VA Casa Grande (CBOC)

Affiliated with the Southern Arizona VA Health Care (SAVAHCS) Optometry Extern Program VA Casa Grande CBOC

Extern Coordinator at Casa Grande CBOC: Matthew Rhodes, O.D. Matthew.Rhodes@va.gov

Type of Practice: VA Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC)

The new Casa Grande CBOC opened in early 2009. The optometric professional and support staff at the clinic includes a full time staff optometrist, a full time ophthalmic technician, and two Berkeley Optometry externs. Two fully equipped exam rooms allow each extern to have his/her own lane. Equipment at this site includes a Cirrus OCT, corneal pachymeter, Humphrey automated visual field analyzer, autorefractor, automated lensometer, automated projector, and digital fundus camera. Dr Rhodes has full therapeutic clinical privileges to treat and manage patients. The extern will use the VAs computerized patient record system, and under the direction of the attending optometrist the extern will order medications, laboratory tests, and imaging studies as needed.

Demographics

• Mostly middle aged to elderly males
• Majority of patients are Caucasian
• Minority representation of Hispanic, African American, Asian, and Native American
• Variable socioeconomic status
• Patients typically have multiple medical problems; there are frequent ocular diagnoses of cataract, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, age related maculopathy

Prerequisites for Student Externs

• Current on vaccinations
• Please see Externships Documentation and Immunization Requirements page for additional requirements.

Patient Services Provided

• Primary care
• Gatekeeper for all eye related consultations including walk-in and urgent care cases such as red eyes, sudden loss of vision, foreign bodies, ocular pain
• Anterior Segment
• Plethora of clinical conditions including infections, inflammations, degenerations, dystrophies
• Wide variety of topical and some oral medications can be prescribed
• Glaucoma Diagnosis & Treatment
• Optometry manages all non-surgical glaucoma patients
• Wide array of therapeutics available
• Posterior Segment
• Diabetic retinopathy, macular degeneration, peripheral retinal abnormalities, retinal vascular diseases

Educational Objectives

• Increase ability to perform advanced procedures such as gonioscopy, scleral depression, peripheral 90D exam
• Integrate key concepts from didactic courses into clinical setting
• Increase decision making and management ability

Student Responsibilities

• Provide prompt, quality eye/vision care
• Complete accurate patient records in computer system in a timely matter
• Present 1 case report on a patient seen during the rotation (oral or written)
• Review pathophysiology and treatment of disorders seen in clinics and presented during didactic activities
• Externs are not required to bring any equipment; a white clinic jacket is optional

Faculty Responsibilities

• Provide feedback
• Identify strengths and weakness & suggestions for improvement
• Conduct journal club and lectures on ocular conditions
• Provide formal evaluation in the middle and at the end of rotation

Miscellaneous Information

• Housing is not provided. Numerous apartment complexes near the clinic
• Automobile required for transportation
• Parking is free
• Normal clinic hours are Monday through Friday from 8:00–4:30, although urgent care and charting may occasionally result in staying later; no Saturday or Sunday clinic
• At least 9 scheduled patients per day Monday tnrough Friday excluding one-half day for didactic activity on Thursday afternoon
• Access to online medical reference databases, including Medline, in each exam room
• Access to journal articles and other reference materials through the Tucson VA medical library
• About Casa Grande
  • Rapidly growing city of 51,000
  • Located approximately 35 miles south of Phoenix
  • Casa Grande Ruins National Monument is nearby
  • Shopping: outlet mall south of Casa Grande; the Promenade at Casa Grande, which is similar to Desert Ridge (an outdoor shopping center in Scottsdale, Arizona) and contains nearly a million square feet of retail space
  • Selection of restaurants, markets/grocery stores, and retail