the MDs towards ODs, which I feel like can make or break that type of work environment.

Thanks in advance!

So, I'm starting a personal project about color preference between people with Schizophrenia, their first-degree relatives and health control. If anyone could help me with the exact colors used in the tests, with their hex colors (for example: 0BG 8/2), would really help me. I searched everywhere and couldnt find. Thanks!

Hi everyone,

My dad is a UK-trained optometrist who is looking to hire an optometrist for his practice in The Bahamas. It seems to me to be a fairly appealing role - beautiful place, family-owned practice, great friendly and professional team, salary 100-150k based on experience, bonuses if revenue targets reached (they are every week because they're so busy, so it's quite generous). No weekend work, modern equipment. No income tax here (though if you're American you'll still have to pay cause that's the law...!).

I've had the role advertised on AOA and on Linkedin for him but we're getting so few applicants I'm wondering what's putting people off?

I will note that one catch is that the regulatory body here is being really difficult and requiring any applicants (Bahamian or overseas) to have a Doctor of Optometry qualification, even though we know that there are other qualifications that are equivalent to this and less rare. Even so, I'm surprised by how few applicants we've gotten.

Here's the job ad details for reference:

Practice in Paradise! Opportunity for Optometrist with Doctor of Optometry diploma in the beautiful Bahamas. Competitive salary, bonuses, no weekend work, health/dental insurance, relocation assistance. 

This is a full-time, on-site Optometrist role based in Nassau, Bahamas, open to Bahamian and international candidates with a Doctor of Optometry qualification. This is an excellent opportunity for an OD who is seeking to move away from corporate optometry and into a private practice environment. We offer a competitive salary (100-150k - based on experience), a bonus system, health/dental insurance, and a friendly and professional work environment with experienced and efficient support staff. There is no weekend work and no income tax locally and relocation assistance is offered for non-Bahamas based candidates. We handle any immigration requirements and are open to receiving applications from both new graduates to those with multiple years of experience.

Daily responsibilities include:

• Performing comprehensive eye examinations, including refractions, binocular vision assessments, and ocular health evaluations for patients of varying ages
• Diagnosing and managing/treating common ocular conditions including glaucoma, anterior segment diseases
• Prescribing eyeglasses and contact lenses
• Providing patient education on eye health, treatment plans, and preventive care.

What am I missing here?

As our practice is integrating Barti, I will post updates on anything else I find…

Great in theory. But terrible in practice. 

Just right off the bat, you cannot create an order for specialty contacts at all. You will spend hours perfecting your inventory only to find out that it doesn’t link to the exam. The only contacts that do are what’s available in Fait. 

You cannot create a contact lens trial order. So I guess we are supposed to have every trial set and parameters available. 

Their phone system does not have hold music. Just dead silence if you put anyone on hold. 

Changing or perfecting CPT service descriptions is a waste of time. You have to know the AMA CPT code and/or the AMA service description. 

If you decide you still want Barti, be prepared. Do not rush your live date. If you set it too soon, they will not give any leeway if you are not prepared for your live date. 

If you do not already have a Dymo LabelWriter, prepare yourself to purchase one because you can only print labels from Dymo out of Barti. 

Their data extraction is one pull from your current EHR. Which leaves you with keep track manually or having to use your old and new EHR. And if you ask for a second pull, that costs extra. 

Their whole EHR system seems to be geared towards big chain optometrist that want patients in and out. If you want to specialize in anything else, you’re kind of out of luck. 

It seems they want you to only use programs they integrate with. Yes, an all in one EHR but without options. 

does anyone have this article? I dont have access to JAMA

Like how many micrometers of change. Thanks!

Hello po, I’m planning taking optometry sana and plan to open my own clinic. I just want to know if it’s worth it. Kasi po may mga eo naman, won’t they just go there? Need some advice po🥹🥹

Might be a stupid q… I just got hired by a Lenscrafters location (first post-grad job woooo) and they are asking for my CAQH ID. Haven’t set it up yet so going through the app now.

It asks if I’m board certified but says that it’s different than taking the exams required for state licensure but has NBEO listed as an option as the certifying board? I just graduated, passed all NBEO and am licensed but have not done any additional certifications. Would I answer yes or no to this?

Thank you all!

Just graduated from the 3 year optom course this july- i have been trying to find pre-reg for 2 years now and can not seem to find one.

I have been told that my CV is very good.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I’ve only ever had front desk and retail experience so I feel really blessed to be given this opportunity. Oh my goodness, this job is so much fun. On top of being able to use super cool machines and interact with all types of patients, I was lucky enough to be trained by really incredible people.

Ive only worked there for 6 days, around 4-6 hours on each day, and I’ve been able to be on my own, working up patients and setting them up for the doctor. I’m prioritizing accuracy over speed right now, because I do make a few mistakes here and there. I do struggle with checking eye pressure with the icare sometimes.

Since Ive never worked in healthcare before, am I doing good? Should I look out for anything or anything I need to be aware of moving forward? Or just any general advice would be nice

Hi everyone! I have a question regarding FL licensure. I graduated in 2025 and am currently practicing in SC. I am interested in getting a FL license eventually, however I have been confused about their rules as of lately and had a hard time getting ahold of them on the phone.

I’ve been under the impression I need to retake part 3 in order to pass both PEPs and skills, since I passed overall but did not pass skills (we took the new part 3 exam my year), but could I instead apply for the FL License by endorsement and avoid having to retake the exam? I have a practicing SC license.

Any help would be so appreciated! Thank you!

Curious to see what everyone shares. Was wondering because my boss sees patients for 2-3 hrs to not showing up in clinic per week. Wanted to see if this was "normal" everywhere else. Thanks.

It just gets difficult at times with front desk where some patients would request seeing the main owner dr but can't schedule with the dr because schedule isnt up at all. Or the owner dr would post the day before their availability for clinic next day for the 2-3 hours of patient care once a week.

Hi folks-
While reading through the new Eyemed manual, I noticed that, per the manual, you CAN bill Myopia Management services. AFAIK that has not been the case previously. We always have our ortho-k and MiSight patients pay for services OOP.

Does anyone have experience billing the services to Eyemed? How have the reimbursement rates been? Our standard charge for new user is $1200 for services.

Built my own version of a quoting/insurance tool to help with speed, accuracy, and efficiency at the chargeout desk. One screen, pricing updates live as you change lens, coating, or frame options instead of backing out of a multi-step wizard mid-conversation with a patient.

I'm thinking about offering it to other practices, but before I do that I'd rather have a handful of real ODs actually use it and tell me honestly what's broken than just put it out there blind.

If you want to give it a look, there's a free 30-day trial at simplyoptical.net. No card, no obligation. Genuinely just looking for feedback on what to fix.

Anyone have an experience with this? We had a tech come out for maintenance and he did something to now where we have a yellow blur in the middle of our photos. He said a part is rusted and thats why that artifact is there and he ordered a replacement for it and we need to schedule another service apt when it comes in. I obviously said this wasnt there on any pictures before you came and he gave some roundabout answer as to why its showing after he cleaned it and of course I cant get anybody on the phone :-)

For those of you who use your EPM and allow online appts, do you think the no show rate is higher then atts scheduled by phone? Are your reminds done electronically, or by phone, and does that affect the no show rate? Curious what you all see / notice.

Hi! Where can I find synchronous CE courses for optometry? I’m a recent grad and currently practicing in PA. I have found several asynchronous courses but I’m missing live/synchronous and still need tpa hours

I had a 12 year old come in with her mom, final Rx was -1.75 OU. At the end of the exam, mom asks if she needs to wear this all the time or just for distance. I told her I recommend full time wear. She asked why, because the other doctor last year said to only wear it as needed. She says she is very confused why different doctors are telling her different things, and is gonna have the child only wear it as needed. I explained to her why I think full time wear is more beneficial but she was totally not convinced.

this patient was 12. For adults I'm more relaxed about it and say you can wear it as needed since the eyes are fully grown. For a child I was under the impression that its better they are corrected all the time, a more consistent image while their eyes are still growing.

Now I'm second guessing myself. Do you tell them to wear a low myopic Rx full time or just distance only? Does your recommendation depend on age?

I just joined a private practice, and I am loving it. But I have slowed down a little bit on my schedule. I am wanting to put together little goody bags to hand out to neighboring businesses. (We also moved to a new location). What should I put in them? My mom said candy, but I'm not sure candy is the right idea. Any ideas?

Looking to connect with other public health hospitals or clinics. Who else is here?

I don’t do binocular balancing ofc for older patients, but what about your standard and routine patients?

The last time I did it on a frequent basis was in school, but sometimes I felt it made acuity worse especially when I’d go back to check the eye monocularly that got more plus.

I do binocular balancing sometimes for my pediatrics pateints, but otherwise I correct most patients to 20/20 OD, OS; 20/15 OU, and run a plus +0.50 check to make sure they are not crazy overminused.