Member profile: Megan Teh

As a newly graduated optometrist, Megan Teh found that there was plenty about optometry she was not expecting. But as a recent recipient of a University of Melbourne student award, she found she was capable of rising to the challenge.

‘In my final year of university, I saw maybe 50 patients in the whole year. Now I see that in a week.’

After completing an undergraduate Biomedicine degree from Monash, Megan Teh wasn’t exactly sure what her next move was, only that she wanted to do “something” in healthcare. Having worn glasses since she was seven, she was familiar with eye care, and so that “something” ended up being optometry, for which she graduated from the University of Melbourne in 2022.

Having spent a large part of her university course online during COVID-19, her experience with clinical patients was limited. In her final year, she saw around 50 patients for the year. Now as a working optometrist in Warragul and Moe, she sees that many in a week.

‘It was a big step coming into optometry work from university. You learn a lot of theory in university, but you have to relearn so much from scratch when you start in a practice. Even the simple stuff, like how to operate the specific equipment properly. You also, of course, have to learn how to deal with patients!

‘There was definitely a huge learning curve. Is it what I expected? Yes and no. It’s a lot of responsibility just on myself, but I’m really enjoying patient interactions, and I always have support,’ she said.

Working in a regional practice

Megan now works three days a week in Moe and two days a week in Warragul, and in addition to the learning curve of practice life she is also making the adjustment to regional living.

‘I have a sister in healthcare who worked in a regional centre and enjoyed it, so I always wanted to work in one as well. You get to learn a lot more in place like this, especially now that I live close by as well. I get the perks of living in a nice small town while also being within easy driving distance to Melbourne.’

But with opportunity also comes challenge. When she arrived to work in Warragul, she didn’t know the area, including where to find local ophthalmologists or even the local hospital. Now she’s built up relationships with related-disciplinary colleagues in the area and has established a working routine.

‘We try to co-manage with ophthalmologists to not clog up the system, as this area is not as serviced as metro areas. The optometrists in my practice and I have a good rapport with both them and the local GPs, who will refer patients with red-eye or anything else to us happily as well. The local ophthalmologists even hosted a dinner for us to meet in person, and they’re always happy to take our call and develop a personal relationship,’ she said.

 

Megan currently works in L&F Eyecare Warragul, a broad family practice where she sees patients of all ages. While she found it was initially difficult to talk to patients who were farmers, she’s getting better at “learning the lingo” and finding common ground.

‘I really enjoy building a relationship with patients, building that rapport. Because it’s a relatively small community, I get to know the family, like I see the mum, the kids, the grandparents, and I really enjoy that. In Moe I get a bit more time with the patients as well, and I enjoy that autonomy,’ she said.

What’s next?

Megan was the recent recipient of the Optometry Victoria South Australia Student Award for the University of Melbourne, an accolade that she described as “unexpected”.

‘I didn’t see it coming. I’m very grateful, of course, and it’s still hard to believe. I try the best that I can, and whatever happens, happens,’ she said.

Despite her accolades, Megan maintains that as a fresh graduate she is keeping her ambitions humble. Her goal is to learn a little bit in each area and cater to all patients before thinking about narrowing down into any kind of specialty, although she does find hard contact lenses to be of particular interest. She also holds an interest in teaching that was sparked by her time tutoring underprivileged kids from immigrant backgrounds in Maths and Science when she was a student.

 

Megan also has insights into the business from different perspectives. As a student she worked as an optical dispenser, and she even has experience being a referred patient.

‘I have a retinal hole in my eye, which was picked up completely incidentally while on placement, but it ended up being a great experience, as I got to see the pathway for a patient who sees an optometrist and is then referred on to an ophthalmologist. It was great to see how it’s all done, and how ophthalmology differs from optometry.

‘Working as an optical dispenser was enjoyable, and I’m glad I did it for a few years and got to see a different side to the practice. As an optometrist, you’re mainly inside the room with a patient, and you don’t realise how busy it can get on the other side of the door, and how much work goes into keeping it all going,’ she said.

When it comes to life outside optometry, due to not having access to international placements as a student, Megan has aspirations to travel to New Zealand and South Korea, and maybe get to Bali to see what the fuss is about. She enjoys reformer Pilates, and living in Drouin she has great access to hiking locations like Mt Dandenong.

‘I want a good work-life balance, and I want to be confident and comfortable in what I do. It’s early days still, but I’m getting there.’

This story was created and shared by OV/SA.