The History of Our Well-Established Optometry Clinic
History of the Eye Clinic of Vero & Optical Boutique
Eye Clinic of Vero was formally the practice of Dr. Edward Rusnak who established business in 1964. He maintained a thriving practice up until the year 2002 when Dr. Joyce Desrosiers took over and re-established it as Eye Clinic of Vero & Optical Boutique. Originally the business was located between the two plazas. In 2004, the clinic moved to the front of the Miracle Mile Plaza and brought in exclusive lines of frames that many people were then traveling to obtain. The practice became the first exclusive high-end optical boutique in Vero Beach.
When the Eye Clinic of Vero & Optical Boutique outgrew its location again it moved right next door to greatly expand for patient and customer comfort. The move of the clinic established its atmosphere to resemble the French Quarters in New Orleans. Not only did it allow room for more eyewear, but it created a whole new shopping experience for its clientele. This has brought together fine eyewear and great service in an exclusively unique atmosphere.
A Note From the Doctor
In the summer of 2012, the Eye Clinic of Vero was transformed and expanded. Many patients
have asked me about the story of how this happened, so I decided to write you this letter.
After over ten years in business, I needed to
expand desperately for the sake of my patients. We needed more elbow room and space for inventory and patient privacy but wanted to stay within Miracle Mile Plaza. There was only this one spot available in the size I needed and it was right next door to where I was. I had said to my husband, who is a General Contractor and the one who built my office, “the only thing I didn’t like about it was that it was so long and narrow, I felt like I was looking down a darn street.” He was sitting in his recliner at home listening to me and about a minute later just blurted out “Bourbon Street!” I turned around and said, “What about it, are we going?” He immediately got up and started sketching his ideas. He said “let’s make the spot work for us. Let’s make it Bourbon Street.” I loved his ideas as he was drawing and said “Let’s do it!” We signed the lease and the building started.
He did such a great job. When you’re in the optical showroom, you’re shopping in the French Quarters of New Orleans. You’ll see wrought iron balconies with “faux” appointments above. You’ll see lamp posts down the cobblestone street. The measuring tables are vending carts in the street and the repair station for the opticians is a telephone booth.
When you check in for your appointment, you’re checking into the hotel off Bourbon Street. The moment you open the French door to go in for an exam, you’re stepping into a luxurious hotel corridor or hallway. Then the technology begins.
In the pretesting room, you’ll be examined by the latest in refractive technology which links directly to the exam rooms. The phoropters used to examine your eyes for glasses are digital and give us the capability of producing glasses to the 100th of a diopter instead of quarter diopters as in the past. You can see into the back of your own eye with photo and video captures. Hard-to-fit contact lens wearers can also benefit by the digital auto refractor that will refract over a fitting lens then transmit the data directly to the lab to custom make a contact lens. If in the past a person was told there is no way contact lenses can be fit, now it may be possible.
In the pretesting room, you’ll be examined by the latest in refractive technology which links directly to the exam rooms. The phoropters used to examine your eyes for glasses are digital and give us the capability of producing glasses to the 100th of a diopter instead of quarter diopters as in the past. You can see into the back of your own eye with photo and video captures. Hard-to-fit contact lens wearers can also benefit by the digital auto refractor that will refract over a fitting lens then transmit the data directly to the lab to custom make a contact lens. If in the past a person was told there is no way contact lenses can be fit, now it may be possible.
What this means to you is that technologically you’ll be receiving the most accurate refraction for glasses and then be able to walk out and enjoy shopping for eyewear within a fun relaxed atmosphere. This dream I’ve had for a long time has now become a reality that I can share with my patients.
Sincerely,
Dr. Joyce Desrosiers
Following her Father's Footsteps
This is the "faux" optometry office off Bourbon Street in the Optical Boutique. When Dr. Desrosiers's father died, she hung his sign above the door of the "faux optometry office" in his honor. The placard seen beside the door explains that the sign hanging above the door is the same sign that hung in her father's office window for 42 years and will continue to hang at her office in his honor.
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