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Think of a business that you advocate. Perhaps it’s a favorite clothing company, coffee shop, or even the gym you are a member of. Chances are each one has a mission statement that, as Entrepreneur Magazine puts it, “captures, in a few sentences, the essence of [the] business’s goals and the philosophies underlying them.” More simply stated, a mission statement tells you what the company is all about. Should your optometry or ophthalmology practice be any different?

Ed Lui, OD, of Foothill Optometric Group in California, recently shared in “Optometric Minute” that mission statements are “an essential tool for a successful practice to continue to grow.” Based on his personal experience of creating a mission statement for his practice, Dr. Lui says that once a mission statement is in place, it will help “solidify the thought process for decision making” encouraging all employees to “think collectively” about what the practice stands for in relation to its service.

To develop a strong mission statement, Dr. Lui suggests staff members work together to identify key attributes of the practice. In Dr. Lui’s case, the attributes were technology, service, and style. These defining characteristics were then used to compose the following mission statement: “Life Changing Vision Through Innovative Technology, Service and Style.”

Once created, a mission statement can be put into action in several different ways. At Dr. Luis’ practice, the staff members of the Foothill Optometric Group memorized the mission statement in order to keep it at the forefront. And the Foothill Optometric Group uses the mission statement as an “operating principle” to guide decisions such as what instrumentation to purchase in order to better enhance technology that will, in turn, enhance services and patient experience.

Another way Dr. Lui’s group puts its mission statement into action is by incorporating it into the group’s advertising and marketing materials. For instance, each brochure highlights the three defining characteristics of the practice by spotlighting a new instrument, an updated service, and new styles of frames.

We agree with Dr. Lui that technology is an important aspect to include and emphasize in a mission statement for an optometry practice. It allows practices to showcase the devices, such as our optomap technology, used to provide the best possible care for all patients.

Does your practice have a mission statement? If so, how does it show patients what your practice is all about? Share with us in a comment below.