What's the difference between opthamologist or an optometrist?

Ophthalmologist: An ophthalmologist is a medical doctor, trained at a medical school to treat diseases of the entire body, as well as someone who specializes in all aspects of eye disease and vision care, including surgery. An optometrist is not a medical doctor-- they are good at prescribing glasses and contact lenses-- they do not do surgery on the eyes.

Focus and training.: The optometrist examines eyes for glasses and diseases. Typically four years after college are needed for optometry. Ophthalmologists go to medical school for four years, then do four years residency with specialization in eye care which includes surgical training. Subspecialists do additional training after residency in ophthalmology in areas such as oculoplastics, retina, refractive, neuro, .