DIVA
On and Off the Mommy Track
Think it's impossible to combine career and family successfully? Take a look at how these women have done it.
By Carol Schwartz, O.D., F.A.A.O., Vista, Calif.

What happens to a woman's career in optometry when she starts a family? What adjustments can she make to combine childcare with practice? And when the kids go off to school, how can she make up for lost time?

Here are some insights from the women on our panel who've been there.

Creative solutions

Next to starting a practice or retiring, the biggest transitions in a female optometrist's career are likely to revolve around her children. Whether she chooses to slow down, take a few years off or continue practicing full-time, her life changes forever. Unfortunately, misconceptions about combining family and career still exist even among women.

"As a student, I was interviewed by a woman who told me if I wanted kids I should start having them right away because once my career took off, I wouldn't have the time," says Louise Sclafani of the University of Chicago Department of Ophthalmology.

Was this wise counsel? Definitely not, says Sandra Block, a faculty member at Illinois College of Optometry (ICO). "We have to let younger women know that they can practice optometry and have a family," she says. "Seeing me balance my kids and my teaching career shows my students that they have choices. They can do both."

Here's how some of Dr. Block's colleagues and former students are meeting the challenge:

• In one practice, several women O.D.s incorporated a daycare center so they could be close to their children.
• Another practical mom/O.D. hired a receptionist who was willing to help care for the O.D.'s child as part of the job.
• A husband and wife who practice together agreed that when one of the children was ill, the parent with the lightest patient load would stay home while the other handled the office.

Over the years, female O.D.s have had to do some consciousness-raising in the workplace, but their efforts have paid off. "At ICO, I was the first woman faculty member to start a family," says Janice M. Scharre, dean of ICO. The men weren't used to dealing with a pregnant faculty member. They really didn't know how to treat me."

Times have changed, though. Now the college offers a 4-day workweek to male and female faculty members, many of whom choose this option to allow for additional family time.

One slice at a time

Balancing family and career requires making choices and setting priorities. Some women take a short maternity leave and then return to practice full-time. Others scale back to part-time for a few years. Still others take a year or two off to be full-time moms.

"We think we can have it all at the same time, but we can't," says Dr. Scharre. "The best analogy is with cake. You can eat only one slice at a time, but eventually you'll have eaten the whole cake. In other words, enjoy what's happening at the moment."

Such wisdom is often difficult to remember day-to-day. "Working with people who aren't on the Mommy Track, I always feel like I'm a little behind," says Dr. Block. "It's frustrating, but you have to keep plugging away. Eventually, you'll catch up."

Letting go of guilt

No discussion of the Mommy Track is complete without the "G" word: guilt. Trying to balance family and career can be very draining, especially when you want to give 110% to everything.

"For the longest time, I carried tremendous guilt," says Ingryd Lorenzana, private practitioner and faculty member at ICO. "Guilt when I dropped my kids off at school because I'm not a full-time mom. Guilt at work because I can't devote extra hours to my practice. And guilt when I got home because I'm not a full-time homemaker."

But these overwhelming feelings of guilt are counterproductive. "One day I just sat myself down and said, 'Enough! I'm only one person, and I can't do it all.'" Letting go of this negative emotion may be one of the best things a working mom can do for herself.

Successful re-entry

Many women fear that if they take time off or slow down for family, they'll never regain the momentum of their career. This isn't an unrealistic fear, but re-entry can be done successfully. In fact, this may be the perfect time to start a practice. If rent is reasonable, a woman can return to practice several days a week, essentially growing her practice while raising her children.

And who's to say two moms can't share space or rent, practicing on alternate days while keeping overhead low. "Mommy Trackers have to consider banding together to fashion a new model for private practice," says Julie B. Ryan, private practitioner and faculty member at Southern California College of Optometry. "Practicing with two or three women in the same office is one way to balance family, career and financial needs."

On the other hand, employed Mommy Trackers often are afraid to take a hiatus. They fear that employers or future partners will favor a new graduate over an optometrist who's been out of school and out of practice for a time.

Says Loretta Szczotka, "We need to create a way for women to leave and re-enter practice more easily and without penalty."

This is when you should focus on everything you have to offer, says Shelley Cutler, private practitioner and consulting staff at Pennsylvania College of Optometry. "There's an advantage to having been away from practice for a while," she says. "You have a lot of wisdom, and you can look at the profession differently than when you first graduated."

Dr. Cutler made this transition several years ago, and she offers this advice. A woman who knows she'll be returning to practice should make a conscious effort to keep her name in the public eye, perhaps with an occasional article or lecture. "Don't completely disappear like I did," says Dr. Cutler. "And make sure to see patients every so often to keep your clinical skills sharp."

No wrong choices

The decision to have either a family or a career may not have to be, says Dr. Cutler. "A wise woman, my mother, once told me that if you're at a fork in the road and don't know which way to go, make a choice and go there. If it's the wrong road, you can always turn around."

Dr. Lorenzana agrees. "There's really no wrong choice," she says. "Each is rewarding in a different way."

Women in optometry are in constant transition, on or off the Mommy Track, single or married, scaling up or down. "The nice thing is the variety," says Dr. Lorenzana. "You're going through constant transition, but you'll never be bored."