Issue link: https://optometricmanagementsupplements.epubxp.com/i/587112
S P E C I A L E D I T I O N 2 0 1 5 • O P T O M E T R I C M A N A G E M E N T . C O M 5 at the time the original concept of dispensing a six pack of lenses to our patients was foated, I was well entrenched in the study of rigid gas permeable lenses for continuous wear (RGP EW), and was very sure that was what was going to change the world! Being a beer drinker, I also envisaged a tiny little cardboard six pack, flled with contact lens vials instead of beer bottles, as the innovation being discussed at the time! (By the way, if you're asking, "What's a contact lens vial?," you are a post-transformation optometrist, and your transformational change may not yet have occurred). What ACUVUE Brand helped change wasn't just the contact lens — it was a move from a labor-intensive, expen- sive and ofen variable process to integrated, high-speed, data-driven systems that quickly and accurately lead us to solutions suitable for the masses. Tis mass customization has spread well beyond contact lens manufacturing, by the way. We see it in most of our diagnostic instrumentation today (think visual felds, for example). As a result, we're able to concentrate less on the laborious part of ftting the device or doing the test and concentrate more on our professional services and making a real con- nection with our patients. I, personally, see massive oppor- tunities for us as eye care professionals to take all the ben- efts of this period of innovation and turn it into the kind of experience that feeds our souls and builds our practices. UNDERSTANDING YOUR PRACTICE NEEDS To know how to ride this wave of change and truly beneft, it's helpful to understand our own needs, as well as those of our patients. An easy way for me to think about needs is in terms of "heart" (caring, changing lives), "mind" (learning, knowing things) and "pocketbook" (making or I 'M SURE every generation says this, but I can't believe all the changes we've seen in the last 20 years. Some of the change is transformational, permanently altering the course of our lives, professional and/or personal, and some is incre- mental, ofen barely perceived at the time. For me, the iPod is an example of a transfor- mational new product released in my lifetime. At frst glance, it wasn't all that revolutionary — it was small, portable and allowed us to listen to music pretty much anywhere . . . but we already had all that in the SONY Walkman. And, though the iPod had elegance and simpli- city, it wasn't the actual device that changed everything — it was the system and infrastructure that came with it, forever changing the way music is bought, sold, played and even created. But the innovation didn't stop there. It quickly led to changes in mobile phone technology that evolved to the point where, like the music industry, the publishing, phone and even service industries will never be the same again. And the list goes on — all spawned from that simple little device with ear buds attached. Tese changes can be viewed as monumentally good or bad depending on your position in the afected industries. Have a look at the sidebar by Yahoo Tech founder David Pogue on page 7 to hear more about disruptive technolo- gies that are changing our world. INNOVATION IN OPTOMETRY In my opinion, ACUVUE Brand Contact Lenses spurred similar changes for optometry. And yes, I may be biased, having worked for the company for more than 16 years. But, NEW TECHNOLOGIES HELP SHAPE OUR PRACTICES AND THE WAY WE DELIVER CARE TO PATIENTS INNOVATION CHANGES EVERYTHING . . . Cristina Schnider, O.D., M.B.A., F.A.A.O. FE ATURE OPTOME TRIC MANAGEMENT