So today, in Puerto Vallarta, he went in for an eye exam and new glasses. We called on Monday and made an appointment over the phone. That went very smoothly.
This morning we showed up to the Costco Optical center about 10 minutes early, and they got Steve right in. The office was very clean and nice. The doctor spoke some English, but not a lot, so we were hoping it wouldn't be an issue.
Steve went back with her, and was impressed by the equipment in the exam room. All was fully computerized with old school stuff as a back-up. It was the most modern equipment Steve has ever seen. Given that Steve is pretty tall the doctor had to adjust the equipment significantly. She asked him if it was OK and Steve thinks he must have responded that it was in her mind so they began the exam. As the exam continued it became apparent that the machine was a little too high, so Steve couldn't really get his head properly placed in the equipment. He tried to tell the doctor that it needed to be adjusted. She didn't really understand him, so he kept trying to tell her in different ways but since the equipment was so computerized she was a few feet away and couldn't see it wasn't properly aligned. Anyway, to make a long story short, she continued with the eye exam, and told Steve that his eyes had changed a lot. He said that he disagreed. He then gave her his recent prescription from his previous exam. She also put his current glasses under a tool she had that showed it was very different from what she was showing.
With this additional information she started the exam again from the beginning. This time she got the machine positioned correctly so that Steve could actually see into it and the exam went very well. He ended up with a very slight change in his vision, which is what he was expecting as he still sees very well out of existing glasses. When she got his new prescription figured out, she put him in some lenses to walk around in for a few minutes to make sure that they were right for him. This is something that he has never had done before and thought it was great.
As a part of the exam they looked into Steve's eyes with a magnifying tool. She studies each eye very carefully. She spent much longer on each eye than Steve had ever had done in any of his previous exams so Steve said he was getting a little worried. She then announce that both eyes looked really healthy and good!
While Steve was in having his eye exam, I was sitting in the waiting room, which gave me the opportunity to review the credentials of all the doctors that worked at Costco optical. There were four doctors in all. Two men, both which graduated in January of 2018. One from the University of Mexico, the other from Agua Caliente University. The two women graduated in 2006 and 2009, both from the University of Mexico. Steve had the doctor that had graduated in 2009. It was reassuring to see their certificates on the wall.
Steve liked the lenses he had been walking around in, so the next step was to go out and pick out his new frames. He wanted two frames, one for regular glasses and one for sunglasses.
Another appointment started with a different patient and different doctor in the exam room once we left.
Steve's same doctor continued to work with us as Steve picked out his new frames.
While we were waiting for Steve, I asked her if she could tighten my glasses for me because they constantly slip down my face. She said "Of course", and took my sun glasses. She tightened up all the screws and then heated the frames and bent them. She had me try them on and I asked if she could do just a little more, so she did. They are perfect now and stay in place.
Once Steve decided on his new frames, she worked up the cost with the frames and lenses for him and he was happy with the price, but when she started putting it into the computer, the numbers started getting really weird. They were higher than he thought they should be. But then she said that since he bought two pairs of glasses in one day that there was a 600 peso discount plus some other related discounts, and then since he was using his Costco visa, there would not be the usual 2.3% credit card fee, which is usually charged for using a credit card. A supervisor had to come to the optical department to approve the discounts and override the transaction. It is a bit different to have the doctor so involved in the entire process. Like so many things we learn as we travel we aren't sure if this is good or bad it is just different!
By the end of the calculations, it all worked out great, and the price was good, but it was quite an experience getting to the right price. Once all was said and done, Steve got an eye exam and two new pairs of glasses, the frames were Oakley and Jaguar (same ones that Costco sells in the US we think), polarized sun glasses and lenses with all the protective coating for about $350.
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