Sheri Phiel’s story about legislation expanding optometry’s scope of practice (“Vancouver legislator proposes bill to allow optometrists to perform surgery,” The Columbian, Jan. 31) highlights the crucial role optometrists play as primary eye care providers. However, the suggestion that optometrists only measure visual acuity and prescribe corrective lenses is inaccurate.
Optometrists already diagnose and treat glaucoma and a variety of other diseases related to the eye, and have been performing minor surgical procedures for over 20 years, including foreign body removals. We are also trained to provide other care, including prescribing oral steroids, administering injections around the eye, and performing in-office procedures using lasers and other equipment.
While a Department of Health review confirmed optometrists are well trained to perform these additional procedures, Washington’s scope of practice laws, which haven’t been updated in 20 years, prevent us from providing that care to our patients. As a result, they must be referred to an ophthalmologist, incurring more expense, more inconvenience, and potentially detrimental delays in care.
SB 5389 would update the law and allow us to treat patients to the full extent of our training while excluding procedures that truly require an ophthalmologist. Allowing optometrists to better serve patients will save them time and money while ensuring safe, timely access to high-quality eye care.
