Practice Advantage

By Dr. Justin ManningBusiness Entrepreneurship Medicine Health & Fitness

Practice Advantage episodes

October 12Empowering Your People with AI with Cory Pinegar
In this episode we with down with Founder and CEO of TEEM, Cory Pinegar to discuss the role of AI and virtual team members in the private practice workforce of today.
Key Takeaways:
Today's private practice has so many more challenges to deal with, from administrative responsibilities to more phone calls, billing and coding, insurance verification, and so much more. Costs are rising and therefore new and different opportunities are needed to solve these challenges.
Remote hiring is very different from outsourcing. Practices that use remote employees need to see that individual as an embedded team member like any other in person employee.
The better established processes and procedures that a practice has have more efficient and effective staff by cutting the communication and clarification time. For a practice that does not have written processes and procedures, AI can dramatically accelerate the time to establish those SOPs.
Your "Why" is critical. Employees that understand your why can deliver a differentiated and more empowered experience to patients and involve you less in day to day decisions.
A great place to start leveraging AI in your practice is not necessarily the front lines. It's in the back office support, best practices, training, and more in order to enable your people to take better care of the patients and consumers in front of them.
The key to success of AI is context. AI can only support your team as well as it is trained (like a real human). Upload as much documentation as you have for your business and give it the context it needs to be able to support your business in the ways you need.
What Cory Is Watching:
Databricks CEO on AI Pacing - A16Z Podcast
Practice Advantage Reading List
**Don't miss out on an extra $15 rebate for all commercial VSP Eye Exams now thru the END of 2027! Visit www.pecaaexamrebate.com now!**
45 min
September 07The Power of Private Label Part 3 with Dr. Alan Arabi
In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Alan Arabi, owner of ProView Eyecare in Southern California. Dr. Arabi shares his experience implementing the new PECAA Promise contact lenses and shares strategies for getting staff and doctors on board and how to not overthink its success.
Key Takeaways:
Contact lenses remain a key opportunity for practice success but tension remains among pricing, margin, and patient willingness to purchase from you.
Like all new opportunities, leverage the individual reps to support staff and doctor education. You cannot over-communicate the "why" behind it.
Don't overlook the small areas of friction that prevents your team from being successful.
It's easy to worry about having to over-explaining things to patients so they really understand what's new and why. That can have an unintended consequence of instilling doubt. Your patients trust you more than you think and explaining simply goes a long way.
It's easy to focus on the staff, don't forget about including your doctors fully in the process.
We think a lot about our patients and their experience with their contacts. Yet our patients really don't want to think about their contacts at all.
Keep it simple. Simplicity is key for doctors, staff, and patients.
What Dr. Arabi is reading:
Who Not How by Dan Sullivan and Benjamin Hardy
Practice Advantage Reading List
**Don't miss out on an extra $15 rebate for all commercial VSP Eye Exams now thru the END of 2027! Visit www.pecaaexamrebate.com now!**
27 min
August 10The Power of Private Label Part 2 with Dr. Jennifer Palombi
Private label opportunities are broad in consumer product goods space. Yet, the use of them in healthcare and eye care isn't as prevalent. In this episode we continue our conversation with Dr. Jennifer Palombi, Director of Professional Affairs at CooperVision.
Key Takeaways:
Patients are loyal to relationships. A private label customer brand provides the opportunity to enhance the relationship with the patient by providing them with high quality lens only available in your practice.

The practices most successful with private label do not overcomplicate the patient presentation.

We create a moral dilemma with patients when it comes to private label. When it comes down to us prescribing the product we want for patients and the private label component makes it more advantageous for the practice minimizes the dilemma we create for ourselves.

The practices most successful with a customer brand are ones who are connected as a team and there's a very clear why that all team members understand for offering customer brands to patients.

There's no better way to be successful than to commit to it, get started, and don't be afraid to make mistakes along the way.
What Dr. Palombi is reading:
The Six Types of Working Genius by Patrick Lencioni
Practice Advantage Reading List
**Don't miss out on an extra $15 rebate for all commercial VSP Eye Exams now thru the END of 2027! Visit www.pecaaexamrebate.com now!**
33 min
July 17The Power of Private Label Part 1 with Dr. Jennifer Palombi
Private label opportunities are broad in consumer product goods space. Yet, the use of them in healthcare and eyecare isn't as prevalent. In this episode we sit down with Dr. Jennifer Palombi, Director of Professional Affairs at CooperVision.
Key Takeaways:
Customer brand/ private label now represents high quality and most importantly a relationship and experience between a consumer and the company they choose to do business with. Purchase desire doesn't just come down to price but quality, value, and convenience.

Success with private label depends on a number of factors. Two important factors are the recommendation of the doctor and practice - standing behind the quality of the product and the experience. The second is the experience the customer/ patient has with the product itself which also underscores the quality.

Independent of private label, we really should look at contact lens patients not just in the simple wins now but the long term value of those patients.

We should still prioritize annual sales and also need to meet the needs of our patients if they want the freedom and flexibility to purchase in a subscription style model.

Purchasing directly from you is more convenient than purchasing elsewhere or even online. We have to win the trust game on value and price in the process.
Stay tuned to our next episode to learn what Jennifer is reading.
Practice Advantage Reading List
**Don't miss out on an extra $15 rebate for all commercial VSP Eye Exams now thru the END of 2027! Visit www.pecaaexamrebate.com now!**
33 min
June 01Put AI to Work in Your Practice with Will Flanagan
In this episode, we sit down with Will Flanagan, Head of Programs and Partnerships at VSP's Global Innovation Center to discuss the role of AI in practice, how to get started, and the best applications to improve how you run your practice.
Key Takeaways:
If you're just getting started with AI, the best way to get started is to go to one leading platform and bring it one of your practice challenges. Give it context and background and ask it how you should go about solving the challenge.

A strong framework for prompting AI is RICTF
Role: Give the AI a role to play (e.g. practice consultant, marketing strategist, etc.)

Issue: What is the specific problem you're trying to solve?

Context: Give it as much context as possible to understand the challenge you want to solve.

Task: Be specific as to what you want the AI to do.

Format: Be specific as to how you want the answer, suggestion, and/or recommendation delivered.

Investing up front on your prompt and input, saves hours of time both in the recommendation and the efficiency in your daily work.

AI isn't there to do the work that you're great at. AI is there to support and optimize the work you aren't great at and/or you don't enjoy.

Within the practice, AI has the greatest opportunity in practice efficiency, administrative processes, and marketing in part because the challenges are significant and they often feel they get in the way of the clinical delivery. At the same time, the clinical applications to enhance patient care and expand scope of practice are equally exciting.

Patients don't want AI to be their doctor, they want their doctor to use AI.

For the advanced user, consider where you build new opportunities within AI for your practice and when you leverage existing purpose focused AI tools.
What Will is Reading:
Axios on Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
Learn more about PECAA's A/Eye Certification Program.
Practice Advantage Reading List
**Don't miss out on an extra $15 rebate for all commercial VSP Eye Exams now thru the END of 2027! Visit www.pecaaexamrebate.com now!**
45 min
May 04Technology, Business, and Leadership Lessons with Dr. Patricia Poma
Our guest is Dr. Patricia Poma, industry expert, consultant, and known for her success in private practice. In this episode, we discuss leadership lessons for practice growth, strategies for success implementing new technology like Sequel and Neurolenses, and the PECAA Annual Meeting.
Key Takeaways:
Success in private practice depends on your own willingness to grow and change on a personal and professional level first. Where do you want to go? What do you want your practice to be at the end of your career?

Optometry used to be a profession where you had to be all things to all people. Now the opportunities are so significant in specialty areas that focusing on what you're best at is key to success.

People are key to success. Know who they are and what they're best at. Empower them to find their happiness and best performance in the practice and don't hesitate to let them go if they're not the right fit.

Don't add technologies or services just because everyone else is doing it. Know your patient base and what they need. Understand what you are passionate about and/or what your associate doctors are passionate about. Make a strategic and informed decision and run with it.

Sequel and Neurolenses have played a key role in taking care of Dr. Poma's patients - creating an incredibly comfortable visual experience. The life changing stories patients have shared make it easy for doctors and staff to tell the story to patients.

Adding anything new can be daunting, especially if it requires significant cost to the patient. It takes building momentum to be successful. Accept getting many no's before you get the yes's but those yes's lead to more as time goes on.
What Patricia is Reading:
The Radium Girls by Kate Moore
Practice Advantage Reading List
**Don't miss out on an extra $15 rebate for all commercial VSP Eye Exams now thru the END of 2027! Visit www.pecaaexamrebate.com now!**
37 min
March 13Live From Vision Expo: A Carrot Is Good For Your Eyes and Your Practice with Jeremy Barlow
Key Takeaways:
Virtual Field has rebranded to Carrot to create new opportunities for their future in delivering an expanded virtual reality pretesting platform.

Carrot's platform now includes more than visual field - pupillometry, color vision, ocular motility. In the near future, the platform will include contrast sensitivity, D-15, and cover test available to be done within the platform. In addition to the roadmap, the platform will build in machine learning and AI to accelerate how practices deliver a better patient experience.

The more tests that can be done effectively in VR, the faster pre-testing can go in your practice. It can free up space for an additional lane or more optical displays. Instead of one tech per one patient, some practices are able to connect one technician with up to three patients.

Change is always difficult, no matter the technology. Working directly with your team on the how, what, and why is critical to success to implement.
What Jeremy is reading:
Conquistador by Buddy Levy
Practice Advantage Reading List
**Don't miss out on an extra $15 rebate for all commercial VSP Eye Exams throughout all of 2026! Visit www.pecaaexamrebate.com now!**
19 min
February 02Leading Through Uncertainty with Jonathan Worrall
In this episode, we sit down with PECAA's President Jonathan Worrall to discuss strategies for leading through uncertainty and taking advantage of the opportunities that any challenge provides.
Key Takeaways:
Be change ready. Build your business strategy with possible adversaries to address and plans for how you'd respond to them.
Your business isn't the only one facing uncertainty. All of your patients are as well. Understand how they're feeling and reacting to the uncertainty and adjust how you take care of them and do business in order to meet them where they are. Leverage the data in your PM system and your daily conversations with your patients.
When faced with uncertainty, take care of your people first. Rally around your team and build them up. Focus on what you have control over, not the things you have no control over.
2026 brings significant opportunity to strengthen your practice culture. In addition, leverage AI to build your operations, increase revenue, and expand care to patients.
The natural response to fear is fight, flight or freeze. Consider a fourth option - forging a new path forward that every threat gives opportunity to create.
Remember, our profession is unbelievably resilient. We've weather many storms that have threatened how we care for our patients and none of have been successful in putting us out of business.
What Jonathan is reading:
Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom
Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara
Think Again by Adam Grant
Practice Advantage Reading List
**Don't miss out on an extra $15 rebate for all commercial VSP Eye Exams throughout all of 2026! Visit www.pecaaexamrebate.com now!**
31 min
January 05Building an Aesthetics Practice with Dr. Jenn DenHartog
It's January 2026 and time to focus on your 2026 practice goals. What do you want to accomplish and where do you want to take your business this year? In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Jenn DenHartog, founder of Premier Vision Clinic in Clive, IA to ask her tips for success in growing a dry eye and aesthetics practice.
Key Takeaways:
Own your role in medical optometry. Most patient cases don't need a referral out to ophthalmology until surgical intervention.
Medical v. Vision doesn't have to be all or nothing - give the vision exam patient a nugget of their medical diagnoses and treatment options and then bring them back for their medical follow up visit.
You can never put processes and systems in place too early. Even if it doesn't feel like it's needed, there will come a time when you needed those systems in place.
Beginning with the dry eye conversation addresses the most significant issue the patient is facing. Highlighting the additional impacts certain treatments like IPL, RF, LLLT, etc. have additional benefits that the patient may also experience. This opens the door for the patient to experience them and wanting to continue the treatments for cosmetic reasons.
Celebrate wins with your patients and with your team. Only the patient gets to determine what their wins are.
What Dr. DenHartog is reading:
Battlefield of the Mind by Joyce Meyer
Practice Advantage Reading List
**Don't miss out on an extra $15 rebate for all commercial VSP Eye Exams throughout all of 2026! Visit www.pecaaexamrebate.com now!**
41 min
December 01, 2025Build Your Business Around Your Life, Not The Other Way Around with Dr. E. Connor Smallwood
In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Connor Smallwood, owner of Smallwood Eye Associates in Gahanna, OH. Dr. Smallwood has built a practice that empowers his life outside the business. His story is a powerful one.
Key Takeaways:
Buying an established practice gave him a head start with the patient base especially a base that was loyal. Spending time in the practice by himself allowed the practice to slowly transition before the founder retired.
Staff is the engine that makes the practice run. Retaining the staff following the transition was critical. Bringing the staff along on the changes over time made a difference.
Despite how successful the practice was, there was significant opportunity to improve aspects of the business. Taking it slow, getting one change right at a time was key to bringing staff and patients along on the journey.
Building a business doesn’t mean you have to grind all day, every day. While that’s certainly an option, building a successful business should empower you to live the life you want to live within and outside the business.
Prioritizing opportunities outside the office requires prioritization of processes and efficiency within the office such that you’re maximizing both the people and time in the office.
What Connor is reading:
Wild At Heart by John Eldredge
Practice Advantage Reading List
** Don't miss out on an extra $15 rebate for all commercial VSP Eye Exams this year - with $15 extended through June of 2026, and $10 thru the end of next year! Visit www.pecaaexamrebate.com now!**
40 min

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Running an independent eye care practice and business is hard work. PECAA understands the challenges you face and provides the tools and insights you need to run your business with ease.