OPT Visionary - Spring/Summer 2013

The Lake City VA Medical Center (VAMC) Eye Clinic is housed in the out- patient area of the Lake City VAMC in Lake City, Florida, and has a clinic area measuring approximately 3,124 square feet. In addition to primary service, the VAMC has a laboratory, pharmacy, and other services including radiology, pros- thetics, dental, physical therapy, occupational therapy, podiatry, nutrition, men- tal health, psychiatry, cardiology, neurology, social work, chaplain, substance-abuse program, women’s health, and emergency triage. The facility also has a 230-bed nursing home and domiciliary. Working in conjunction with the Gainesville VA, University of Florida De- partment of Ophthalmology, and Nova Southeastern University College of Op- tometry, the Lake City VAMC offers a one-year residency in primary care/low vision. The residency program’s mission is to provide qualified postdoctoral practitioners with an advanced educational experience that will enhance their clinical skills in primary care, low-vision rehabilitation, and ocular disease. In- dividuals completing the program will be able to deliver an advanced level of optometric care in a clinical setting, participate in co-management and multi- disciplinary practice, and/or serve as clinical instructors at optometry schools or teaching institutions. The eye clinic staff consists of one associate chief of optometry, one director of low-vision services, two full-time optometrists, two full-time ophthalmologists, one full-time ophthalmology resident every quarter, two optometry residents, one surgical coordinator, four full-time technicians, two or three optometry ex- terns every quarter, one visually impaired service team coordinator, one blind rehab outpatient specialist, and two scheduling clerks. The staff members work daily with the other hospital services. Additionally, daily interaction with the Gainesville optometry and ophthalmology clinics occurs through the networked computerized patient record system or by telephone. The eye clinic consists of 13 examination lanes, one special testing room, one treatment/laser room, one optical shop, and five offices. All rooms are fully equipped to provide comprehensive primary care to patients. The residents are provided an exam room and computerized workstation solely for their use. Additional equipment includes the following: • Low-vision charts and assorted low-vision optical devices • Tangent screen and Humphrey field analyzer II (2) • Cirrus HD-OCT andTopcon retinal camera • Bausch and Lomb orbscan and Nidek MP1 analyzer • Zeiss IOL Master and I 3 System-ABS • Sonomed E-Z Scan and Haag-Streit CM900 anterior segment camera • Retinomax handheld auto refractor/keratometer • Icare tonometer and Kowa cordless slit lamp • Tonoref II auto refractor/keratometer/tonometer • Tomey EM-3000 specular microscope • Gentle Max laser and ZeissYAG II plus • Zeiss argon laser and Marco brightness acuity tester • Marco potential acuity meter and DGH handheld pachymeter • Oculus exophthalmometer • Prodigy II 2200 electric blood pressure meter and cuff and tonopens The Lake City VAMC is one of four veterans’ administrations to have a program called the VICTORS program, which stands for Visual Impairment Center to Optimize Remaining Sight and is an interdisciplinary outpatient program utilizing a team approach to vision rehabilitation. A team of oph- thalmologists, optometrists, social workers, audiologists, and occupational therapists works collaboratively to help veterans stay independent longer. The program provides an ocular health examination and a functional low- vision examination, followed by a rehabilitation session using devices pre- scribed in the low-vision examination. When the residents are not in the low-vision clinic, they perform 10 or 11 examinations per day in Lake City or assist in the ophthalmology retina clinic at the Gainesville VAMC. Additional activities include presenting at two dif- ferent VISN 8 Optometry Resident Grand Rounds as well as at NSU’s Op- tometry Resident Grand Rounds, journal review presentations, four-hour interdisciplinary rotations for a minimum of 24 hours, and attendance at mul- tidisciplinary grand rounds as part of the Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC). The residents may also attend one major educa- tional meeting (i.e., AAO, SECO, AOA) at their own expense during the year and meetings of the North Central Florida Optometric Society. Each resident must prepare a manuscript of publishable quality in order to successfully complete the residency program. Affiliate Residency Program Spotlight Lake City VA Medical Center Optometry Residency Program By Wendy McGonigal, O.D., FAAO Residency Supervisor and Program Coordinator For more information on the Lake City VAMC Optometry Residency Program, please contact Dr. Wendy McGonigal at (386) 755-3016, ext. 7500 or via email at wendy.mcgonigal@va.gov .