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Did You Know?
Under the Regulated Health Professions Act of 1991, eye care professionals including Opticians, Optometrists and Ophthalmologists all belong to regulatory Colleges set up to protect the public. Each of these professions have Colleges that set standards of practice that must be strictly adhered to for the protection of the public and the betterment of the profession. If there is any instance of alleged wrong doing, the public can contact the respective College to investigate any such allegations.
College of Opticians of Ontario - www.coptont.org
College of Optometrists of Ontario - www.collegeoptom.on.ca
College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario - www.cpso.on.ca
Know your “O’s”
There has always been confusion as to the difference between the various practioners who take care of your eyes. Here is a simple explanation of the role of the various eye care professionals.
This eye care professional is versed in the fitting of eyeglasses, contact lenses an low vision aids. The Optician’s role is similar to that of a Pharmacist. They interpret and fill your eye prescription with suitable frames, lenses and/or contact lenses.
This eye care professional holds a doctorate in Optometry. Optometrists are responsible for primary eye care and can prescribe and fill prescriptions for eyeglasses, contact lenses and low vision aids.
This eye care professional is a surgeon with a specialty in eye care. This professional primarily works by referral and specializes in eye surgeries such as cataract extraction and laser surgery. On top of surgery, ophthalmologists are able to prescribe for eyeglasses and contact lenses.
