SOCIAL

  THE WAY I SEE IT

ADVOCATE FOR OPTOMETRY

OUR PROFESSION NEEDS A PROMOTER TO CHANGE PUBLIC PERCEPTION

MARC BLOOMENSTEIN, O.D., F.A.A.O.

RECENTLY, I was sitting with my wife, Jill, watching Lady GaGa perform a David Bowie medley at the Grammys. I quipped, “She did a great a job.” Jill mused, “Yes, more impressive was how his music was constantly changing; he was a chameleon of sorts with the amazing ability to reinvent himself.” I was all, “Girl, that statement was on fleek.” This conversation prompted me to consider how Bowie was so successful at what he did, while not allowing his art to be put into a small box. However, despite her thoughtful retort, I could only muster, “What’s for dinner?”

EVOLVING TALENT

Weeks later, as I perused the verbiage sewer at 160 characters at a time (Twitter), I read more about GaGa’s performance, and I was reminded of that conversation. It appears reinvention in the music industry is almost as standard as in the fashion industry. We don’t pigeon-hole these artists into one genre, rather we say they are “performers.” Taylor Swift was once an inspiring country singer and is now a diva of pop music; Darius Rucker was a rocker, who is now a country crooner; Kid Rock was well. . . (I am not sure what Kid did, but he is from Michigan, and so he can be whatever he wants). My point is that people accept these changes because they see the success of the individual. The performer is promoted as this new entity, and he or she capitalizes on that transition for the good of the craft and his or her fans. Optometry needs a promoter. Yes, we need a promoter to help us get our patients to “belieb” (yes, intentionally spelled like those who want to belieb he isn’t still a rotten brat who can sing) that O.D.s are more than just spinners and grinners!

PUBLIC PERCEPTION

The point I am trying to bring to life is propagated in a television commercial for a large telephone company. Now, since most of you skip commercials, it portrays a small business manager talking to who I thought was an optician in a retail frame chain. The lab-coat-wearing female says, “Optometry humor.” Imagine my chagrin when I was neither laughing nor finding humor in her stating, “Now I am seeing dollar signs.”

The portrayal was simple. When we see a depiction of medical doctors on television, they are most likely sitting behind a desk, wearing a lab coat embroidered with “Dr. Do No Wrong” and talking to a patient. Yet, we get a nameless smock and the sharp-tongued optometrist, who claims to represent our profession with jabs about double vision and making money. No, thank you!

MAKE A CHANGE

We need to reinvent what the public perceives as our role. We need to join these revolutions that are sprouting in our country. Yes, we should make hats that say “Make Optometry Great,” shed the image of framers and stump for the lane changers. We need to demonstrate that primary care doctors can #TreatGlaucoma and all the other disease states we diagnose and manage. Your eyes are red and tearing because they are dry, and that is no joke.” #OptometryHumor. OM

DR. BLOOMENSTEIN practices at Schwartz Laser Eye Center in Scottsdale, Ariz. He is a founding member of the Optometric Council on Refractive Technology. Email him at mbloomenstein@gmail.com, or visit tinyurl.com/OMcomment to comment on this article.