Summer haze

As I sit here to write this editorial, it’s 97 degrees outside. That’s an unusually high temperature for mid June in the Philadelphia area. I’m hoping that it’s not quite so hot and humid when the industry will soon convene in the City of Brotherly Love for the annual American Optometric Association (AOA) Optometry’s Meeting. Of course, by the time you read this, that meeting will be one for the history books, and we’ll be looking ahead to Vision Expo West in Las Vegas (also hot; don’t let the month of September fool you) and the American Academy of Optometry (AAO) annual meeting in Denver.

My daughter is a rising high school senior now, having closed out her junior year last week. We’re getting into the swing of the summer routine, which means adjusting my schedule to drive her to her camp counselor and volunteer junior docent zoo gigs. It means that I will have a lot more time in the car, and frequently I get into the zone and allow my mind to wander.

This afternoon I was wondering what summer looks like for you. Patient volume is likely down slightly due to families escaping for vacation and kids going to summer camp. How do you take advantage of the downtime?

Do you book yourself out early a few afternoons a week to take advantage of summer yourself? Schedule vacation time for you and your staff? How about record purging, cleaning out the inventory closet, reorganizing the dispensary? Or even tackling your next step with EHR.

Another suggestion for your summer downtime: write an article for Optometry Times!

Share how you take advantage of the summer haze in your office. E-mail me at gbailey@advanstar.com.ODT