Best practice 2023 awards were presented to Eyecare Plus Karalee and Cranbourne.
In the world of optometry, the path to success isn’t solely about correcting vision; it’s about seeing opportunities and seizing them.
With this in mind, optometrists and staff from Eyecare Plus practices recently came together to collaborate, learn, and innovate at a Boot Camp held at Q Station – an historic quarantine station situated in Manly, within the picturesque Sydney Harbour National Park.
The sharing of ideas is a key benefit of Eyecare Plus membership due to territory protection
With the help of Isobel Bishop and Kimberly Paas from Marketing Plus, attendees discovered how to make reels for social media, with examples posted to Facebook and Instagram practice accounts on the day. Check out the fun reel on Eyecare Plus Mermaid Beach’s Instagram account – Eyecare Plus has such stylish optometrists in their group!
Sharing Ideas
Influencing others is an art and can improve one’s ability to work as a team, develop strong relationships and draw respect and trust. With this in mind, Dominic Stone from Clearvision Productions led interactive workshops that equipped attending delegates with the skills to have win-win conversations in different scenarios in practice.
Additionally, Damian Morgan led a discussion on billing policies, a topic that practice owners don’t often get the opportunity to talk about in a group situation. Billing policies are not a one size fits all, however; this is something that optometrists need to review on a regular basis.
The sharing of ideas is a key benefit of Eyecare Plus membership due to territory protection, so it was great to hear Dr Nasen Udayan, Glenn Vessey, Emma Slinger and Lara Foster share initiatives that have been successful in their own practices. Dr Udayan spoke about the importance of lighting when designing a practice, as well as investing in technology to grow your practice. Mr Vessey discussed his experience using Google Ads to increase new patient numbers, a key performance indicator highlighted for improvement in a Business Plan Eyecare Plus National Office had assisted him to write. Ms Slinger delivered ‘Mind over matter’, a presentation that aimed to transform pricing mindsets and strategise discounting strategies in practice. Having alternatives to discounting and delivering value to your patients were key take aways. And finally, Ms Foster presented on the value of collaborating with other local businesses. Collaboration can increase exposure, test new markets, attract opportunity and increase brand value.
Dispensing Against All Odds
James Gibbins and Chedy Kalach from the Australasian College of Optical Dispensing (ACOD) workshopped progressive lenses from a theoretical and practical perspective. They also facilitated an opportunity to test everyone’s focimetry skills with a focimetry competition – congratulations SooJin Nam for your accuracy and winning first place.
Getting all the equipment, for such a large group, into Q Station turned into a logistical challenge as the truck could not fit down the road to deliver the crate to where it needed to be; but where there is a will there is a way!
Awards, Anniversaries and Exploration
The annual Eyecare Plus business awards and member anniversaries were celebrated at an awards dinner followed by a trivia night hosted by Time for Trivia, that brought out the competitive spirit within the group.
The Eye Care Plus Boot Camp would not have been a boot camp without an early morning walk to North Fort, a remnant military complex in North Head Sanctuary, which also allowed time to spot the abundant wildlife and enjoy the spectacular scenery. Great job to all the delegates who woke up early to hike around Australia’s Memorial Walk.
Feedback from the Boot Camp was positive. “We came away with a lot of ideas and, as always, it was wonderful to catch up with so many colleagues,” said David West. Liz Muller had similar sentiments, “A fabulous boot camp with great ideas about developing and improving our business”.
The exchange of ideas encouraged attendees to think beyond how they run their practice day to day. By fostering collaboration, the Eyecare Plus Boot Camp brought together diverse perspectives. It was good to see that delegates will use these ideas to make improvements back at work.
