Ophthalmic optics/optometrist
Opticians receive their customers in the sales room and identify customer wishes and needs which they can address. Vision tests are also part of their job, which enables them to determine the type and degree of defective vision. Opticians advise customers on the choice of frames and lenses, which they then grind and precisely insert into the frame.
Opticians are also the contact persons for their customers for the initial fitting of contact lenses and help them to learn how to insert and remove the lenses, as well as how to care for them properly. Should repairs to the glasses be necessary, the optician will carry out these repairs and will also accept and process complaints about sold glasses in a friendly manner. At opticians you can also buy other optical devices, such as binoculars. These goods are presented in the sales room and in shop windows. In addition to their advisory and investigative activities, opticians also perform accounting tasks and coordinate orders, calculate prices and plan work processes, as well as daily correspondence with customers and manufacturers of lenses, lenses, spectacle frames, etc.
Customized version
Nowadays, glasses are no longer just a visual aid, but also serve as a fashion accessory and the large number of frames makes the selection of the glasses that fit the customer sometimes very tedious. The glasses should match the style and lifestyle of the customer, so that not only the shape, material and colour of the frame is important, but also the material and cut of the lenses used. These can be anti-reflective, so that light reflections do not interfere with vision and conversation partners can look directly into the eyes of the wearer without reflections on the lenses.
In addition, tinting or coating of the lenses is possible, so that the lenses can also be adjusted to the customer’s possible light sensitivity. Together with the new glasses, the customer usually receives a glasses pass from the optician, which contains all the important information about the new visual aid. With progressive glasses, there are different strengths within one lens, so that the customer can read with the lower part and look into the distance with the upper one.
This is particularly comfortable for age-related nearsighted people, but it takes some getting used to, as an unaccustomed change of vision occurs when descending stairs and similar activities. For every purpose, whether for sun protection or sports, opticians know the appropriate vision aid. In an optician’s shop, they are there for the needs and wishes of the customers and advise them until the customer is satisfied with the product.
Opticians also need a knowledge of current trends and fashions, the advantages and disadvantages of different lens materials, and new developments and research results. Continuous further training is therefore absolutely necessary. The optician usually determines the exact values for glasses and contact lenses after the ophthalmologist has measured guideline values and examined the eye for diseases.
In order to make a pair of glasses fit perfectly for the customer, it often has to be bent or otherwise adjusted a few times until finally the optimal vision and wearing comfort is achieved. The handling of contact lenses also needs to be practiced and the optician is there to advise the customer. In the optician’s shop, in addition to glasses and contact lenses, cleaning agents for glasses and lenses as well as spectacle cases can also be purchased.