What is the Difference between an Optician, Optometrist and Ophthalmologist?

When it comes to your eyes you want to know that you are visiting the right professionals that can help you with your specific eye health. What many people may be wondering is what is the difference is between opticians, optometrist & ophthalmologist?

It can be impossible to make sure you are getting the care you require without first understanding the difference between each eye care professional. The terms vary by country but we take a look at the situation in the United Kingdom.

Dispensing Optician
In the UK, opticians can be either ophthalmic opticians (see optometrist below) or dispensing opticians. The latter don't determine prescriptions but mainly provide glasses based on existing prescriptions. Even some dispensing opticians are trained to fit contact lenses. In the UK, there are around 5,300 dispensing opticians. See Association of British Dispensing Opticians.

Optometrist
An optometrist (ophthalmic optician) is an ophthalmic optician who carries out eye examinations and gives prescriptions. In the UK, there are 10,400 registered optometrists. They can fit contact lenses and glasses.

An optometrist deals more in depth with eye health than a dispensing optician. They should have the ability to diagnose and treat visual disorders or diseases that can arise. For older people, an optometrist may help to detect or avoid the onset of glaucoma, cataracts or any other serious eye conditions, referring to specialists when necessary.

Registration with The General Optical Council is mandatory in the UK. Qualified members of the College of Optometrists are allowed to use the suffix FCOptom or MCOptom. However, they are not called doctors.

Ophthalmic medical practitioner (OMP)
These are medical doctors who specialise in eye care. They examine eyes and prescribe lenses like optometrists. In the UK, there are around 600 OMPs.

Ophthalmologist
This type of eye specialist is in fact an doctor dealing more with surgical procedures in relation to your eye. Such procedures include laser eye surgery, tear duct reproduction, etc. These are the types of medical procedures that only an ophthalmologist can handle. There are around 1,400 ophthalmologists in the UK.

Orthoptist
These are doctors whose work mainly relates to eye movement problems. In the UK, they currently number some 1,300.

As you can see, although many people regard these professions to be similar, they each offer their own specialities when it comes to eye health and it is in your best interest to have a full understanding of each specialist. Even a dispensing optician might be able to prescribe and sell you the contact lenses of your choice but if you are suffering from a more serious case of vision or eye health conditions, you may want to consider the specialities of the optometrist or ophthalmologist.