Hey everyone, let me start with saying, IT IS NICE TO BE A 4TH YEAR! I'm three weeks into my summer rotation at Toyos Clinic in Memphis and LOVE it! The office is very fast paced and I am gaining a ton of experience already. On my second day I got to watch a chalazion excision in office (Google it), and last Friday was "LASIK day" at the clinic where Dr. Toyos, an Ophthalmologist, performed LASIK all day (about 15 surgeries). People that have a large amount of prescription can see dramatic results immediately after surgery so it was fun to see how happy they were. I have already learned a lot about performing consultations, which are typically performed by Optometrists to determine if people are good candidates for LASIK refractive surgery or whether an alternative may be a better option for them. But that’s not the majority of my day, mostly I am on the Medical side of the office where patients have been referred by an OD or are seeking treatment for ocular diseases like cataracts, glaucoma, chronic dry eye, kerataconus, or a wide range of anterior segment disease, the list goes on! It is satisfying to realize how much I have learned at school and put it to good use every day. I get to examine the patients and discuss findings and treatment options with the Optometrist on staff, who then goes in and also examines each patient so I get to listen to how the Doctor explains things to the patient. I also get to see minor surgical procedures performed by Dr. Toyos in office like Intacs implants for keratoconus, YAG, and SLT laser procedures. Next week I’ll be going to the surgery center to observe cataract surgeries and possibly a blepharoplasty or DCR if I’m lucky! But what’s the best part about externs so far?? I can have a cup of coffee in minutes, whenever I want!
On another note, I PASSED BOARDS!!! Part I anyway, which is notoriously the most difficult (Let’s hope so!). I’ll try not to sound too surprised, but I was SO happy when I found out I passed! Good job to my classmates at SCO and the Class of 2012 nationwide for the hard work we all put in for the exam! I will travel to Charlotte, North Carolina in October to take the Clinical assessment portion of the exam and then take one more written part in November.
If you are a student considering the Southern College of Optometry, don’t be late, the application process for entering in fall 2012 begins soon!