Why do a residency?
It is a year devoted to:
- Advanced clinical training and learning.
- Increasing the scope of your knowledge.
- Increasing the depth of your knowledge in areas you choose.
- Providing educators and mentors to you.
- Vastly increasing your clinical experience and self-confidence.
- Becoming proficient with certain procedures/skills only exposed to before.
- Becoming the independent practitioner you would like to be and still have the help/opinions of others whenever you wish.
Form relationships within your profession with:
- Faculty/mentors.
- Other residents.
- Optometry students.
- Others depending on the program.
- CL - visiting educators for workshops.
- Triad, BVA, EyeCare Associates of South Tulsa - referring O.D.s.
Form relationships with other professions, such as:
- Hospital and other external rotations.
- Ophthalmologists at some residency sites or ophthalmology external rotations for other programs.
- Referrals/co-management during your residency year.
Increase you career and professional opportunities through:
- More and more Schools and Colleges of Optometry, referral centers, and practitioners which advertise and actively search for residency-trained optometrists.
- Residency training that makes it easier to obtain hospital credentials and privileges.
- Opportunities for leadership roles in professional optometric associations (because of the experiences during your residency, the relationships you form, and recognition of your achievement).
- Opportunities for lecturing at continuing education meetings (because of your lecturing experiences during your residency, the relationships you form, and recognition of your achievement).
Residency education is recognized as important by major organizations within optometry.
- Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) formed a Residency Educators Special Interest Group that meets annually held a national Critical Issues Seminar in 1998 on Residency Education Accreditation Council on Optometric Education (ACOE) an accrediting body, recognized by the United States Dept. of Education, which accredits optometric residency programs the ACOE is recognized and supported by the American Optometric Association (AOA) American Academy of Optometry (AAO) considers residency training in application to become a Fellow of the AAO.
The above list is by no means exhaustive, but it highlights some of the tangible and intangible benefits a residency can provide. Also, each residency program has its unique strengths and features built in to make it a rewarding educational experience. No two people are alike - two residents can go through the same program and get totally different things out of it.
What types of residencies are there?
Residency titles have now been standardized. The nine types of residencies recognized by ASCO are listed:
- Residency in Cornea and Contact Lenses
- Residency in Family Practice Optometry
- Residency in Geriatric Optometry
- Residency in Low Vision Rehabilitation
- Residency in Ocular Disease
- Residency in Pediatric Optometry
- Residency in Primary Eye Care
- Residency in Refractive and Ocular Surgery
- Residency in Vision Therapy and Rehabilitation
What does accredited mean?
Accreditation is a system for recognizing that an educational program has attained a level of educational effectiveness, integrity, and quality which entitles it to the confidence of the educational community and public they serve.
The Accreditation Council on Optometric Education (ACOE) is the accrediting body for residencies. The ACOE has an Accreditation Manual with standards that must be met for a program to be accredited. The residency director and the residency supervisor prepare a lengthy document, called a Self-Study, stating how the program meets each standard as well as how the program meets its own mission, goals, and objectives. The ACOE then sends representatives to the residency site for an evaluation called a Site Visit. The ACOE will then decide whether or not to grant the program the status of accredited. If accredited, the residency program then makes yearly reports to the ACOE and another site visit occurs in seven years or sooner if the ACOE requests it.
Are programs that are not accredited "bad" programs??
No, not necessarily. It is a little harder for you to know. Residencies that are not accredited have not been shown to meet all the ACOE's standards. They may or may not meet them. You will want to ask questions about what the program is like on a day-to-day basis, what educational components are built into the program, etc. Former residents are an invaluable resource - call them. Residency education is relatively new in the scheme of things and some schools may have excellent non-accredited programs, but simply have not had the time or money to accredit all of their programs yet. Residency accreditation is a lengthy and expensive process. The accreditation status of each of our programs is listed below:
| Residency in Family Practice Optometry |
accredited |
| Residency in Cornea and Contact Lenses |
accredited |
| Residency in Primary Eye Care at the Amarillo VAMC |
accredited |
| Residency in Primary Eye Care at the Fayetteville VAMC |
accredited |
| Residency in Primary Eye Care at the Muskogee VAMC |
accredited |
| Residency in Ocular Disease at EyeCare Associates of South Tulsa |
1st Yr. Program |
| Residency in Ocular Disease at BVA Advanced Surgical Eyecare |
accredited |
| Residency in Ocular Disease at BVA Advanced Surgical Eyecare West |
accredited |
| Residency in Primary Eye Care at Brooke Army Medical Center |
accredited |
Accreditation Council on Optometric Education, 243 N. Lindbergh Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63141, 314-991-4100.
So what is a Fellowship?
A fellowship is an educational program that cannot be classified as a one-year residency program. It may be a two-year program that combines a residency with a degree (M.S. or Ph.D.). It may be an advanced program entered into only after a residency has been completed. The ACOE does not accredit fellowships, so be sure to find out all the details you want to know about the program. We currently have one Fellowship program, called the Optometric Management Education Program. This is a two-year program combining a Residency in Family Practice Optometry with a Master in Business Administration. It is open to Army optometrists.
How do I know what residencies are available across the country?
The Optometric Residency Matching Service (ORMS) is the way all residencies across the nation receive applications and match with their candidates. For a listing of the residency programs and contact information (including e-mail addresses) go to www.optometryresident.org.
ASCO publishes the Residency &Graduate Post-Graduate Programs Directory on the ASCO website at www.opted.org. This directory lists the residencies and fellowships affiliated with the Schools and Colleges of Optometry. Unlike the ORMS site, the ASCO site does provide program descriptions. The website also has links to the residency websites at most of the schools and colleges of optometry.
Residency directors mail out brochures and program descriptions in the fall to other residency directors to give to their fourth year students. Ask your residency director if he or she has any brochures you can have.The American Academy of Optometry has a Student Networking Luncheon where residency directors have tables where they can give you information about their programs and answer your questions.
The American Optometric Student Association meeting has a Residency Resource Room, where residency directors have tables and can give you information about their programs and answer your questions. These two meetings are an excellent way for you to help refine your search for a residency. I would like to point out that the Academy is held in December and that the ORMS deadline to match is usually the end of February. If you just began your search at the AAO in your fourth year it might be harder for you to interview at the sites you are interested in, because there won't be too much time left before the deadline.
What do I do after I decide which schools have programs I am interested in?
The Residency Directors at the Schools and Colleges of Optometry are a great place to refine your search. If you contact the Residency Directors, they can provide you with an overview of their programs. After hearing the overview, you will be able to decide which programs at that school or college you are most interested in. Most Residency Directors will also have brochures or packets they can send to you with brief descriptions of their programs. You may get the address, phone number, and e-mail of the residency directors from the ORMS website at www.optometryresident.org or the ASCO Post-Graduate Programs Directory at www.opted.org.
Next, call the Residency Supervisors of the programs you are interested in. Tell them about yourself. Let them describe their program to you and ask questions. The contact information for the Residency Supervisors is on the ORMS and ASCO websites.
How do I apply?
Everything you need to know about applying is on the Optometric Residency Service Matching site at www.optometryresident.org. Take some time to explore the site and follow the ORMS instructions carefully. After you apply through ORMS, some Supervisors will call you and some won't. Take the initiative and call the Supervisors yourself to discuss the program and your application.
Do we have any "Pearls of Wisdom" to offer?
When trying to decide what type of program you will choose, ask yourself how you would like to practice when you are finished. If you would like to teach, consider a residency position at a School or College of Optometry or a fellowship that combines a residency with an advanced degree. If you would like to practice at a VAMC, pursue a VAMC residency. Similarly, if you would like to practice in the IHS, pursue a residency located at an IHS facility. If you would like to practice in a referral center, consider a residency in a referral center or multidisciplinary practice. Residencies in specialized areas, such as Cornea and Contact Lenses, Pediatrics, Low Vision, etc., can help prepare you to have a niche in your private practice, make you appealing as a partner or associate, or help prepare you to teach in a certain area. Family Practice Optometry Residencies and Primary Eye Care Residencies can help prepare you for a wealth of opportunities. These are just guidelines. A Family Practice Resident may end up in a referral center if that is what he or she chooses to pursue, but it does make it easier to get where you're going if you think about your goals ahead of time.
Talk to current and former residents from the sites you are interested in. Residency programs end on June 30, so the Spring is a good time to talk to residents who have been in their programs awhile. You can ask Residency Supervisors or Directors to put you in touch with former residents, also. Be aware that they may not give out phone numbers, but may ask the doctors to call you. Residents are a good source of information. Do keep in mind that all people are different – the resident you may be talking to may be a optimist or a pessimist. If the person has only good things to say, ask them what they liked the least. If they have only bad things to say, ask them what they liked the most or what they accomplished. After you determine what, if any, areas of concern you have, discuss those areas with the Residency Supervisor and see what he or she has to say.
Interview at the sites you are applying to if at all possible. It will allow you to meet the people you will be working with most closely and you can look at the facilities and equipment. Ask yourself if you think you would be compatible enough with that Residency Supervisor to learn from him or her (you can(t always tell from one day - but it(s a worthwhile question to ask yourself). Also, some residency positions are very competitive, and it may be easier to impress the Residency Supervisor face to face.
Start early. If you call Directors and Supervisors early, you can impress them with your sincere desire to learn and complete a residency. It may give you that edge you need to compete for the most sought-after programs. You can schedule interviews early, instead of trying to work around finals and Christmas right before the deadline. The rush of applications comes in December-January. If you beat the rush, you will probably stand out more in the minds of the Supervisors, and that recognition may help you during the selection process.
Consider NSUOCO's Residency Programs. Our programs are top-notch. We have excellent supervisors who really care about making sure our residents get the very most out of their year of advanced clinical training. I encourage you to talk to others in the NSUOCO family who did NSUOCO residencies (Drs. Salmon, DeRosier, Patel, and Pack at NSUOCO; Drs. Enyart and Williams at Triad; Drs. Henry and Ellen at BVA; Dr. Smith at BVA West; Dr. Andersen at Fayetteville VAMC; Dr. Harris at the Muskogee VAMC, Dr. Trout at the Amarillo VAMC; and Dr. Sturm at TLC- The Laser Center in Tulsa, and Dr. Holsted at TLC-The Laser Center in Oklahoma City) and get their impressions. If you would like to talk with former residents, the Residency Supervisor or Residency Director would be happy to put you in touch with them. Each of our programs has unique strengths that set it apart, but they all have Supervisors who truly want to make their program the best it can be.