Patient Perspective: Brendan Walsh, Principal, Mole Street

I honestly can’t remember the last time I got my eyes checked. It had to have been in college when I received my last eye exam, but I can’t remember exactly when. For millennials, like myself, it’s often an after-thought. If you don’t wear contacts or glasses regularly (I’m lucky enough to have 20/15 vision), it might be something you take for granted. I certainly did - until I was lucky enough to visit The Eye Institute (TEI) of Salus University earlier this year.

My initial intention for the visit was connected to marketing work our company was handling for City Life Neighborhood Clinics. City Life, a primary care provider and one of Salus’ strategic partners, shares space with TEI on their Oak Lane campus. When I arrived for my appointment, I got a lot more than I bargained for. Simply put, this was one of the most comprehensive medical exams I’ve ever received.

I was blown away with the care and attention I received from the staff. The security officer welcomed me as I passed through the sliding glass doors and the receptionist kindly explained the process and asked me to have a seat and wait for patient intake. It was surprisingly easy and stress free from the moment I arrived and quite a refreshing change from the normal medical appointments I was used to. 

The clinical staff was so overwhelmingly collaborative and positive, I couldn’t help but find myself asking a lot of questions and doing my absolute best to understand their evaluation process. Needless to say, I had no idea how much went into a comprehensive eye exam. The Eye Institute is a true teaching clinical facility. My visit was overseen by an optometrist with over four decades of experience, Dr. Bernard Blaustein and his cadre of residents and optometric interns/students. 

The interns and residents were patient, kind and really took care in the work that they were doing. They also seemed genuinely happy that I was there and were concerned about my vision and how it affects my overall health. We talked about their patient population in that section of the city, how vision care was often overlooked and how most patients only come to TEI when they start having difficulty with their vision instead of coming in for an annual check-up. 

I learned how important regular eye exams are and how much of an impact they can have when monitoring overall health, especially in an aging population. The American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) recommends everyone receive a comprehensive eye exam annually. However if your family has a history of eye disease, diabetes or high blood pressure, it is very important to get your eyes examined earlier and more often. Diabetes runs in my family so in my case this was especially important and I gained a lot of insight throughout my visit.

An eye exam is relatively simple and comfortable and shouldn't take more than 45 to 90 minutes. For those readers who are intimidated by the thought of getting your eyes examined, find out more on what you can expect at a comprehensive eye exam.

In my case, I was lucky enough to learn that my eyesight had remained relatively unchanged since I last had my eyes checked. I did however get a prescription for reading glasses and have a new found appreciation for the expertise that goes into this industry. I can’t thank the team at Salus and TEI enough for all the time and expertise they shared with me during my visit.