Johalys Bencosme – Optometry Internship

Hello! My name is Johalys Bencosme, I am a senior at Garden Spot High School and currently interning at Optometric Associates in New Holland. My reason for interning in high school was to have an insight into where I would be headed after high school. I took a chance with Optometric Associates even when I knew nothing about eye doctors or had any interest in the field. Now that I am halfway through the semester, I can say with confidence that I wouldn’t want to be an intern anywhere else!

In the beginning, my evaluator wanted my internship to be taught one field at a time in its natural setting to understand the processes of an optometric office. Before any employee is given a job they must complete a series of videos explaining how to handle situations in each field. After I completed the videos, I was introduced to the front desk and became acquainted with the lovely receptionists to begin the shadowing process. While shadowing the front desk, I quickly understood that a receptionist’s job can be complex and overwhelming in a short time. By asking as many questions as I could, I learned quickly about their systems to check patients in. Once I got the hang of it I was able to check patients in on my own.

After a good few weeks at the front desk, I was introduced to the next step of the process, which is tech. Similar to my learning experience at the front desk, I shadowed the tech staff completing their daily tasks; whether it involves a patient or their own personal duties. Learning how connected these departments are was a big surprise for me personally, it was like witnessing sections of a picture slowly being revealed as I advanced forward. Eventually, after a few weeks of shadowing, I slowly was able to get my hands dirty one task at a time. I started off by sanitizing rooms to doing scans on patients myself! I will admit it was quite a drastic change on the tech side compared to the front desk, but I’ve become accustomed to it quickly and discovered my interest in tech!

So far, I learned the most from the technical side of the office, about eye health and providing aid to patients. I give all the credit to the kind, patient, and diligent people working there. I have grown to love the job as a whole and even though I am still ways away from the end, I am so excited to see what the final quarter has to offer for me!