Today we’d like to introduce you to Brandon Lee.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Growing up, I always knew I wanted to work in healthcare. I loved the complexity of the human body and how healthcare offers a mix of problem-solving and opportunities to help people. On a fundamental level, healthcare is something we all need and experience at some point in our lives. The question for me was: what did I want to do within healthcare?
I grew up in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, and spent my undergraduate years at the University of Calgary studying microbiology. I think one challenge many students face is the pressure of having to choose a future career before truly knowing what they want to do. Wanting to work in healthcare is one thing; knowing exactly where you fit within healthcare is another. I always planned to use my undergraduate degree as a stepping stone into a graduate program, but I didn’t know optometry would eventually become the path I chose.
My grandfather had glaucoma and lost the majority of his vision later in life. That experience helped spark my interest in eye care. After finishing my undergraduate studies, I worked as an optometric technician at a private practice in Calgary. The optometrists there were incredibly supportive and introduced me to the field in a way that completely opened my eyes to the profession. I decided to pursue optometry and was accepted into the optometry program at Nova Southeastern University in Florida.
After graduating, I practiced in a variety of settings including corporate optometry, ophthalmology, pre- and post-operative care, and private practice. Through those experiences, I developed a passion for managing dry eye disease. I was intrigued by how complex dry eye can be, yet how often it is perceived as a simple problem. So many patients complained of chronic symptoms but never seemed to receive clear answers or long-term solutions. I have always believed in finding the underlying cause of dry eye for my patients. Without that, we end up treating symptoms rather than solving the problem.
One challenge I encountered while working for other clinics was that dry eye management is time-intensive. I could help my patients, but I didn’t always have control over my schedule or access to the treatment options I felt would benefit them most. That realization inspired me to start my own clinic, and eventually Eclipse Eye Care was born.
Eclipse Eye Care is a small business serving the Lewisville community. We are located within Pearle Vision of Lewisville and operate as a sublease-style practice. Pearle Vision leases the space, allowing me to run my own independent clinic while minimizing some of the financial risks associated with opening a stand-alone practice. This model allows us to focus on patient care while building a dry eye clinic the way I believe best serves patients.
When I opened Eclipse Eye Care, I wanted to create a clinic where patients felt heard and never rushed through an appointment. Lewisville has been incredibly supportive of our practice, and one of the most rewarding parts of owning a small business is seeing patients return year after year and refer their friends and family.
While dry eye is one of our specialties, we provide full-scope optometric and medical eye care. The years I spent practicing in different settings provided the foundation needed to build Eclipse Eye Care into the clinic it is today.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The path here has definitely not been smooth, but I wouldn’t say it was overly rocky either. Being born and raised in Canada, it was challenging leaving home to pursue optometry in the United States. Canada only has two optometry schools, with one being primarily French-speaking. There simply aren’t enough schools in Canada to support the number of students interested in the profession.
Although life in Canada and the United States is similar in many ways, there are many overlooked challenges involved in maintaining the ability to study, work, and build a life in another country. Thankfully, everything worked out, but navigating the immigration system was not easy.
I believe each step along the way was necessary and helped shape the optometrist I am today. I don’t think you can reach a high level of competence in patient care without going through challenges and experiences that force you to learn and grow.
Eclipse Eye Care has now been in business for more than three years. The biggest challenge has always been finding ways to improve. How do we improve the patient experience? How do we improve staff morale? How do we become a better employer? Running a successful clinic requires more than being a good optometrist—you also need to be a good leader and create a healthy work environment.
Everything about opening and running a business was new to me, and I’m still learning every day. They didn’t teach me how to open or run a business in school. There were definitely moments where I questioned whether opening a practice was the right decision, especially during the early stages when every patient, every review, and every business decision felt incredibly important.
Even with those challenges, it has been incredibly rewarding to see the difference we can make in our patients’ lives by practicing in a way that aligns with our values.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Eclipse Eye Care?
Eclipse Eye Care is a local, independently owned optometry clinic. We focus exclusively on eye care services and do not sell glasses or contact lenses. Patients receive their prescriptions and are free to use them wherever they choose, whether that’s our neighboring Pearle Vision or another optical.
We manage a wide variety of medical eye conditions including diabetic eye disease, glaucoma, macular degeneration, dry eye disease, pediatric eye care, and much more. Being independently owned allows us to make decisions based solely on what we believe is best for our patients.
While we provide full-scope eye care, dry eye management has become one of our specialties. One of the compliments I hear most often is that patients feel listened to and never rushed during their appointments. We pride ourselves on having a positive atmosphere, strong bedside manner, and a willingness to work through difficult problems alongside our patients.
We enjoy solving problems and taking the time to connect the dots that may have been missed previously. This is especially important in dry eye care, where many factors outside of the eyes themselves can contribute to symptoms. In many cases, eye drops are not the best or only solution.
I believe our ability to explain our thought process and treat patients as whole people—not just their eyes—is what sets us apart. We love hearing patients tell us it was the best eye exam they’ve ever had. Those moments mean a lot to us, and we’re proud that our reviews often reflect that experience.
At Eclipse Eye Care, our goal is simple: we want patients to feel heard. Whether someone comes in for a routine eye exam, a diabetic eye evaluation, or a complex dry eye consultation, we want them to leave feeling like their concerns were taken seriously and that they have a clear plan moving forward.
What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
I think there is still a lack of public awareness regarding eye care in general. When people see well and aren’t experiencing pain or discomfort, eye health often falls lower on the priority list. Many people also aren’t aware of the full scope of care optometrists provide. I do think awareness of eye health will continue to improve over the next decade.
Our lives become more digital every year, and that trend will continue. Digital eye strain, visual fatigue, and dry eye disease are becoming increasingly common and are often overlooked. Many younger individuals have never known a world without smartphones, computers, and tablets. Dry eye is no longer just an age-related condition and is becoming more prevalent even among children.
As society continues to rely more heavily on screens, we will continue to see more eye-related problems. The amount of dry eye disease I see today is significantly higher than when I started practicing nearly a decade ago.
At the same time, diagnostic technology continues to improve. We can identify eye diseases earlier than ever before and monitor them more precisely. Patients will benefit tremendously from these advancements.
Technology will continue to push our profession forward, but it will also create challenges when it comes to separating convenience from quality and accurate information from misinformation. Establishing a relationship with an eye care provider before problems arise is one of the best ways to stay proactive about your eye health.
The eyes are the second most complex organ in the body and provide us with what many people consider their most important sense: sight. Even though we all understand how important vision is, eye exams are often among the lowest healthcare priorities. Most diseases affecting the body can affect the eyes as well, which is why regular eye examinations remain one of the best ways to protect your vision and overall health.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.eclipseeyecare.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eclipseeyecare
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Eclipse-Eye-Care/100089389042241/
- Other: https://share.google/rlRwl9rC9MdapXkyv
