This article from the AOA discusses the benefits staff certification can have for your patients and your practice. If you have a team of staff that is 100% paraoptometric certified, it lets your community and patients know that your practice is committed to providing the highest level of patient care.
After seeing the AOA's great post, we wanted to revisit an article we wrote a while back, Why Paraoptometric Certification is a Worthy Investment.
Why Encouraging Staff Certifications Will Make You the Best in The Eyecare Industry
Paraoptometrics play a big role in your office-patient relationships. Therefore, it's important for them to be as knowledgeable and updated as possible about everything related to eyecare. Certifications help make for a well-trained team and will be noticed by your patients.
Paraoptometric Certification: The Details
Paraoptometric Certification is a program developed by a panel of AOA paraoptometrics and optometrists, created to encourage CE and knowledge as the field of optometric assisting grows. The AOA offers 4 certified programs for eyecare staff. Each program requires passing completion of an exam prepared and administered by the CPC. Recipients must renew their certification every three years to remain current.
Here's a break down of the different certifications available:
If you or your staff are looking to get certified you can follow the application requirements and instructions, and see the examination schedule here.
Here are just a few reasons why we think you should invest in certification for your team.
Certification Enhances Your Professional Image
When people see certifications next to someone's name or hanging on a wall, it's more likely that they'll associate them with being more professional, knowledgeable, and legitimate. Having this certification for your entire team reinforces your practice's professional image among your patients. In this industry, knowledge is money and your patients will love being helped by a more knowledgeable team.
Certification Boosts Patient Satisfaction and Confidence
Having a well-trained staff helps you build your office-patient relationships, which is invaluable in any healthcare specialty. When your patients are confident in the level of knowledge held by the OD and the entire team, they will be more confident and satisfied with their overall experience in your practice.
Certified Staff is more Productive and Efficient
We love talking about efficiency in eyecare practices, so this might be our top reason for investing in staff certifications. Making this investment helps ensure that your team has the knowledge and skills necessary to perform all the tasks of your practice at an efficient level. All this combined will lead to great productivity and bigger profits!
Looking for other ways to boost profits in your practice? Download our eBook, 4 Weeks to Bigger Profits in Your Optical Dispensary.
Originally published in August 2016