Bailey Appointed Vision Therapy Clinic Chief
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Bailey Appointed Vision Therapy Clinic Chief
Maggie Bailey, OD, assistant professor, has been named chief of the Vision Therapy Clinic (VT), a specialty clinic within UAB Eye Care that provides treatment for children and adults with eye teaming, focusing, and tracking disorders.
“My goal is to maintain the already high quality of services to patients and education for our students,” Dr. Bailey said. “Dr. Hopkins established such a strong binocular vision and VT program here at UABSO—I have some big shoes to fill!”
Prior to Dr. Bailey, Kristine Hopkins, OD, MSPH, FAAO, professor, led the VT clinic for 22 years. Dr. Hopkins launched the service after joining the faculty in 1998. There were only a handful of patient visits once per week when the clinic began. Also, few students were interested in this area of eye care at that time.
The clinic has grown in size and importance over the years. Vision therapy moved to a larger, renovated space on the clinic floor in 2017 and now has patient visits three afternoons per week. Every optometry student currently has the opportunity to work with patients in the clinic, with third-year students having the option of two rotations. Patient volume has increased from 150 visits per year to 2,500 visits annually.
“Dr. Bailey is an attentive and skilled clinician who has a passion for teaching and a love for her patients,” Dr. Hopkins said. “She is so enthusiastic about the amazing progress that she sees her patients make each week in therapy. This clinic changes lives and Dr. Bailey is eager to share this with her students and colleagues. It’s this enthusiasm and her great attention to detail that will undoubtedly continue to keep the vision therapy clinic on its upward trajectory.”
Dr. Bailey received her doctorate of optometry degree from the UAB School of Optometry in 2016. She also completed a residency in binocular vision and pediatric optometry at the Illinois College of Optometry. Dr. Bailey joined the UAB School of Optometry in 2017.
