Where did you attend optometry school? Do you have any school advice/study tips?

• SCCO. Emphasize your weak areas while you are in school. Procedures such as refraction and slit lamp you will do everyday in practice so you constantly get better. Procedures I did not like as much such as gonio and RGP fitting, I should have emphasized more while in school where you have each other to practice on and the resources.

Which one thing that you learned in optometry school do you use the most in your daily practice?

• Patient education. Remember to use laymen's terms when talking to patients. Patients are in your chair for their health and most appreciate being informed of what you are doing and why you are doing it. The #1 thing I hear from patients is my last doctor never told me what was going on or never explained that.

Where do you practice now? Pros & cons? How did you end up there/make the choice to be there?

• Jackson, CA. It is my hometown where I was born and raised. Besides having my friends and family here it was a great opportunity for optometry. It is a small rural town in need of doctors.

What state do you practice in? What are the benefits and drawbacks of practicing there? 

• California. I don't see any drawbacks at this time in my career. Benefits would be that I am able to practice the way I was taught in school to the full extent. Procedures such as lasers and injections that other states are allowed to do are not a pressing issue for me. We have great specialist in our surrounding area that perform these procedures and who we keep a good relationship with for co management care. 

Do you have a specific patient demographic that dominates your area and if so, how have you adapted your practice to serve them better?

• Our area is heavily elderly. We diagnose lots of cataracts, ARMD and glaucoma. We practice general optometry but emphasize these areas in our practice. We have the latest OCT to help diagnose and manage glaucoma and ARMD. We also have an OMD in our office that does our cataract surgeries and we co manage care to keep our patients in office and local. 

Do you own your own practice? How did you join/open it? How long have you been there?

• I am currently an associate at a group private practice. Currently there are four partners, all optometrists, and we have two practice locations. I will be buying into the practice at the beginning of the year as one of the doctors is retiring. I have been here for 2 years. Joining this practice was all about networking. Before I even started optometry school I was in touch with this practice. I was told there was a doctor that would be retiring in a few years and they would be looking to hire then. I stayed in touch with them every year until I graduated optometry school, always letting them know my intent and interest in the practice and position. By the time I graduated, I had an already established a relationship with this practice and had a job waiting for me. Advice: start making connections now; don't wait until you graduate because by then there might be someone else that already did and they are waiting for them.

What was your most valuable resource when getting involved in your initial private practice setting?

• Reputation. Fortunately for me I am joining an established practice with a great reputation. In small towns reputation is key. If you are starting a solo practice it is up to you to build the reputation you wish. When joining a group practice or established practice it is important to understand why that practice is successful or not successful and a key to that success is having a similar philosophies on how to run the practice as your potential partners in the practice. 

What outside services do you use to help manage/elevate your practice (patient recall services, social media, buy-in groups, CPA, financial advisor, lawyer, etc.)?

• Community involvement. Joining local clubs and being part of the community is a great way to elevate your practice. Some of our doctors do not live in the area so we join local clubs to stay involved. We also use Solutionreach, which is an automated recall service that has helped fill our schedule and confirm appointments. 

What tips do you have for hiring/training staff and how do you motivate them?

• Hire employees that are a good fit for what you want your practice to be. Our goal is to have a professional workplace that has a warm welcoming vibe. Skills are easy to teach in this field but personality cannot be taught. Your staff is a reflection of you and your practice. Typically our techs are the first person to greet the patient and are typically with them longer than the doctor. We want someone welcoming and kind to our patients. Always lead by example. Do not say or do things to your staff or patents you would not want them to do. A big part of keeping staff motivated is letting them know how much we appreciate them. Our practice would not be successful without each and all of our staff members and its important for them to know that. In our office we have staff appreciation meetings where we play games and have prizes but little things such as compliments and encouraging words go a long way as well. 

What have you done to set yourself apart from other eye care professionals near you?

• Our practice is set up to serve our community. We are located in a rural area with our main demographic being older. So we set ourselves up to serve that demand. In our case that means a place that patients can come and have all or mostly all their eyecare done. Patients in this area do not like having to drive an hour away to a larger city to have certain problems taken care of. To serve that demand we co manage with 2 OMDs, one for Lasik/cataracts and the other for ocular plastics, we have the latest technology for managing eye diseases, and we are located across from the hospital where we get many emergency referrals. We try to keep patients from being pushed around to many different health care faculties.

If you have any further questions for Dr. Womack, his email is: [email protected]