In Virginia, most of our patients live in rural communities without easy access to lasers, as the primary care eye doctors, optometrists train for nearly 10,000 hours to learn how to diagnose and treat glaucoma, cataracts and other diseases. It’s not uncommon for medical professionals, including optometrists, to participate in continuing education programs to enhance their profession and scope of work. While more is involved than a “weekend course,” when these common laser procedures are combined with other training, they are a part of the overall eye care services provided by optometrists.