Optician

Location: Martinsburg VA Medical Center (Martinsburg, WV) and various Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs) including Cumberland, MD; Hagerstown, MD; Winchester, VA; Fort Detrick, MD; Petersburg, WV; Franklin, WV; and Harrisonburg, VA.

Work Schedule: Standard hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM – 4:30 PM.

Key Responsibilities

• Patient Consultation: Greet beneficiaries, determine their lifestyle needs for eyewear, and assist with frame selection and recommendations.
• Fitting & Measurement: Perform precise measurements for pupillary distances (PD), segment heights, and base curves.
• Prescription Verification: Verify eyeglass prescription specifications against the orders provided by VA clinical staff.
• Maintenance & Repair: Perform minor repairs and adjustments, such as replacing screws and nose pads or repairing broken frames.
• Documentation: Accurately document all patient care activities in the VA’s Computerized Patient Record System (CPRS) or Electronic Health Record (EHR).
• Equipment Management: Operate and maintain essential tools, including lensometers, lens clocks, frame warmers, and pupilometers.
• Quality Assurance: Inspect received eyeglasses to ensure they meet American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and FDA requirements.

Qualifications & Requirements

• Licensure & Certification: * Must maintain a full and unrestricted license in the state of practice if that state requires licensure.
• In states without licensure, American Board of Opticianry (ABO) certification is required.
• Technical Proficiency: Ability to fluently speak, understand, read, and write English.
• Security Clearance: Must successfully complete a VA background investigation (Low Risk) and receive a favorable National Criminal History Check (NCHC).
• Health & Safety:
• Provide proof of required immunizations, including a Hepatitis B vaccination series or surface antigen test results.
• Complete generic self-study blood-borne pathogen training.

Professional Standards

• Conflict of Interest: Opticians (and their employers) may not hold a current VA Eyeglasses Manufacturing contract while providing these services to ensure unbiased frame selection for Veterans.
• Retail Restrictions: Contracted Opticians are prohibited from offering retail "upgrades" for prescriptions within VA clinics.