About · Diana Andre · Simi Valley, CA
25 Years Inside Ophthalmology Practices —
Not Outside Looking In
I have been a W-2 employee inside ophthalmology practices since 1998. Every recommendation I make is grounded in what I have personally done in a lane, at a front desk, or in a consultation room — not in a framework from a business school textbook.
How I Got Here
A Career Built Entirely Inside the Exam Room
I took my first ophthalmic role in 1998, before I knew what a practice consultant was. I was hired to work in the practice — learn the equipment, room patients, assist with documentation, handle the front. Over the next several years I worked in multiple Southern California ophthalmology offices and learned that the same problems showed up everywhere: consultations that informed rather than guided, dry eye patients who were told to buy drops at the pharmacy, technicians who were undertrained and overstretched, and front desks that handled prior authorizations reactively instead of systematically.
What changed my direction was working at practices where those problems had been solved. At Dougherty Laser Vision I saw what a premium conversion process looked like when it was built correctly — specific language, a staged consultation flow, a counselor role with accountability. The acceptance rates were not magic; they were the result of a repeatable system. I wanted to understand that system well enough to help build it elsewhere.
I began taking on outside consulting work while remaining in-practice. I still do. I am currently a full-time W-2 employee at Dougherty Laser Vision. That dual role is something I disclose to every prospective client before any engagement begins. It keeps my knowledge current in a field where equipment, reimbursement rules, and patient expectations change every year.
- All experience is ophthalmology-only — no hospital, no general practice, no other specialty
- Premium IOL and LASIK conversion systems built from the inside, not from benchmarks
- Dry eye center buildout and daily operations — from protocol design to staff scripting
- Ophthalmic tech training grounded in how lanes actually run, not how manuals say they should
- HIPAA and prior auth process design from a practice operations perspective
Verifiable Employment History
Where I Have Actually Worked
Every employer below is a real ophthalmology practice I worked in as a W-2 employee. Dates are approximate. Role descriptions reflect what I actually did, not a job title I held on paper.
Dougherty Laser Vision
Westlake Village, CA
Full-scope refractive and cataract practice. Current W-2 employer. Role covers premium IOL consultation support, LASIK counseling workflow, technician training, and prior authorization. The 78–89% premium IOL acceptance rate this practice achieves is the result of a structured, staff-executed consultation process I help maintain and train to.
Conejo-Simi Eye Group
Thousand Oaks / Simi Valley, CA
Multi-physician general ophthalmology group. Handled front-to-back operations across two locations: scheduling, technician workflow, dry eye program buildout, optical coordination, and HIPAA audit preparation. Saw firsthand what a practice looks like when it is growing faster than its operational systems can support.
Advanced Vision Care
Los Angeles, CA
Premium refractive practice with active LASIK and cataract volume. Focused on consultation process and patient education materials. Worked closely with the practice's patient counselor role and helped redesign the consultation flow to reduce same-day no-decisions. Introduced a structured post-consultation follow-up sequence.
Eye Care of Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA
General ophthalmology and oculoplastics. First role where I had significant exposure to prior authorization workflows and the operational cost of handling them reactively. Took on staff training responsibilities and began documenting internal protocols for the first time.
Valley Eye Institute
San Fernando Valley, CA
Cataract and general ophthalmology. Primarily technical and clinical support work. Developed core competency in ophthalmic lane workflow, equipment operation, and patient preparation. This is where I first understood the downstream consequences of an undertrained tech team on physician throughput and patient experience.
Early Ophthalmic Roles (×3)
Southern California
Three sequential positions at smaller general ophthalmology and low-volume refractive practices between 1998 and 2001. These were formative — I learned the basics of every position in the practice and developed an early understanding of how front-desk and clinical-floor decisions interact to produce (or ruin) patient experience.
Education, Fellowships & Certifications
Subspecialty Experience
Where My Experience Is Deep — and Where It Isn't
I work in ophthalmology only. Within that field, my depth varies by subspecialty. I'll tell you straight what I know well and what I don't, because the last thing either of us needs is a consultant who overstates their range.
LASIK / Refractive & Cataract / Premium IOL
This is my primary area. I have worked in high-volume LASIK and premium cataract practices for most of my career. I understand the consultation arc, the fee structure, the counselor role, the patient objections, and what it takes to move acceptance rates. If you have a refractive or premium IOL conversion problem, this is where I can help most directly.
Dry Eye & General Ophthalmology
I have built and helped run dry eye centers within comprehensive ophthalmology practices — protocol design, device training (TearLab, LipiFlow, iLux, M22), patient education flow, and coding basics. General ophthalmology operations are my daily environment. I understand multi-physician scheduling, recall systems, optical coordination, and technician workflow at this level.
Glaucoma & Oculoplastics
I have worked alongside glaucoma and oculoplastics physicians at multi-specialty practices. My exposure is operational — scheduling, patient flow, prior auth, technician prep — not clinical or coding-deep. I can help with the operational layer of these subspecialties, not the clinical subspecialty itself. I have no meaningful experience in retina or pediatric ophthalmology and will say so if asked.
My Approach
How I Actually Work
No discovery frameworks. No 90-day transformation guarantees. Here is what an engagement with me actually looks like.
Step 1 · A Real Conversation First
Before I propose anything, I want to understand what is actually happening in your practice. Not a questionnaire — a conversation. I'll ask about your patient volume, your team structure, what's breaking, and what you've already tried. If what you're describing isn't something I can materially help with, I'll tell you in that call.
Step 2 · Defined Scope, No Vague Retainers
If we decide to work together, I propose a specific scope — a defined problem, defined deliverables, defined timeline. I do not do open-ended retainers where you pay monthly and I show up periodically. Every engagement has a clear objective and a point at which it ends.
Step 3 · I Work With Your Team, Not Around Them
The protocols I help build only work if the people executing them understand why they work. I spend time with your staff — not lecturing, but working through the specific scenarios they encounter. A script that gets handed to a front desk employee and never discussed is not a script; it's a document no one reads.
Step 4 · Written Deliverables You Can Keep
Everything I build for you is documented — consultation frameworks, prior auth checklists, dry eye intake protocols, technician training guides. When the engagement ends, you own everything. Nothing is locked inside a proprietary system that stops working when you stop paying me.
Honest Feedback, Even When Unwelcome
If your conversion problem is actually a physician communication problem, I will tell you that. If the bottleneck is a single long-tenured employee who controls the schedule and no one has addressed, I will name it. Practices hire consultants partly to hear things the internal team won't say out loud. I will say them.
Current Employment Disclosure
I am currently a full-time employee at Dougherty Laser Vision. I take outside engagements that do not conflict with that employment. I do not consult for direct competitors of Dougherty without disclosure. If your practice is in a situation where that creates a conflict, I will tell you before any work begins, not after.
Current Employment Disclosure
Diana Andre is currently a full-time W-2 employee at Dougherty Laser Vision, Westlake Village, CA. Outside consulting engagements are taken on a limited basis and do not overlap with her employer's patient base or competitive interests. Every prospective client is informed of this arrangement before any engagement begins. There is no consulting shell company. There is no team. It is one person, currently employed inside a practice, who consults on the side.
Common Questions
What People Actually Ask
Are you currently employed somewhere else?
Yes. I am a full-time W-2 employee at Dougherty Laser Vision in Westlake Village, CA. I take a limited number of outside consulting engagements that do not conflict with that employment. I disclose this to every prospective client before any work begins — not buried in a contract, but in the first conversation. If that creates a conflict for your situation, I will tell you.
What practices have you actually worked in?
Eight ophthalmology practices since 1998, all in Southern California. The ones I name publicly are Dougherty Laser Vision (current), Conejo-Simi Eye Group, and Advanced Vision Care. The earlier ones were smaller general ophthalmology and refractive practices in the San Fernando Valley and greater Los Angeles area. I have not worked in hospitals, ASCs in a management capacity, optometry chains, or any non-ophthalmology healthcare setting.
What do you actually help with — specifically?
Four things, done well: (1) Premium IOL and LASIK conversion — building or repairing the consultation process so that acceptance rates reflect the quality of the procedure, not the weakness of the pitch. (2) Dry eye center buildout and operations — from device selection and protocol design through staff training and patient flow. (3) Ophthalmic technician training — lane workflow, patient prep, documentation habits, and the handoff to the physician. (4) HIPAA compliance reviews and prior authorization process redesign — specifically from a practice operations and staff workflow perspective, not a legal one.
What results can I realistically expect?
I can quote you real numbers from my W-2 history — for example, the 78–89% premium IOL acceptance rate at Dougherty Laser Vision is a real figure from a real practice I work in today. But that number reflects a specific physician, a specific team, a specific patient population, and a consultation process that took time to build. Your practice will produce different numbers. I do not guarantee specific conversion rates or revenue increases. I guarantee that what I deliver will be specific, documented, and usable — not a PowerPoint you never look at again.
How is an engagement structured?
A free 30-minute call first. I listen, ask questions, and tell you honestly whether what you are describing is something I can help with. If it is, I propose a specific scope of work with defined deliverables and a clear endpoint — not an open retainer. If it is not my wheelhouse, I say so in that call and do not take the work.
Do you work remotely or on-site?
Both, depending on what the work requires. On-site availability is limited to Ventura County, Los Angeles County, and adjacent areas — I am based in Simi Valley and currently employed full-time, so extended travel is not practical. Document work, protocol drafting, consultation review, and training via Zoom are available to practices anywhere in the US. Most engagements involve a combination of both.
Are you a solo operator or do you have a team?
Solo. There is no consulting firm, no subcontractors, no junior associates who do the actual work after you sign. When you hire me, you get me. That limits the scale of what I can take on, which is why I keep the engagement list short. It also means that the person who did the work at Dougherty and Conejo-Simi is the same person who shows up at your practice.
If What You Read Here Sounds Like What You Need
Let's have a 30-minute call. No pitch. I'll ask about your practice, you can ask about my experience, and we'll both know quickly whether there's a fit. No commitment. Diana Andre · Simi Valley, CA · (917) 837-8545