by Camille Jenkins
Introduction
My name is Camille Jenkins, and I am a fourth-year student studying molecular and cellular biology and philosophy. I use these skills to pursue a career in optometry and strive to integrate philosophical thinking in the ways I approach diagnosing patients. I have built meaningful connections with practicing optometrists who have given me a basic knowledge about the field of optometry. I have also shadowed optometrists in different settings to see all of the opportunities that await. I have volunteered with patients at Medstar Union Memorial Hospital to gain more experience and patient centered interactions. I would greatly appreciate getting to know more about your optometry program as I make the transition from undergraduate to graduate school by setting up a time to meet to discuss the program. I have used these past experiences to help better prepare me for my 2024 summer experience. I am very appreciative to the Life Design Lab for funding my summer 2024 experiences. This summer, I have taken on numerous activities to prepare me for a career in optometry. I have shadowed with optometrist at the Johns Hopkins Hospital Wilmer Eye Institute. I have used their knowledge along with patient testimonial to conduct an independent research project on ocular diseases. When I am not doing this, I have been studying for the Optometry Admissions Test and applying to optometry schools.
Key Experiences
Some of the key experiences I had were building meaningful professional relationships with optometrists to seek their mentorship as I applied to optometry schools. I planned to do this by reaching out on LinkedIn, shadowing, and setting up meetings with alumni. I was mostly successful in building professional relationships with optometrists. I shadowed two optometrists at the Wilmer Eye Institute who went to two different optometry schools. I was able to ask them about their experiences at optometry school as well as applying. It is here that I was connected to the optometry club on the Homewood campus and became a member. I did not end up going on LinkedIn because the optometrist I shadowed emailed some of their colleagues on my behalf and I have set up meetings with them. One challenge I faced was that many optometrists I reached out to on LinkedIn did not respond and that led me to pursuing the shadowing route more heavily. Overall, I would say that I successfully built relationships with optometrists and even obtained a letter of recommendation from one of the doctors. I also wanted to learn more about eye care by completing a research project on ocular diseases. I planned to do this with the help of one of the optometrists that I shadowed as my personal investigator (PI) and extend upon the research that has already been done. So far I have planned two possible experiments to treat glaucoma and macular degeneration. I did this by finding what tests had already been done and finding alternative methods to achieve better improvement to the damaged structures of the eye. One of the challenges I faced was how to ethically conduct the tests I would like to run. My PI has helped plan how to ethically conduct these experiments. Instead of using mice like I had suggested she recommended that we start by using flies as they are cheaper and would allow us to run more trials and get data. If we get the data we hope we could then try the experiments again on mice. Setting goals for myself at the beginning of the summer through my OKRs has been a good way for me to reflect on the progress I have made toward my goals. It is also helpful to change my methods when things did not head in the direction I needed the to. This leads to the skills I was able to gain while working on these projects over the summer. I have noticed I have been more organized and methodical when planning out the steps I need to achieve my goals. This has helped my stay focus and prioritize certain things that will have the best outcome for me. I have also learned a lot about the equipment used in optometry settings. This has been immensely helpful for both my research and professional goals as I know what equipment is best suitable for the tests I need to run.
Moving Forward
One of the main takeaways I have learned from this summer is to be a better advocate for myself. There were times when I was not sure if the optometrists, I reached out to would agree to let me shadow them as they do not do this very often. It was my determination to gain clinical experience that allowed me to continue to reach out and follow up with them until I had found the right workplace environment for myself. Through this I was able to make other professional relationships and gain a lot of advice for when I become a practicing optometrist. In the future I want to take the skills I have learned this summer and apply them to my studies in optometry school. Further these skills will help me provide the best care to my patients as I have experience with practicing empathy in the workplace as I have seen a large demographic of patents. If anything, this summer has solidified my career aspirations and I am grateful to all those who have helped me along the way
