TRANSPARENCY ACCOUNTABILITY INTEGRITY EFFICIENCY

OPTICIANS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA

Branding Opticians in the U.S. September 16, 2010

Chris Allen Mark Bennett Presentation Overview

 Starting at the Beginning  Think Vision Care  Opticians in the  Branding the Profession/Public Awareness Opticians in the United States

State Level Work State With Licensure/Registration   New Jersey  Arizona   Arkansas   California   Connecticut   Tennessee  Hawaii  States Without Licensure

 Alabama  Missouri  Colorado  Montana  Delaware  Nebraska  Idaho  New Mexico   North Dakota   Oklahoma  Iowa   Kansas  Pennsylvania   South Dakota  Maine  Utah  Maryland  West Virginia   Wisconsin  Minnesota  Wyoming  Scope of Practice

The practice of opticianry is the provision, fitting and adjustment of vision devices, contact or spectacles. Licensure/Registration Requirements

Opticianry Licensure Requirements:  Mandatory  Varies by state  ABO/NCLE exam and practical exams used in a number of states  Continuing education requirements vary from four hours a year to 14 hours a year. Certification Requirements

Opticianry Certification Requirements:  Voluntary  Any optician in any state may become certified  Continuing education requirements are:  12 hours every three years for an ABO certificate holder  18 hours every three years for an NCLE certificate holder and  9 ABO/12 NCLE hours every three years for dual certificate holders Regulated Health Professions by State

 Opticians are just one of many health care professions regulated by state boards NATIONAL COLLABORATION Opticians Association of America Established in 1926 as the Guild of Prescription Opticians, the Opticians Association of America (OAA) is the only national organization representing opticianry's business, professional, educational, legislative and regulatory interests.

 Advocacy for Opticians  Educate Opticians  Advancement of the profession  Visibility of the profession  Mentor new Opticians  Encourage involvement in the profession National Committee of State Opticianry Regulatory Boards

Group that includes staff and board members of state regulatory boards of opticianry

 Public safety  Consumer protection  Access  Scope of Practice  Competence  Public awareness American Board of Opticianry

The American Board of Opticianry (ABO) is a national, non-profit organization which administers voluntary certification examinations for opticians dispensing spectacles. Its purpose is to identify qualified eyewear providers by examination, urge growth of optical skills with continuing education, and approve continuing education programs. The ABO program is accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA) as having met its standards for certifying agencies. National Contact Examiners

The National Examiners (NCLE) is a national, non-profit organization which administers voluntary certification examinations for dispensing opticians and contact lens technicians. The purpose is to identify qualified eyewear providers by examination, urge growth of optical skills with continuing education, and approve continuing education programs. The NCLE programs is accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA) as having met its standards for certifying agencies. Contact Lens Society of America

The objective of the CLSA is to promote education, mutual understanding and cooperation among all persons interested in contact lens fitting. National Academy of Opticianry

The National Academy of Opticianry (The Academy) is an international organization dedicated solely to education and training for all opticians Commission on Opticianry Accreditation (COA)

The mission of the Commission on Opticianry Accreditation is to foster excellence in opticianry education by setting standards, assessing educational effectiveness, and identifying those academic programs that meet the standards, in order to aid programs to produce competent graduates who will provide professional services to the public.

Scope of accreditation: COA accredits two-year Opticianry degree programs and one-year ophthalmic laboratory technology certificate programs in the United States and Canada that are sponsored by post-secondary institutions accredited by agencies recognized by the Department of Education or CHEA. National Federation of Opticianry Schools (NFOS)

The National Federation of Opticianry Schools (NFOS) is the national organization dedicated to the promotion of formal opticianry education offered by accredited educational institutions. Formal education is fundamental to the credibility of the Optician as a vision care professional.

The NFOS is a nonprofit organization whose members represent formal Opticianry education in the United States and Canada. One of cornerstone ideals of the NFOS is the sharing of knowledge, to that end we have developed this website for the dissemination of information for the optical community.

COMMON ISSUES ACROSS THE NATION

 Internet Sales – eyeglasses and contact lenses  Education  Professional Development  Public Awareness  Recognition from Other Vision Care Providers  Vision Screening WORKING TOGETHER

 Meet and discuss issues facing the profession  Share best practices  Work together on common goals  Respect different mandates and points of view  Agree to disagree  Provide a clear voice for Opticianry to the public, government, other vision care providers  Be strategic as we move forward PUTTING THE PIECES TOGETHER

 Optical-related issues  Health issues  Regulatory issues State, National, North America BRANDING AND PUBLIC AWARENESS

PROFESSIONAL IDENTITY Why brand?

 Builds awareness  Builds reputation  Clarifies what we do compared to other eye health practitioners  Builds trust and credibility Working Together We’ve Devised A Plan Opticianry in the US Has Had No Real Sense of Unity

Why „Licensed Optician‟? It Has Been Found That The Average Person Today Identifies The Process of Licensing To Mean: •A Certificate Hangs On The Wall •A Level Of Knowledge Acquired •A Standard of Performance What We Want Our Brand To Achieve

 Recognition that Opticians are educated, trained and regulated eye health professionals  Inspire trust in the public  Clarify where Opticians fit on the eye health continuum  Appeals to Opticians Themselves  Works with Opticians‟ business brand Eye Health Continuum

• Optometrists brand claims the eye • health turf: “We know the eye inside and out” – Their icon is a peeled orange Eye Health Continuum

• Ophthalmologists claim their turf • : “eye health/surgery” • No one claims the space - “makes you see better” • It’s what we do BRANDING AND PUBLIC AWARENESS

CANADA’S OPTICIANRY BRANDING STORY The Profession of Opticianry in Canada

 Regulated in every Province across Canada  Opticians interpret and evaluate prescriptions from medical doctors and optometrists.  Opticians educate and provide advice about vision, prevention and treatment options  and dual license system eyeglasses and contact lenses (low vision)  Rest of the provinces eye glass only or eye glass and contact lens license  British Columbia – stand alone refraction – automated  Alberta – refraction delegated by  Ontario – collaborative refraction  6000 opticians across Canada Research trends on which Canada‟s optician brand is based

 Trust is important to public  Opticians feel a need for recognition  Our profession has substance No need to brand defensively  The stage is ours to do things differently Eye health brands mostly play on the eye so our brand needs to differentiate us from the crowd Descriptions of the profession are pedantic and academic – our brand needs to be more friendly So how did this factor into Canada’s optician brand?

 A brand story was created based on the position that “Opticians make you see better”  Our visual identity, look and feel is based on the brand story The brand story

 Describes what our brand is about  Highlights our unique strengths  Describes the “character” of our brand  Speaks to the heart and mind  Something we can be proud of  It’s on www.licensedoptician.ca

Before we explain the rest…

 Our brand story defines Opticians as “vision architects”  We balance form (design) and function (the vision solution) as architects do  “Vision architects” is for internal use among Opticians only – it will confuse the public  It‟s the part of the brand that resonates with us, internally Our name stands out Speaks to qualified, in order to raise educated, approved. awareness Builds trust.

The American Optician represents all Opticians and their name here lends an endorsement to the brand that adds credibility We have trademarked the following • Logo • Vision refined • Vision Architect • LicensedOptician We have trademarked the following • Logo • Vision refined • Vision Architect • LicensedOptician

The Plan

2008/2009  Begin with Canada  Have 100 000$ invested already  Have 200 000$ for 2009 from OCC Members  Organizations are incorporating a communications budget line item Five Year Plan  Move to the US  Move international – already in discussions with the Association of British Dispensing Opticians (ABDO) and the International Opticians Association (IOA)

Where Do We Go From Here?

 Is there a need?  Does everyone agree that opticianry branding in the US is worth pursuing?

 Future steps  Formation of a Task Force to Decide Strategic Direction  Funding  Development of Plan