This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Young optometrists passionate, optimistic
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
At Villanova University’s commencement ceremony this year, former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg waxed eloquently, encouraging graduates to firmly adopt patriotism as their moral compass. He quickly asserted it was not a blind patriotism of which he spoke, but rather a patriotism defining how one responds when our constitutional values are challenged.
In the spirit of patriotism, Bloomberg urged graduates to follow a path of life-long learning, to be open minded and to continually challenge their beliefs. Acknowledging this is not always easy, he opined, “Today, it is easier than ever to be well-informed – and, at the same time, harder than ever. By following only liberal or conservative news outlets, or by getting trapped in social media’s echo chamber, we become less able to discern fact from spin, truth from lies. And we become less willing to listen to anyone who challenges our beliefs.”
No truer words could have been spoken, whether we are talking politics or health care.
For certain, health care today is as divisive a topic as is our country’s political climate. One need look no further than the current Affordable Care Act vs. American Health Care Act debacle. Or, consider the increasingly intrusive role government and insurers play in health care. Or, the inevitability of technology ... which could conceivably result in online refractions or time-honored annual diabetic eye examinations giving way to remote digital image acquisition.
In addition, whether you are firmly entrenched in your beliefs (read: denial) or welcome these challenges, one thing is for certain. There is a lot of gloom and doom, which, arguably, could drive the next generation’s brightest minds away from all things health care, optometry included.
In short, with so much negativity surrounding health care, who would want to become an optometrist?
In this month’s Primary Care Optometry News, we set out to ask (and hopefully answer) that very question. We reached out to a dozen young optometrists who, despite the gloom and doom, have found their niche and are making significant contributions early in their careers. While they have chosen very diverse career paths within optometry, they share a commonality. Each is a bright, talented individual who is passionate about what they do. Each has embarked on their journey with open eyes, fully aware of the challenges, both present and future. Perhaps most importantly, each has elected not to dwell on the doom and gloom. Rather, each has prioritized being well informed and, as such, has had a tremendous positive impact on their patients, colleagues, students and profession. Collectively, they underscore the diversity and opportunity that is optometry.
I encourage you to take a few moments and read our feature article, “Optometry offers young ODs practice settings for every preference.” I am sure you will find their comments refreshing and in stark contrast to much of the negative rhetoric so prevalent today. If you are like me, you will find their optimism a reason for reflection and a reminder of why it is so important to challenge one’s beliefs. Perhaps for Michael Bloomberg they exemplify patriotism. For me, they are the future of optometry.
- Reference:
- Bloomberg MR. Graduates: Be true patriots. Bloomberg View. https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2017-05-19/graduates-be-true-patriots. Posted May 19, 2017. Accessed May 26, 2017.