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When optometrists and opticians are aligned, patient confidence increases, team performance improves and practice growth follows
Carissa Dunphy, ABOC
August 6, 2026
As an optician, I sit at a unique point in the patient journey. That makes my role both rewarding and challenging. I’m the final touchpoint, the one who helps tie up loose ends, answer questions and turn clinical recommendations into real-world solutions patients can live with. But that role works best when the doctor and optician are aligned.
Too often, the disconnect between the exam room and the optical stems from doctors and opticians tackling different parts of the same patient problem. Doctors are focused on diagnosis, treatment and prescribing the best care possible. Opticians are focused on making that care work in the real world. When the two sides communicate well, patients benefit. When they don’t, confusion creeps in, efficiency drops and opportunities are missed.
Here is what I wish more optometrists understood about life on the optical floor—and how we can work together to elevate patient care and practice performance.
THE DOCTOR SETS THE TONE
The biggest communication breakdowns in an optometry practice happen between the exam room and the optical. Because patients place tremendous trust in their optometrist, a doctor’s recommendation often becomes the standard against which every conversation in the optical is measured.
Misalignment between the lane and the board usually starts in one of two ways: contradictory recommendations or a complete lack of handoff.
For instance, if a practice’s core inventory is built around Lens Family A, but a doctor routinely recommends Lens Family C to a patient, it creates immediate confusion. When the optician tries to guide the patient back to Lens Family A, the patient feels misled, wondering why the experts aren’t on the same page.
Conversely, when an OD offers no optical direction or fails to explicitly pass authority, the patient is left wondering why they were handed off at all. At minimum, a doctor should seed the conversation: “You’re in great hands with our optician, who will help you maximize your insurance benefits today,” or “Our optician can show you specialized coatings for your computer use.” Leaving the door open gives the optical handoff purpose and sets the optician up for success. Without that clear direction, optical can feel optional.
OPTICAL IS MORE THAN SALES
It’s easy to think of optical as the place where patients choose frames and lenses, but that’s only the half of it. On any given day, we are balancing patient flow, lab work, inventory and rep meetings—all while keeping optical moving. In a busy practice, there is very little downtime.
That matters because the optical team is often expected to do a lot in a short amount of time. We need to verify jobs, make intentional purchasing decisions, resolve lab issues and still deliver a thoughtful and tailored patient experience. When we rush through those responsibilities, the patient ultimately feels the impact.
Doctors need to know optical is not simply the retail side of the practice. It is a clinical experience that plays a direct role in patient satisfaction and retention. A great optical experience can reinforce the doctor’s care. A poor one can undo it.
DON’T ASSUME THE PATIENT OR THE BUDGET
One of the biggest mistakes I see is when doctors unintentionally make financial assumptions on behalf of patients. Recommending only one option or steering patients toward a lower-cost solution may come from a place of wanting to help, but it can limit the patient’s ability to make an informed decision.
I would rather see a doctor open the door than close it too soon. Recommend multiple options. Let the patient decide with the optician’s help. They may buy one, or they may buy more than expected. But if we assume too little, we may miss the best fit.
That same mindset applies to workflow and practice culture. The decisions teams make every day can have a bigger impact than they realize. A small change in scripting, a better understanding of inventory performance or a stronger rep relationship can have a meaningful effect over time.
SHARE THE NUMBERS
If I could leave doctors with one final thought, it would be to share the numbers when appropriate and empower your team to look at them. Not everyone loves metrics, but numbers tell us whether the practice is moving in the right direction.
Not every employee needs every report. But when a team understands what drives revenue, what products turn and how daily decisions affect the bigger picture, they become more invested. They also make better choices.
The practices that communicate best are not always the loudest or the biggest. They are the ones where doctors and opticians respect each other’s expertise and work toward the same goal. When the lane and the board are aligned, everybody wins—especially the patient.
Read more on staff management here.
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Carissa Dunphy, ABOC, is an ABO Certified optician who has worked in the eyecare industry for over 15 years, now a digital marketing associate at Professional Eye Care Associates of America (PECAA). Dunphy founded Optician Now and chairs the Communications & Website Committee for the Optical Women’s Association. |
