Low Vision Care Transformed This California OD’s Professional Life — Now He Trains Others in the Field.

WORKING IN LOW vision gives eye doctors an opportunity to transform lives while building a highly rewarding practice. We asked low vision optometrist Dr. Richard Shuldiner — who also trains ODs in offering such services — about what eye docs looking to get into the field ought to know.

THE IDEA

Richard Shuldiner, OD

Shuldiner’s journey in low vision care can be traced back to the day years ago when he attended a talk hosted by the Pleasant Valley Lions club in Poughkeepsie, NY. “They had a speaker from the commission for the blind. That lecture caught my attention, as I was new in practice. I learned that no other OD in the area was caring for vision loss patients, so I took it on.”

THE EXECUTION

Remembering that low vision is a cash service, and never wanting to see — and have to charge — a patient he can’t help, the starting point for Shuldiner’s relationship with every patient is a standard five-minute phone call he developed to determine:

• Do they have an amount of vision he could work with?
• Do they have reasonable goals with the level of vision they have?
• Can they afford prescription-based low vision magnification glasses?

The next thing to be aware of, according to Shuldiner, is that the diagnosis is of less importance in this niche, as “low vision care is all about function.”
There are no additional certifications legally required to treat low vision patients, but Shuldiner’s Low Vision Training Institute offers a four-day intensive training, ongoing coaching, monthly webinars, a monthly publication and an annual meeting (annualmeetingIALVS.com). “We offer coaching for ODs that want to have a low vision-only practice as well as doctors who want to incorporate low vision into their current practice.”

At these sessions Shuldiner shares information on how to market low vision services to the public as well as how to encourage referrals from ODs, OMDs and retina specialists. He also advises on “what equipment and demonstrators to have as well as what not to have. Our philosophy is win/win, so the patient must have their goals met and the doctor must be well rewarded.”

He shares that many of the doctors he has trained initially tried to add the service on their own and did not do well. “It’s not about the ‘doing’ of low vision, it is completely about understanding the psyche of a vision loss patient.” Additionally, he says it’s important to understand low vision optics and magnification. “You have to know which devices are financially viable for the office, in addition to meeting the patient’s goals.”

Shuldiner started out marketing his own services using print media, later moving to online and TV. After many years of experimentation, he says, he’s finally figured out how to get retina doctors to refer regularly. (Information he gladly shares with the doctors he trains.)

THE REWARDS

Shuldiner says the benefits of low vision practice are many. Professionally? “I get hugs all the time. I have many pictures of smiling patients. I spoke to a 36-year-old man with albinism today who has been driving without a license for years. I’m going to change that and make him legal. That makes a difference.”

And how about financially? “Frankly, it’s wonderful. A one-hour patient usually grosses about $4,000 with about 60% net, with no billing, accounts receivables or forms to fill out. Just cash, check or credit card. Win/win. Yesterday I saw two patients and grossed $9,000 with net of over $5,000.” Shuldiner adds: “The hugs were extra.”