Ophthalmologists are medical doctors who specialize in the medical and
surgical care of the eyes. They also deal with the prevention of eye disease
and injury.
Ophthalmologists provide basic vision services like contact lenses and
eye exams, plus specialized medical and surgical eye care.
"Ophthalmology tends to be a specialty for the extremes of life, so most
ophthalmology is either in small children or in the elderly, rather than in
people in their middle ages," says Dr. Kevin Gregory-Evans. He's an ophthalmologist.
"Most eye diseases affect either the very young or the very old, so you
have to be in tune with those types of people," says Dr. Gregory-Evans. "You
have to be empathic."
Don't confuse ophthalmologist with the two other Os in the eye care field
-- optometrist and optician. Opthalmologists attend medical school. Optometrists
and opticians do not attend medical school, and they deal only with vision
problems and corrective lenses.
"Of the surgical specialties, ophthalmology is the biggest after orthopedics,"
says Dr. Gregory-Evans.
Like many medical specialties, ophthalmology has numerous subspecialties.
These require additional training.
A person needs dedication, discipline and physical adaptability to be a
good ophthalmologist. You also should have an interest in continuing your
education since there's always something new to be learned.
"I think you have to really enjoy learning as an end in itself," says Dr.
James Reynolds. He's a pediatric ophthalmologist in Buffalo, NY.
"Otherwise, you're just never going to master all the ophthalmology material
that you have to master. [You need] that desire for lifelong learning," says
Dr. Reynolds. "I suppose you could say that any physician needs that, but
I think it's especially true in ophthalmology. Ophthalmology tends to be a
field where things change fairly rapidly."
Ideally, an ophthalmologist should possess good motor skills, depth perception
and color vision. If those are impaired, they may not be able to properly
operate tools of the trade. Caring and understanding are also important. You'll
deal with patients who may be losing their vision. This can be highly stressful
and frustrating for patient and doctor.
"To be an ophthalmologist, you have to be very much a people person, because
you have to interact with a very broad range of personalities in your working
day," says Dr. Gregory-Evans. "Patients come in all shapes and sizes, but
also you have to interact with nurses and administrators and other people...."
Dr. Reynolds agrees. "I think most ophthalmologists are very friendly,
happy, outgoing personalities, because it's mostly an outpatient, elective
surgery," he says. "Patients have a lot of choices, and I think you need to
be a very pleasant personality in order to build your practice. So, your bedside
manner is important in ophthalmology."
The typical ophthalmologist spends four days in the office and sees more
than 100 patients in the office per week. The fifth day of the week is often
spent in the operating room.
Dr. Denise Gallagher is an ophthalmologist in Pittsburgh. She says hours
can vary, depending on what an ophthalmologist is doing.
"I would say that ophthalmologists usually keep regular office hours,
but there are definitely exceptions to that. On surgery days, most start
early (usually the first surgery starts at 7:00 a.m., or 7:30) -- and you
have to be there a bit before the surgery is ready to start. In some busy
practices, ophthalmologists do stay into the evening to see patients scheduled
later in the day, or to finish charting. Most practices have a system of
taking call, and if it’s your turn, then you may have to see emergencies on
weekends or after hours. It can get quite busy!"