Dr. Chen,
Thank you so much for allowing me to observe you this past Thursday morning. It was a great experience learning more about you as a skilled clinician, your established clinic, and the unique patient base that you serve.
I enjoyed observing the interactions you had with your patients, and how you addressed their needs and concerns. Just from that short time, you have taught me how important it is to care for the patient and their well being as a whole - not just their eyes. It is evident that you take pride in helping others, treating them like family. I was surprised to see such a diverse patient base, with all different backgrounds and cultures. I was even more surprised and impressed that you can speak so many different languages. By speaking many different languages, I can see how it allows you to better connect with the patient. Because I only speak English, at times, it was difficult to keep up with the patient’s concerns and what was being discussed. It definitely helped when you translated in English what the patient said, but I still felt like I couldn’t connect and converse with the patient like I would have liked to. Despite the language barrier, I feel that there are others ways to establish a connection with a patient and I will continue to strive to create understanding. Based on my brief observation, it seems that your clinic runs like a well-oiled machine. Friendly technicians and front desk staff keep the clinic running smoothly, maintaining a good clinic flow.
As a future optometric clinician, it is very important to work with/co-manage patients alongside ophthalmologists to provide the best comprehensive eye care. I am always eager to learn more about the eyes because there is so much that I still have yet to know. Learning is ongoing; it doesn’t stop. I would like to become more comfortable with diagnosis and treatment of ocular diseases such as glaucoma, macular degeneration, and diabetic retinopathy. It is one thing to learn about these diseases in school, but it is another thing to learn about them on a case-to-case basis first hand, in the exam chair. I would also like to get more proficient on my skills so that I may be able to examine the eye thoroughly and completely.
Sincerely,
Dr. Maile Miki