I have always been curious to find out why? Luckily, I walked into Sight N' Steps, and her friendliness gave me courage to finally ask the question. She looked at me, smiled and responded with enthusiasm.
"In Canada, any and all medical devices must be dispensed by a licensed professional who has had proper education and sufficient training to do so. Eyeglasses are no exception. Eyeglasses, when prepared with your prescription, become medical devices and therefore be dispensed by a licensed optician or a Doctor of Optometry".
"But anyone can bend the frames and tighten screws?" I replied quickly as Lori, the Licensed Optician at Sight N' Steps continued examining my eyeglasses from various angles.
"It's not about bending the frame, it is about ensuring how i can help you maximize your vision".
Don't feel uncomfortable when an optician looks at you from different angles, she is not coming on to you. Here is what she is really doing:
- Aligning your lenses to your pupils to ensure the visual field of the lens is perfectly aligned with your pupils;
- Achieving a perfect distance where your frame should sit in front of your eyes;
- Maximizing your reading and peripheral vision to ensure you don't have to move your neck every time look down or sideways;
- Figuring out what part of the lens you habitually see through for various activities i.e. driving, working on computer or reading;
- And, lastly adjusting the frame to comfortably fit your face; so it doesn't slide down when you look down, or bounce when you run, or pinch on the back of your head.