NEWS

Optometrist expands practice into new facility

Matthew Kent
Reporter

CHILLICOTHE – Dr. Patricia Haller spent the last 17 years in downtown Chillicothe helping patients with their eye care needs. Now, she is excited about what the future holds for her new office on Executive Center Drive.

Haller, whose optometry practice recently moved from 59 W. Main St. to 64 Executive Center Drive, had started planning for a new facility a decade ago when she bought the land in hopes she would someday be able to expand. That vision ultimately became a reality for Haller, who really started the planning process about a year and a half ago on the new 3,840-square-foot facility and designed the structure herself.

So far, the feedback about the new building that opened Feb. 16 has been positive, she said, with more parking, larger hallways designed to be wheelchair accessible and 13 rooms dedicated to patient care. A contact lens training room and another for dispensing glasses are among the highlights of the new facility, in addition to a spacious waiting room area.

“Our patients are loving it so far,” Haller said.

The building also is equipped with new digital technology in exam rooms that wasn’t used at the former downtown location. For example, patients are able to see the differences in vision on a monitor if they were to develop diabetic retinopathy, the most common diabetic eye disease that is also a leading cause of blindness in adults, according to the National Eye Institute.

Haller’s employees also have enjoyed the new atmosphere, noting the changes make for an improved work environment.

“They are ecstatic,” she said. “The other space was small enough where their desks were back to back. The fact they can do what they need to do in a more comfortable environment keeps everybody more positive.”

Haller is already looking ahead and anticipates additional doctors will be needed over the next few years, resulting in more jobs with the practice.

“With each additional doctor, we’ll probably add two or three staff members per doctor,” Haller said.