Faculty Perspective

Faculty perspective

New facility will benefit students and community

Students being educated for the health professions should be trained in an environment that, as much as possible, is similar to that in which they will function after graduation. They should be exposed to a wide variety of patients, utilize state-of-the-art equipment and learn to work with support personnel and other health providers in this era of managed care. Patients treated by our students deserve a modern health care facility that will allow us to provide them state-of-the-art care. A new facility will allow us to do that and so much more.

Nancy Peterson-Klein, O.D., F.A.A.O.
Associate Dean for Student Affairs, Michigan College of Optometry

Just as sports teams change with time, so do colleges. Some influences on MCO’s changes are health care needs of the public, changes/growth in the profession’s responsibilities, changes in technology, changes in funding and changes in personnel. A new facility will be a monumental change for the Michigan College of Optometry and positively influence students, faculty, staff and patients – and in turn, will be of benefit to the optometric profession and the public’s health care for years to come.

Michael P Keating, Ph.D.
Professor

A new building should be easily accessible for the general public. I would like ground floor access for the clinic to make it convenient for our patients. Our current building is clustered in a group of similar-looking buildings, and people find it difficult to find the clinic even once inside the building. A building that is more user-friendly would help us serve the community better.

Randy Vance, O.D., M.S.
Professor

We see children for vision and learning problems and eye-coordination problems. I would like a pediatrics reception area that is more inviting for children. A custom-designed building for optometry would also help us to better serve patients with wheelchairs. A new facility would also help our students see more patients for more learning experiences. With more physical space for research labs, faculty members would have more time and space for clinical research projects and to develop their interests.

Mark Swan, O.D., M.Ed.
Chief of Pediatric and Binocular Vision Service
Professor