To maintain optimal vision, most eye care professionals recommend that you receive a vision exam once every 1 or 2 years, especially for adults over 40. But if this is your first visit to an eye care professional, the process may seem confusing. To help reduce stress and better prepare you for your appointment, we offer this brief overview of the procedure as well as a few tips on what you can do to make the exam go as smoothly as possible.
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February 18, 2020 at 5:23 am | What’s the Difference between an Ophthalmologist and an Optometrist— And What Does it Mean for Your Eye Care?
Maintaining healthy vision is essential to every aspect of daily life—so it’s important to see the eye care professional best suited to addressing your concerns. For example, should you see an optometrist or an ophthalmologist, and what exactly is the difference? Let’s take a closer look at these two critical eye care professionals and what they do.
Training
When discussing eye care and health, you often hear the terms ophthalmologist and optometrist used together. Both types of eye care professionals see patients and provide diagnostic and therapeutic care. But there are some important differences.
Ophthalmologists are MDs who specialize in eye care. After completing their undergraduate degree, they receive a 4-year medical school education, followed by a 1-year internship, 3-year residency, and sometimes a 1- to 2-year fellowship to hone their clinical and surgical skills.
Optometrists, by contrast, are typically primary care providers for the eyes. After earning an undergraduate degree, optometry students enter a 4-year professional program (not medical school) in which they earn a doctor of optometry degree. After optometry school, some go on to get additional clinical training or to enter a fellowship program.