By Alexander Germanis
Central Illinois can be an inhospitable place for one’s eyes. Pollen wafts through the air from spring to fall. Dust clouds rise from the landscape as farmers plow and harvest. And the prevalent prairie winds bring any and every irritant produced in other corners of the world to our doorstep.
Eye health, therefore, is and should be of major concern to anyone calling this part of the country home.
It is, fortunately, the major concern for the doctors and staff of VisionPoint Eye Center in Bloomington. Recently celebrating their fifth anniversary on August 6th, they are looking forward to serving the eye health of Bloomington-Normal for another five years and beyond.
20/20 Hindsight
Any milestone is marked by looking back and celebrating what steps have gotten one to that milestone in the first place. For the doctors and staff at VisionPoint, their five-year anniversary is no exception.
In 2019, VisionPoint was formed through a merger of four dedicated eyecare establishments in the area: Central Illinois Eyecare, Eyecare Associates, Eye Surgical Associates, and McLean County Eye Center. Their goal was to join their collective expertise and specialized services into one home for eye care. The result was a central location where their patients could come to receive the best in vision and specialized medical eye care using the most state-of-the-art technology.
Immediately after the merger, VisionPoint launched an urgent eye care clinic for emergencies and since has added a dry eye clinic and a corneal cross-linking procedure for keratoconus patients. Keratoconus is a weakening in the eye which leads to a conically shaped cornea and, consequently, distorted vision. With the cross-linking procedure, the bonds in the collagen fibers in the eye are “cross-linked,” or strengthened, preventing keratoconus from progressing.
New technologies were also implemented in the last five years, such as the Light Adjustable Lens to help post-surgery cataract patients see clearly again and the Optos wide angle camera to allow a better view of the retina during examination.
Focus on the Here and Now
Technological advances are wonderful, but just as with real estate, the location of where those advances are accessible is just as important. “We are proud to offer our patients the best treatment options and care possible, right here at home,” says VisionPoint Executive Director Danielle Sieben. “For example, prior to us offering cornea cross-linking surgery, patients were traveling to Chicago for treatment, and we are the first practice in the Central Illinois area to offer patients needing cataract surgery the Light Adjustable Lens option. Cataract patients now have the most options available to them here at VisionPoint.”
“We were one of the first practices in Illinois to offer laser assisted cataract surgery for patients looking for refractive cataract surgery,” adds managing partner and ophthalmologist, Dr. Scott Pinter. “The LAL is the next step in refractive cataract surgery. Because each patient has a unique anatomy and heals in variable way the effective power of the implant will vary. The ability to light adjust the power of the lens implant after the patient is healed from the surgery is amazing and really puts the patient in charge of their visual outcome.”
Treatment options are not the only ones available at VisionPoint. The already diverse gallery of doctors is being joined by two new additions. Optometrist Dr. Bradley Grant joined the practice in August, and in November, VisionPoint’s Dr. Pathak will be able to start calling his wife his colleague as well. Ophthalmologists Dr. Nenita Maganti and Dr. Pathak, who have just welcomed their first child into the world, will be making VisionPoint their professional home for many years to come.
Look to the Future
A growing number of practicing doctors and a growing patient base means VisionPoint will need to grow as well in the days ahead. “In the last two years, we have built two new exam rooms by reducing our storage area,” Danielle says. “We have plans for future expansion options, including adding more clinical and administrative spaces. Additionally, we own the land adjacent to our facility and are considering options to build a surgery center there.”
The next move of expansion beyond that is to bring VisionPoint’s service to neighboring communities. As several of their patients are coming from Decatur and Pontiac, the plan is to expand surgical services to those areas in 2025.
Starting in the fall of 2024, VisionPoint will add two new locations to better serve their widespread patient base. “We are excited to announce both Mid-State Eye locations in Clinton and Decatur will become divisions of VisionPoint,” Danielle declares. “We have enjoyed a strong partnership with them over the years, and this alignment will provide patients with a seamless transition of care for specialized health services. We’re enthusiastic about our growth opportunities, which will enable us to meet our patients’ needs and the increasing demand for healthcare.”
The Magic Number
When it comes to better serving the needs of their patients both now and in the future, and both in Bloomington and elsewhere, the doctors and staff of VisionPoint exhibit their dedication with the number three.
“We consider three tentpoles essential to our success,” outlines VisionPoint managing partner and optometrist Dr. David K. Landess. “First, a strong, single-minded leadership with the focused purpose of creating a patient experience that is unmatched. Second, we pride ourselves in accomplishing this patient experience not with a shiny facility, but in the relationships created between our patients and staff within our facility. Our staff are the single most important asset VisionPoint has to create an unmatched experience. Our staff are motivated, trained, seasoned, and engaging.”
Dr. Landess’ words are backed up by the five-star online reviews citing the staff as the most important aspect of patients’ experiences at VisionPoint.
But lastly, the cutting-edge facility, Dr. Landess says, is what allows the five-star rated staff to engage with their patients and provides the necessary environment for quality care. “Our building was never about the building itself,” he insists, “but a tangible representation of the quality of care provided at VisionPoint.”
Three shows up again in VisionPoint’s emblem as well. Three interconnecting circles represent VisionPoint’s interconnecting values: medical excellence, patient-centered care, and interdependence as a team. These circles also symbolize the merging of the three vision sciences: ophthalmology, optometry, and opticianry. The shape that emerges from these three circles is, of course, their focal point: the human eye, as seen in their logo.
With the Past and Future in Mind
When the merger took place five years ago, the name VisionPoint was chosen because of how it represented the values upon which they were based. With “Vision” being a literal description of their purpose, it also acts as a symbol of their forward-thinking attitude – how they will always look to the future. The “Point” indicates not only a primary location to receive eye care, but it is also a reminder of where they came from – that they are a collection of hard-working eye care professionals who came together to form a single home for eye care.
In those five years, VisionPoint Eye Center has grown in numerous ways. With a larger staff, they have been able to better accommodate their growing patient base. But the number of people walking through the door are only a part of how they will continue to be a top-tier eyecare destination in Central Illinois. A focus on why eyecare is important and how they can better help all those who come to them is how they continue to grow in knowledge, ability, and service.
Without forgetting where they came from or the hard work it took to get where they are, VisionPoint Eye Center will always keep looking forward.
VisionPoint Eye Center is located at 1107 Airport Road in Bloomington, Illinois. If you are having difficulty seeing or are just in need of a check-up, please call us at (309) 662-7700. For more information on how we can help you see clearly, visit us on the web at www.visionpointeye.com.
