From Classroom to Clinic: The Value of the PCO Summer Clerkship

Rounding out the first year as a Doctor of Optometry (OD) student is an exciting accomplishment. As part of the curriculum, they are required to complete 70 hours of an optical clerkship at a location of their choice.

The Summer Clerkship is a two-week, optical rotation setting approved by Pennsylvania College of Optometry (PCO) at Drexel University. It is designed to reinforce skills acquired during the first year of coursework in ophthalmic materials and management. Students are expected to practice under the instruction and guidance of the preceptor  -  an optometrist or optician -  and to uphold the highest standards of clinical, moral, and ethical conduct.

“The Summer Optical Clerkship represents the first concentrated opportunity for our first-year students to build on the foundational optical skills and knowledge of their first two terms,” said Jamie Ellsworth-Neiman, OD ‘01, Resident ‘02, FAAO, PCO assistant professor and clerkship coordinator.

According to Dr. Ellsworth-Neiman, the clerkship is an important step in students’ hands-on training, allowing them to reinforce and apply their didactic knowledge. During the clerkship, students practice key ophthalmic skills, including neutralizing different types of lenses including spherical, cylindrical, bifocals and progressives.  They also verify the presence of prism in the glasses.  Students assist patients with frame and lens selection and adjusting and fitting frames on patients, she said.

"My Summer Clerkship was an incredible experience, and I'm really grateful the program requires students to complete a clerkship like this; it's such a valuable part of our training,” said Charlie Croteau ‘29OD. “Over the rotation, I saw nearly 200 patients, which gave me hands-on exposure I couldn't have had in the classroom alone. I learned how to bring patients into spectacle and lens education conversations, and I gained real hands-on experience working with Fresnel prisms and a wide range of lens types alongside a great team of opticians."

Throughout the clerkship, students had the opportunity to work with exceptional preceptors who were committed to mentoring the next generation of optometrists. They welcomed PCO students into their practices, creating supportive learning environments where they could gain hands-on experience and apply their skills.

During her clerkship, Croteau said she was presented with clinical questions to sharpen her clinical reasoning as well.

On the other hand, Marshall Gonsalves ‘29OD was trained under an optometrist who built his practice from the ground up. Besides observing the beautiful optics, he was able to learn about the flow of patients and practice with new optometry equipment to meet the needs of the diverse patients being seen.

The professionals in training were given this chance to hone their optical skills in a real-world setting. This year's Summer Optical Clerkship successfully provided PCO students with a deeper appreciation for working with patients and, overall, furthered their understanding of optics outside of the classroom.