Opticians, Dispensing

The work

Core tasks

1. 01Measure clients' bridge and eye size, temple length, vertex distance, pupillary distance, and optical centers of eyes, using measuring devices.
2. 02Verify that finished lenses are ground to specifications.
3. 03Evaluate prescriptions in conjunction with clients' vocational and avocational visual requirements.
4. 04Recommend specific lenses, lens coatings, and frames to suit client needs.
5. 05Assist clients in selecting frames according to style and color, and ensure that frames are coordinated with facial and eye measurements and optical prescriptions.
6. 06Maintain records of customer prescriptions, work orders, and payments.
7. 07Heat, shape, or bend plastic or metal frames to adjust eyeglasses to fit clients, using pliers and hands.
8. 08Show customers how to insert, remove, and care for their contact lenses.
9. 09Determine clients' current lens prescriptions, when necessary, using lensometers or lens analyzers and clients' eyeglasses.
10. 10Prepare work orders and instructions for grinding lenses and fabricating eyeglasses.
11. 11Obtain a customer's previous record, or verify a prescription with the examining optometrist or ophthalmologist.
12. 12Sell goods such as contact lenses, spectacles, sunglasses, and goods related to eyes, in general.

Capabilities

Essential skills

Employment outlook

Where the role is heading