Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! It’s 2020! What comes to mind when you think of 2020? For me, it’s opportunity. Every time someone says 2020, they should think about our profession. This year, we have a great opportunity to grow our practices. We have a tremendous amount of competitors in our industry and they will be using 2020 as a means of growing their businesses; why shouldn’t we?

Every year, March rolls around and only a few of us take advantage of the promotional opportunities that come along with Save Your Vision Month because we haven’t prepared and, before we know it, the month has passed. That’s why I’m proposing we start thinking ahead for a great Save Your Vision Month. The AOA will be promoting awareness around digital eyestrain and the importance of receiving regular, comprehensive eye exams from a doctor of optometry and we should prepare to take advantage of the marketing efforts they put forth. In addition, as a POA member, you have access to Think About Your Eyes at discounted prices (included with Active POA membership) and should recommend the site to your patients as another resource for eye care information.

In the past, the POA has provided annual coloring sheets for members to distribute, but what other things have you done to promote Save Your Vision Month? I suggest having a banner or sign for your office, doing a community screening, or something with your local society. In March, the POA will be joining VSP to provide a community eye exam event in conjunction with Lobby Day in Harrisburg. Please read the update by Executive Director Joseph Ricci on page 4 and join us in this worthwhile event.

Another tool to spread the word of Save Your Vision Month, and optometry in general, is social media. Make sure to Like and Follow the Pennsylvania Optometric Association Facebook page where the POA will be posting eye care articles for you to share in the coming months. Ask your Facebook friends to do the same. Just imagine how many people we could reach. Let’s use social media to benefit our profession this year.

Other means of growing and bettering your practice are included in your POA membership: the Pennsylvania Diabetic Eye Health Alliance (PDEHA) recently started a working relationship with UPMC that will increase the number of patients PDEHA members see in their offices. Similar initiatives with Geisinger, Highmark, and Lehigh Valley Health Network are already in place, and if you’d like to join the PDEHA and the initiatives, email Kelsey@poaeyes.org. More information on the Alliance can be found here: https://pennsylvania.aoa.org/doctors/poa-member-resources/pennsylvania-diabetic-eye-health-alliance.

A new group, the Children’s Vision Care Alliance (CVCA), has formed to promote children’s eye exams. To join, a member has to commit to the examination standards of this group when performing an examination on a child. Educational and informational events are being planned for local societies, but find out more here: https://pennsylvania.aoa.org/doctors/poa-member-resources/childrens-vision-care-alliance.

The 2020 POA Board of Directors are passionate about making 2020 a year to remember. They are:

President Elect Dr. Edward Savarno, Secretary/Treasurer Dr. Jessie Jones, Trustee Dr. Tracey Sepich, Trustee Dr. Ryan Edmonds, Trustee Dr. James Deom, and Trustee Dr. Jessica Young. Our immediate past president is Dr. Lori Gray.

I look forward to serving as President for 2020 and working with the great group of dedicated professionals to advance our profession. Please join us. Get involved. Together, we can accomplish so much!

David Evans, O.D.
POA President

Dr. Gray thanks you

It’s hard to believe we’ve already made it to the autumn of 2019. At the POA, we are diligently preparing for the planning session at the beginning of November to discuss 2020. Is it just me or does 2020—20/20—feel like our year, Optometry’s year? That’s not to say 2019 has not been fantastic because it has been! I am so proud of the POA and all we have accomplished this year!

I want to take a moment to thank our volunteers. To all of you in our volunteer structure, diligently working for the POA in your spare time, thank you. Whether you serve on one committee or several, it is important work you are doing. Perhaps you attended our Lobby Day in Harrisburg or simply met with your legislators in your home district, thank you. Maybe your volunteer time is spent more on the local society level or the AOA level; we need that too, thank you. And for those of you who understand the value of simply being a member because numbers give us strength, thank you. The POA is a volunteer-based organization that cannot run without our volunteers, but does not exist without our members. It truly takes all of us to keep things going as well as they’ve been; thank you!

As many of you know, this organization also includes several employees who work so hard for our profession, and they deserve some recognition.

To Dr. Charlie Stuckey: we are so happy to have you assisting with the Third Party Center. You bring wisdom and experience that is extremely valuable.

To Danette Swartley: we appreciate all that you have done with membership and you will be missed.

To Joanne Cope, our Claims Administrator: you make a job that stresses and confuses so many of us look easy.

To Jean, our Membership Coordinator: thank you for organizing our members’ dues and more.

To Kelsey, our Communications Coordinator: in a world where so many things are happening at once, you do a fantastic job getting the POA message out in so many different ways.

To Ilene, our Director of Education: you help us host fantastic, organized meetings that run smoothly. You’ve been a part of this organization for decades and you do so much for us.

To Deb, our Chief Operating Officer: we cannot thank you enough for taking care of this tedious task. Your organization is impeccable and you make the job of Board member so much easier while keeping us all in line.

To Joe, our Executive Director: from overseeing the Harrisburg office to propelling this profession forward legislatively, and from coming up with new ways to promote optometry to being there for the daily questions of our members, you somehow manage to be everywhere at once.

We are so lucky as an organization to have these wonderful people working for us and with us. The next time you see one of these folks or call into the POA office and speak to them, please thank them. They deserve to hear from all of us!

I also want to thank the 2019 Board of Directors. It has been one wild year! Thank you for sticking together through the challenging times and for laughing together through the fun times. Your hard work and dedication to this organization are impressive and our profession is lucky to have each of you on its team.

All of these amazing people, our volunteers, our members, our board, and our staff have all helped to make 2019 such a fantastic year. Together, we have been able to accomplish so much. This year, we have worked hard to increase membership, improve communication, and expand our education. We have worked incredibly hard to advance our relationships with our Third Party Center and our Legislative Affairs Committee. From the creation of the Children’s Vision Care Alliance, which promotes the visual welfare of all of the children of the Commonwealth, to the leadership training that will keep us strong as an organization, we have accomplished so much. We currently sit in the middle of a two-year legislative cycle with multiple bills on the table and a keyperson structure that is stronger than it’s been in over a decade. Job well done, POA! And while I love sharing with you what we’ve accomplished together in 2019, I’m even more excited to tell you about 2020.

The AOA has termed 2020 The Year of the Eye Exam. They are working hard to encourage every employer in American to remind their employees of the importance of an annual eye exam and to encourage every person in American to schedule an in-person, comprehensive eye exam with an AOA doctor of optometry. More information is available at https://www.aoa.org/2020. Here in Pennsylvania, we are planning to promote those same ideas. In addition, we are planning a big event in March for Save Your Vision Month. It’s our hope that through this event we will be able to reach many people in need and promote our profession in new ways that haven’t been done before. Watch for more information to be distributed after our planning meeting in November.

As you’ve read, it’s been a busy 2019 and we are positioned well for a fantastic 2020. It’s been an honor serving as your President for 2019. Thank you!

Lori

Introducing the CVCA

At the POA’s House of Delegates meeting on May 17, 2019, we officially instituted an exciting and resource-rich program: the Children’s Vision Care Alliance (CVCA), a program that will enhance children’s vision care and assure that our children are getting the services they need to thrive and succeed. The POA has been supporting children’s vision for decades. In 2001, we created the Kids Welcome Here® (KWH) program. The KWH program is a multi-pronged education campaign designed to educate the public about the importance of comprehensive vision care for children. The essentials of the KWH are as follows:

·         Educational materials for parents and those who care for children;

·         Posters and flyers highlighting the importance of regular eye exams for kids;

·         Continuing education in pediatric vision care for optometrists;

·         Consultation with the PA DOH to revise vision screening protocols;

·         Education for school nurses on proper vision screening techniques; and

·         Education program for nurses and teachers about the link between vision and learning.

This program was so successful the POA licensed it to other state associations! This is also a good reminder that these materials are still available to our members—request a free poster and brochures by calling (717) 233-6455 or emailing Kelsey Rodkey, the POA’s Communications Coordinator, at Kelsey@poaeyes.org.

In 2004, the national InfantSEE® program was added to our KWH campaign. InfantSEE® is a public health initiative of the American Optometric Association designed to offer a one-time free eye and vision assessment to infants under the age of one year. Over four hundred and fifty Pennsylvania optometrists across the state have volunteered to provide this public health service. These programs are incredible and they continue to be relevant and important. However, the children of the Commonwealth need more. Current vision screening programs are not adequate. Here are some facts that I feel are important to share:

·         The American Academy of Ophthalmology found between 40-67 percent of children with failed screenings do not get the necessary follow-up care.

·         National Eye Institute study of Vision in Preschoolers found that even the most highly trained screeners using the best equipment missed 33% of children with an eye or vision problem

·         Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Reports, in 2002, noted that 79% of children had not seen an eye care provider in the past year.

·         Of children aged 3-5 seen by a pediatrician, only 66% received a vision screening (defined as spending 10 or more seconds trying to get the child’s cooperation).

·         One third of children with a late diagnosis of amblyopia had undergone a screening as a preschooler.

·         The Journal of the American Public Health Association notes: 10% of preschoolers have vision deficiencies (Pennsylvania has 75,200 students in preschool). 25% of children in grades K-6 have vision deficiencies (Pennsylvania has 318,000 students in grades K-6).

·         We know the prevalence of vision deficiencies increases for children at risk or classified as special needs.

·         60% of “problem learners” have undetected or untreated vision problems. The NJ Commission on Business Efficiency of the Public Schools found children with reading difficulties fall into two categories of visual problems: untreated or undiagnosed.

·         Current Ophthalmology reports that vision disorders are the fourth most common disability in the U.S. and the most prevalent handicapping condition in children.

·         Untreated visual deficiencies result in a 12% reduction in wages.

You can clearly see from all of this data something had to be done. The obvious answer to addressing these significant problems with undetected vision deficiencies is conducting a proper comprehensive eye examination on every one of our children. Experience has shown that education alone is not sufficient to correct the problem. The best solution is a system that encourages regular, comprehensive eye examinations for all of our children. Our next step as we work towards achieving these goals is to create a new coalition that will work with our existing programs and go further for the visual wellbeing of our children. This is how the idea for the CVCA came to be. The mission of the CVCA is to establish a network of Pennsylvania optometrists who agree to provide exemplary vision and eye care to children by following the American Optometric Association’s Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines, promoting children’s vision, and networking with schools and other professionals to improve the quality of children’s vision, thereby improving a child’s chances for success in life. We are currently working to add CVCA members. If you are already a member, thank you! If you are not, please consider joining this important cause. It is simple to become a member of the CVCA, all you have to do is complete the agreement found here: https://pennsylvania.aoa.org/Documents/PA/CVCA-LetterofAgreement.pdf and send it to the POA (fax: 717-233-6833, mail: POA, 218 North Street, Harrisburg, PA 17101, email: Kelsey@poaeyes.org).

I couldn’t be prouder of the POA and our hard-working members than I am right now. This program is a great example of the good we can do when we all work together for the welfare of our patients. Special thank you to Dr. Ed Savarno (WPOS), Dr. Tracy Sepich (MCOS), Dr. Perry Umlauf (BCOS), Dr. Dave Wagner (NWOS), and the many other doctors who worked so hard to turn this important idea into the CVCA. These doctors in conjunction with our Advocacy Division, our Board of Directors, and our staff are currently working with Pennsylvania legislators to create a Children’s Vision Bill. I look forward to seeing what is next to come!

Lori Gray, O.D.

POA President

Advocacy and the POA

Over the past few weeks, I have been so impressed with POA doctors! On March 25th, more than 80 doctors and students attended the POA Lobby Day in Harrisburg. These volunteers met with legislators to discuss the bills that are so important to Pennsylvania optometrists and our patients. This day came together with the help of so many people and, while I can’t name everyone, there are a few people I want to recognize: our Legislative Affairs Committee and its chair, Dr. Rich Christoph, and especially Dr. Perry Umlauf. The day was made successful with tremendous support from POA Executive Director Joe Ricci and our awesome POA staff. Dr. Linda Casser, our State and National Education Chair, and her team designed the necessary handouts and training material for our doctors. Everyone worked together with our fantastic local society presidents to organize the volunteer doctors and students. Salus University and, in particular, Drs. Mike Mittelman and Melissa Trego were very supportive; they even rented a bus to bring the students to the capitol! So many other people were involved to make this day a success including our lobby teams, our board and, most importantly, the volunteer doctors and students who took the time away for their offices, school, and their families to come to Harrisburg to represent us. Thank you very much, everyone! This day was extremely well coordinated; we had over 25 meetings with our legislators. In addition, many other meetings have taken place in our local districts both before and after Lobby Day. 

In early April, a dozen Pennsylvania doctors gathered in Washington, D.C. for three days to represent our state at AOA on Capitol Hill 2019. In total, there were over 600 doctors and students present at this meeting! I would like to thank our Pennsylvania delegation for their time and effort. We had many meetings with our Senators and Representatives in D.C. and numerous meetings occurred both before and since then in our local districts. During our time in D.C., Pennsylvania was proud to have one of our own legislators, Congressman Guy Reschenthaler, win the AOA Healthcare Leadership Award, which was presented to him by his keyperson and long-time POA member, Dr. Bob Bittel.
Photos from both of these events can be seen in this issue of the Keystoner. More are available on our Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

As you read this, I hope you are as proud of our POA volunteers and staff as I am. If you are reading this and inspired to help, there are several opportunities. Please consider serving as a keyperson to your state and/or national legislators. This is easier than it sounds; all of the information you will need can be found on our website under the Advocacy tab. Dr. James Deom is the chair of our Keyperson Committee and he and his committee would be happy to help you. Another way we could use help from everyone is by donating to our PAC (Political Action Committee) on the state and national levels. Contribution forms are available at http://pennsylvania.aoa.org/documents/PA/POA-POPAC-pledge-form.pdf. Dr. Greg Caldwell, the chair of the POPAC Committee, would also be happy to assist you. 

Protecting our profession and ensuring we move forward is an immense responsibility and we need everyone’s help!

Lori Gray, O.D.
POA President

The POA's Resolutions

Happy 2018! I hope you had a wonderful and safe holiday season with family and friends.

I’m sure you, like me, set some new year resolutions. Your professional association set some “resolutions” as well, known as a strategic plan. In the autumn of 2017, the Board of Directors met with a strategic planning coordinator from outside of the organization to help assess the needs of our association and our members.

Both member and leadership surveys were used to develop key operational areas of focus. As with any resolution or goal, it must become operational to be successful. While most of us are able to strategize and set goals, a majority of us find difficulty in actually doing the work it takes to become successful. However, if the right structure and the right support system are in place success is more likely obtainable.

This thought process is analogous to recent action by the POA Board as it relates to the strategic plan. The Board took a hard look at the structure and function of the association. Upon in-depth review, the Board decided to make changes to the structure of the table of organization to better support the goals of our members and the success of our association. With these changes comes a sustainable support system and collaboration across all committees. Albeit, a better road to success.

A few new changes worth mentioning are the Clinical Practice Resource Committee, the Communication Committee, and the Local Society Leadership Committee. The Clinical Practice Resource Committee is comprised of members with various areas of interest within optometry related to pediatric vision, low vision, contact lens, concussion, motorist vision, dry eye and diabetes. Its members collaborate to develop guidelines, educational information, and practice tips for the benefit of colleagues, staff and the general public.

The Communication Committee encompasses members from the Legislative Advocacy, Third Party, Clinical Education, Clinical Resources, Membership, Fiscal, and Administrative committees. Organizations cannot succeed if there is not adequate knowledge of the organization’s programs, benefits and activities. The committee strives to assure all members are fully informed of the POA’s actions and events, and encourages all members to become fully engaged in their professional association. The committee creates open lines of communication between committee chairs, committee members, and leadership so POA programs are consistent, coordinated and collegial.
The Local Society Leadership Committee is comprised of leaders from our 14 local societies. It is designed to provide our local societies with the ideas, the resources, and the confidence to become advocates for the profession, not only in their home towns but across the Commonwealth. They also serve as a communication network between local society leadership, POA staff, and the Board of Directors.

I am so very thankful to have a great volunteer structure and POA staff to support our association in 2018. Thank you to our volunteer Board members, our POA staff, committee chairs and members, and our local society presidents and volunteers for your time and leadership. This is a team effort. We will move forward operationally with our goals and, as an association, we will accomplish a great deal this year. I wish you the best in 2018. May your resolutions become operational and be successful!

Becca Wincek-Bateson, O.D.

2018 POA President

A is for Advocacy

By the time you are reading this, thousands of optometrists and optometry students will have converged on Washington, D.C. for the 2017 Optometry’s Meeting (OM). If you are a regular or even occasional attendee of OM, you would have noticed that this year was a little different. In the past, the AOA has held their Advocacy Conference every April in Washington, D.C. That meeting centered around visiting legislators to advocate for optometry-related bills. A big part of that meeting was student participation. A high percentage of the students who had participated in the Advocacy Conference converted into AOA members. Since OM was in D.C. this year, the AOA combined it with the Advocacy Conference, which meant a big increase in student attendance. The really cool thing about this was that a lot of optometrists will have had the opportunity to interact with their legislators and the students. If you have never had the opportunity to do this, I would strongly suggest you do in the future. Every year at the Advocacy Conference, we have had a number of doctors and students with no experience in speaking with their legislators. The hesitation—and sometimes even fear—in their eyes as we prepared for the visits was easy to see. The statement “you don’t really expect me to talk, do you?” was frequently heard, but it was really rewarding to see these same individuals taking the lead in the discussion by the second or third visit. Almost everyone would then look forward to coming back the next year.

So, this year’s meeting has given me the opportunity to strike this same fear into the eyes of some of our members that would never normally think of attending the Advocacy Conference. As I write this, I have already begun the process of recruiting a number of attending POA members into the ranks storming Capitol Hill in 2017. I can already hear the hesitation through the emailed replies: “you expect me to set up an appointment with my Congressperson, and then to actually go!?” Yes, I do! And I really look forward to the follow-up question, “when can we do this again?” The answer is coming to Harrisburg in the near future—stay tuned.








Steve Eiss, O.D.
POA President

This isn’t what I signed up for!

Don’t worry, I am not about to go on a rant about my first month as POA president. The title of my editorial came to me as I was having an email discussion with a member about MIPS and PQRS. After some back and forth about the various measures we will have to be reporting, the response I received was, “Remind me why I went into medicine?” For me, that pretty much sums up what I think many of us in the healthcare community are feeling.

As the payment reform train continues hurdling down the tracks, many of us probably feel we are being left behind. We spent many years of training learning to care for our patients, diagnose and treat their problems, make sure they get to the correct provider to address their ailments. Now we feel we have to take away from our time caring for our patients, instead staring at a computer screen making sure we are clicking all the right boxes. It is a bit ironic that if you spend more of your time examining and listening to your patient, and less time clicking the boxes on your computer screen, you will be deemed as providing inferior care and thus penalized in your reimbursement. Huh? 

But this is the brave new world we are entering. Data collection is king, just look at ICD-10. We now have dozens of codes to specify how severe your glaucoma or macular degeneration is. I’m sure the day will come when we will be graded on the percentage of moderate glaucoma patients that convert to severe glaucoma. 

For those of us who have been doing this for many years, it is hard for us to comprehend anything but fee for service reimbursement. But I see the MIPS program as the first real step away from our traditional payment methodologies and towards a quality- and outcomes-based reimbursement system. If the thought of this scares you to the brink of early retirement, fear not, you are not alone. 

I truly believe optometrists in general provide some of the highest quality of care in the healthcare field. We spend a lot of time evaluating and listening to our patients. The challenge is to make sure we are communicating this into the electronic box that now takes up most of our desktop. But don’t worry, your professional associations are here to help. 
The AOA has developed an optometric-based registry, AOA MORE, that will allow you to link your electronic health records and be able to seamlessly report your quality data directly through the registry. The days of having to make sure you remember to add all the correct PQRS codes will be gone. The best part is that AOA MORE is a free member benefit, so if you have electronic records, make sure you register for AOA MORE. If you don’t have an EHR, the AOA just recently held a webinar on how you can participate in MIPS too. So, don’t think that if you are not electronic, you have to be left behind.

It is not just providers coming under more scrutiny for quality care, either. The insurance companies are subject to these measures, too, and are graded by HEDIS and STAR scores. 

Here at the POA, we have been able to utilize our Diabetic Eye Health Alliance to advance optometry’s role here, too. Our pilot program with Geisinger Health Plan (GHP) has seen our members partner with GHP to get 71% of their delinquent diabetics dilated retinal exams in 2015, and we’re seeing similar results for 2016. As we expand this program to Highmark and hopefully more health plans this coming year, this will help cement optometry’s role as the primary eye care provider in this new world, and allow us to work with the insurance companies to provide higher quality care to all of our patients. And isn’t that what we have all been trying to do, even before electronic health records, PQRS and HEDIS scores—provide better care to our patients?

Stay tuned; the ride is just beginning!

Steve Eiss, O.D.

Your voice for a strong optometry

This editorial features the 2016 POA Board of Directors, eight of the many dedicated volunteers that drive the association forward. The POA tagline, which is included on the front page of every Keystoner, is “Your Voice for a Strong Optometry.” The POA Board works as your voice. They are here for you and willing to serve the profession. In order for members to know these volunteers better, I recently asked the following questions:

• What type of practice setting are you in and for how many years?
• Do you have any specialties?
• Please tell me an interesting fact about your practice.
• What one thing do you love about optometry?
• What do you like to do in your spare time for fun or relaxation?
• What does POA membership mean to you?

PRESIDENT
Mark M. Margolies, O.D. 
Out of my 31 years of practice, 22 have been spent as a solo practitioner in private practice in Levittown. Prior to that, I had practiced at a LensCrafters location, an ophthalmology-owned practice, and a multi-disciplinary practice that was owned by an insurance company.
I love primary care, and my specialties include treating glaucoma, removing corneal foreign bodies, co-managing macular degeneration with retinal specialists, and traditionally prescribing and dispensing eyeglasses and contacts. What I love about optometry is the ability to deliver primary care to a wide variety of patients in one day ranging from infants to seniors. An interesting fact about my practice is that my spouse, Sandra, began to work there in 1996 as a three-month experiment and it has turned into a twenty-year partnership that is still going strong! It’s not for everyone, but it has worked for us. 
In my spare time, I love playing Blues guitar and exercising. I also love to spend time with my grandchildren. 
POA membership is about being stronger together for our profession and for our patients. I would not be able to practice the way I do today if it wasn’t for the efforts of the POA. Together we can make a difference for the future of the profession.

PRESIDENT ELECT 
Steven P. Eiss, O.D. 
For the past 21 years, I have been in a multi-doctor, multi-specialty private practice with offices in Emmaus, Pennsburg and Quakertown. I had worked part-time at a corporate location for many years while growing this practice. I currently provide full-scope optometric care. Being located in a semi-rural area, I have gained a large number of glaucoma patients and see a number of ocular emergencies on a daily basis. Optometry provides me the opportunity to be both a medical provider and a business owner all in one profession. I enjoy the challenges of caring for a patient’s health and running a successful business at the same time. 
When I joined my practice, it was a part-time, single-doctor practice. Over the years, it has grown into three locations with six doctors. About five years ago, our third location came about when we merged an ophthalmology practice into our corporation.
Most of my spare time is spent chasing after my seven-year-old twins. I am a big baseball fan, and have just completed my 32nd season of playing fast-pitch softball.  
Initially, my association membership allowed me to garner information from other doctors on how to treat disease and to learn how to handle business and insurance issues. I was able to grow into a position where I am able to contribute to the advancement of the profession through committee and Board service. Of course, much of this revolves around the camaraderie and friendships I’ve made, and now being able to mentor others.

TRUSTEE
Rebecca L. Wincek-Bateson, O.D.
For the last thirteen years, I have been in private practice in Indiana, PA, where I have developed a specialty in pediatrics and traumatic brain injury.
What I love about optometry is getting to know the families in my practice, watching the kids grow up to graduate from high school and college, grandparents sharing pictures of grand kids, and couples marrying and having children. It’s a blessing to be able to share in it. Most of my fun and relaxation time is spent on the baseball or softball fields lately, but I love being with friends and my husband and twins, Wil and Lira. I enjoy traveling, snowboarding, kayaking, triathlons, running or most anything outdoors.
The POA is the only member-driven organization to advocate for our profession in Pennsylvania. I personally feel that being a member is like having “job insurance.” When Opternative, 1-800-CONTACTS, insurance companies and other providers are working against optometry and the care I provide my patients, the POA and AOA are advocating and fighting back for optometry. I am proud to belong to a group of doctors across the states that have a vested interest in protecting our profession. POA members are fortunate that we have a great group of doctors, lobbyists, attorney and staff that are constantly watching out for our futures. 

TRUSTEE
Lori Gray, O.D. 
I’m in private practice in Gilbertsville and have been for eight years. I also guest lecture at Salus University. I specialize in disease management. I love that optometry allows me the flexibility to have both a fantastic career and to be there for my family. 
In my free time, I love spending time with my husband, Austin, our two children, Maggie and Zach, and our new puppy, Minnie. We enjoy hiking, golfing, skiing and spending as much time as possible outdoors. 
POA membership is the insurance policy I carry on my profession. I want to be sure optometry is going to be a viable profession for the entire duration of my career and beyond. The POA works hard to ensure this.

TRUSTEE
David A. Evans, O.D. 
For 32 years, I have worked in a solo private practice in Nanticoke. I also work in two rehab hospitals and see individuals who have sustained strokes and injuries of the head and brain. One thing I love about optometry is the relationships I am able to build with my patients. This profession often allows me to get to know the whole family. Having been in practice for this long, I now am seeing the children of the children I examined when I opened my office. I have many families that I see four generations of patients.
My spare time is spent with my family. I am also an avid hunter and love the outdoors.
My POA membership is very important to me. Besides myself, my wife and brother are both optometrists. Since 1983, when optometrists couldn’t even bill Medicare for exams, I have seen the profession grow into what it is now, which is significantly more medically-oriented than when I began practicing. The POA has been instrumental in expanding the scope of optometry in Pennsylvania.

SECRETARY-TREASURER
Edward B. Savarano, O.D., MS 
At the beginning of my 31 years of practice, I bounced from commercial setting to commercial setting, finally settling on a solo private setting in Belle Vernon and a position at the Veteran’s Administration in Pittsburgh. I have spent 23 years at the private practice and 15 at the VA. Medical optometry has always been a passion, but lately post-trauma rehabilitation has proved to be most stimulating. Traumatic brain injuries take away simple things that we take for granted: single vision, not falling when walking, reading without maximum effort, and driving without a headache to name a few. It is exciting to watch patients who suffer from post-trauma vision syndrome/visual midline shift take their first few balanced steps without a walker.
All of this has been provided by organized optometry and I am very grateful. The future holds more than we can imagine, but we need an advocate to make those dreams a reality. The POA has helped to fulfill many and continues to speak for our future. 
So, what do I do in my spare time? I’m a cheer dad! My daughter, Gabby, is the captain of her high school cheer squad and competes on an All-Star team as well. It is a travelling squad, extending to Kentucky, Ohio, Connecticut and Florida. Thankfully, we love to travel, too. The Grand Canyon, Wyoming’s Teton Wilderness, The Snake River, Yellowstone, King Salmon Alaska and next year, Africa. When the “Cheer Dad” hat is off, I hunt for coyotes, trap beaver, and fish for whatever bites...usually mosquitoes. 

TRUSTEE
Mark J. Dalton, O.D.
I practice in Allentown as a solo owner with one full-time associate. I have owned my practice since 1998, after spending about nine months in a corporate setting. We are a primary care optometry practice, treating everything possible within our scope of practice. I see a lot of diabetic patients and treat a lot of glaucoma. I love the variety of both optical and medical ocular conditions that I diagnose and treat, which ensures that each day is unique and never boring. I love the relationship I have with many of my patients whom I have been seeing for up to 18 years. 
Spare time relaxation includes reading, listening to and playing music, drawing, and spending time my family. Because my practice is in a busy, urban location, with a large population on medical assistance, we’ve been forced to become very efficient. At our peak, we were seeing about 12,000 patients per year. 
POA membership to me is essential to protecting my investment in optometry. Since we are a legislated profession, we need a strong association to represent us, protect us, and help move us forward. The hard work of the POA volunteers and staff have made possible our increased scope of practice that has helped all Pennsylvania optometrists. Also, for me personally, the POA Board has become a second family to me, always there for help and support. Some of my best memories in the past few years revolve around the POA meetings and Congress. 

IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT
Richard P. Christoph, O.D. 
I’ve been leasing space from Wal-Mart in Temple since I graduated in 1992. I see everyone, from six-month-olds to those over 100. I complete a lot of traditional refractive care and contact lens fittings, but also treat all types of topical conditions and a surprising amount of trauma. I also co-manage surgical cases, and what I’m not comfortable treating or don’t have the equipment to manage properly, I try to refer to my local optometric colleagues whenever possible. The thing I love the most is being able to make a difference in people lives. The child whose grades improve because they can see what is happening in the classroom or the adult with a challenging Rx and complicated visual demands that needs a creative approach to their prescription and eyewear are the most rewarding. 
In my spare time, after seeing patients six days a week, I manage to fit in volunteering with our local minor league hockey team, attending 40 to 50 hockey games a season, and taking care of my four senior rescue dogs, ages ranging from seven to over fifteen years old. My wife and I also foster dogs from Henry’s Hope Dog Rescue and often dog-sit for our friends and neighbors. I have a large Hispanic patient population, including at least one patient per day who doesn’t speak English. Because of that, the majority of my staff members are bilingual. It has been a big practice builder, and a real learning experience. 
The POA and AOA are the way we come together as a profession to address all the issues that “somebody should do something about.” I’ve found over the last 20+ years that the more you put into it, the more you get out of it. I’ve learned so much about patient care, practice management, third party billing, staffing, and every aspect of optometry from my colleagues. Many of those topics I never even sought out help with, they just came up in the process of volunteering or while having lunch or dinner at a POA event.

Please thank your 2016 POA Board for what they do on behalf of the profession when you see them at your local society meetings. In return, you will find a colleague who is more than happy to help you or, at the very least, point you in the right direction. If you would like to contact a Board member by email or phone, all contact information can be found on the POA website here: http://pennsylvania.aoa.org/x7760.xml.
On behalf of the current POA Board of Directors, I want to wish everyone a productive fall season. 

Sincerely,

Mark M. Margolies, O.D.
POA President

Standing at the crossroads

Looking back on 30 years of optometric practice, I see that our profession has undergone some major changes. There was a time when optometry was known as “the drugless profession.” Thank goodness those days are in the past. I would not be able to practice the way I do today if I could not prescribe topical antibiotics, steroids or pressure-lowering agents. Without the volunteer structure of the POA and its members, none of this would have been achieved. However, we cannot stop now. We must plan to secure our future. To do this, I need your help in growing our membership.

Our profession is facing many challenges today. There are online contact sellers, online eyeglass retailers, companies that want to provide at-home refractions, HIPAA regulations, reduced reimbursements, vision plan policies that are not favorable to our practices, and so on. These challenges and more can be overcome if we have strong state and national associations. 

As a famous commercial once said, “Membership has its privileges,” and the POA is no exception to this. Please allow me to explain just a few benefits of POA membership.

Advocacy — Many organizations exist today that want to help the independent optometrist. However, the POA and AOA are the only organizations that can actually protect and advance our profession. There are no other organizations in optometry that will lobby on your behalf and represent the profession both in Harrisburg and Washington, D.C. These benefits often seem intangible because it takes persistent effort over many years to achieve certain goals. I can assure you, however, that good things come to those who wait.

The POA is currently supporting the Eye Care Freedom of Choice legislation introduced by Senator Kim Ward. This piece of legislation attempts to restore a “level playing field” in the eye care industry and ensure both patient freedom of choice when selecting a provider and providers’ freedom of choice to choose materials, fabrication and source of products, and also ensure a uniform provider contract. 

The Pennsylvania Diabetic Eye Health Alliance (PDEHA) — Only POA members can become PDEHA members. Over 500 member doctors have signed on to this initiative so far and insurers are taking notice. As a direct result of this initiative, Geisinger Health Plan and the POA are working jointly to support the care of diabetic patients.
Electronic Claims Service — The POA is the only state affiliate with an electronic claims service with on-staff coding and billing experts. 

C&E Vision Buying Group — This benefit program provides members with substantial savings on the purchase of frames, contact lenses, ophthalmic equipment, and more, while at the same time giving you the opportunity to have your POA/AOA dues paid for you as a percentage of your purchases through the buying group. To join, simply call C&E’s Member Service Department at (800) 346-2626.

Free Marketing Materials — Kids Welcome Here® brochures and posters are available at no charge to POA members. Members of the PDEHA are also entitled to a free poster promoting yearly eye exams for diabetic patients.

Discounted Continuing Education — POA offers discounted continuing education programs for members; non-members pay nearly double for the same programs. Upcoming events include a continuing education weekend from March 12 to 13 in State College, POA’s Annual Congress from May 13 to 15 in Camp Hill, a continuing education cruise from July 2 to 7, and free (for members) online webinars available for one credit each on the POA website. 

Keystoner & Emails — Members may place classified advertisements for free in up to three consecutive issues. Other advertising opportunities are also available for members at a discounted price. The POA also sends out informative emails regarding upcoming events, local society meetings, legislative issues, and more. These means of communication are an exclusive member benefit aimed at keeping the association’s members up-to-date and informed.

The above are but a few benefits of membership. There are many other advantages to membership that I hope to highlight in future editorials. As members, we need to communicate these benefits to our unaffiliated colleagues and urge them to join. The POA can only be as strong as our membership will allow it to be. 

As I stand at the crossroads, I am honored and humbled to serve as your 2016 POA president. With the help of the 2016 Board of Directors, our committee chairs, and volunteers, together we can advance our profession and take it to the next level. I look forward to working with all of you so that we can make this profession stronger. Thank you for allowing me to be of service.

The POA Board of Directors and I want to wish all of you a very successful 2016!

Mark Margolies, O.D.
POA President

Membership has its privileges

So, why did you join the POA? Yes, I am asking you. Tough question? It might not be so easy to provide a concrete answer. Having given this question some serious thought, allow me to share two reasons why I became active in our professional state organization as soon as I started my first optometry position in Harrisburg 17 years ago.

First, I must take you on a journey back to my childhood. My father was a physical therapist; someone who taught me not only the trials and tribulations of being an extremely dedicated medical professional, but also the importance of supporting one’s professional organization. I always remembered my father as a member of both the Pennsylvania Physical Therapy Association (PPTA) and the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). Our family had the opportunity to visit many interesting places throughout the country and Canada, attending various APTA meetings with him to places like Anaheim (Disneyland!), Kansas City, Baltimore, New Orleans and Montreal. I also vividly recall his consternation regarding legislative issues that arose in the state, particularly those involving those “diabolical” chiropractors who wanted to perform physical therapy-type services in their offices! (Yes, this was their turf-war battle many years ago – sound familiar?) I remember him writing checks to support these PPTA legislative initiatives, to what I did not know at the time was their political action committee. I believe it was from these childhood experiences that I came to understand by osmosis the importance of professional association membership – that joining and supporting these organizations at the state and national level was something “you just did” as a successful medical professional.

My second reason for joining the POA was undoubtedly related to an early encounter with our executive director, Dr. Charlie Stuckey. I had the lucky coincidence to be an optometry extern in the fall of 1995 at Kilmore Eye Associates, where Dr. Stuckey was the managing partner at the time. I recall sitting in his office and being so impressed upon seeing his Master’s Degree in Health Planning and Management from Penn State hanging on the wall! (But please don’t ask me what I had for dinner two nights ago.) He made get-togethers with each of the externs a priority to discuss issues related to practice management and membership in the POA and AOA. I believe I even attended a Central PA Optometric Society meeting upon his recommendation during my externship at the practice. Ultimately, this experience with Dr. Stuckey further solidified the importance for me to continue on with my membership of the POA and AOA long after my new-graduate scale dues reduction was no more.

As I had mentioned briefly in my first editorial, the POA (and most other state affiliates) has continued to struggle with growing membership as long as I can remember. Our membership numbers have been stable over the years. Not surprisingly, this issue of membership sustainability and growth was the topic of the keynote addresses at our last two President Council meetings. In San Diego last June, Mary Byers, author of Race for Relevance: 5 Radical Changes for Associations, spoke about the similar challenges that face all professional organizations today in terms of membership. Younger potential members from Generation X look at membership differently than their parents did. There is also the challenge in meeting the needs of a greater number of part-time, female and ethnically-diverse potential members. In San Antonio this past January, Sheri Jacobs, CAE, the author of the book, The Art of Membership spoke about how organizations must market themselves “like Lady Gaga” to help new potential members more easily see and understand the benefits of being part of an organization. For example, just like Lady Gaga is very accessible to her fans, we need to make sure the POA is accessible to new members. We should be sure to make connections so people feel engaged and want to return to events like CE conferences and maintain membership. Ms. Jacobs also discussed how there are big shifts underway in how people spend their money; for example, people are more careful in deciding to spend money on membership dues. They are also more careful on how they spend their time. She also raised the point that younger generations won’t automatically join organizations as in previous generations – they want to see greater tangible rewards to do so.

I truly feel the solution to not only adding new members but also keeping the ones we have is for each person to understand the ways in which the privileges of membership in the POA outweigh the cost of dues. No, not an easy task when bills and expenses are bombarding us each day from every direction: student loans, child-related costs, buying new equipment for your practice, etcetera. While I could ramble on and on about the numerous tangible benefits (like the Keystoner keeping you informed with what is happening with our profession), let me just share with you the three membership benefits that I personally feel are the most significant to me: advocacy, continuing education and social/networking opportunities. As POA members, I know you are familiar with the high quality CE programs and webinars offered throughout the year at conferences and online. You may also understand the social and networking opportunities that are provided by attending both local society and state meetings, like our recent Spring Congress in State College. What you may not be as aware of is the difficult work of advocacy that often goes on behind closed doors, especially by our most active committees such as the Third Party Center and the Legislative Affairs Committee. Dr. Stuckey and the Third Party Center are continually addressing issue after issue for our members, such as unequal reimbursement, coding/billing challenges and insurance panel credentialing/re-credentialing. The Legislative Affairs Committee works diligently to stay on the offensive with any statewide “turf-war battle,” as well as keeping abreast of what legislative initiatives are being fought and won around the country. In addition, our keyperson system within the Legislative Affairs Committee perpetuates close relationships with our state senators and representatives. A timely example of the significance of our keyperson system and lobbying team: the solid friendship they have nurtured over the years with legislative leadership led to optometric services being reinstated as part of the Healthy Pennsylvania Medicaid waiver proposal. The initial proposal eliminated all optometric, podiatric and chiropractic services from coverage.

I absolutely realize that I am “preaching to the choir” regarding this membership theme. If you are reading this editorial, you are most likely a POA member already and realize that membership has its privileges. So, here is my “ask” of you: I ask you to help us spread the word and reach out to non-members you know (former classmates, doctors practicing down the road from you, etcetera) and encourage them to attend a local society meeting to “test the waters” or just take the plunge and join. I even suggest that you share this editorial with them. For that matter, if it’s been a long time since you have attended a local society meeting – make it a priority and go. Help us to keep the organization alive and growing. No matter what reason motivated you to join organized optometry, the future of our profession is up to you!

Marianne Boltz, O.D., F.A.A.O.

President

Pennsylvania Optometric Association

www.poaeyes.org