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Date: 4/25/2023
PALMER — Quabbin Valley Eye Care has a long history, and a new owner and new home are continuing the more than 70-year-old practice that has called Palmer home since it began.
Now located at 1448 Main St., the practice is in a newly renovated space that clients describe as welcoming and friendly, with lots of easy parking. The facility is also completely Americans with Disabilities Act compliant.
The practice opened with a ribbon cutting on April 10, attended by state Sen. Jake Oliveira (D-Ludlow) and state Rep. Todd Smola (R-Warren), who joined owner and dispensing optician Rebecca Maurer, Quaboag Hills Chamber of Commerce President Andrew Surprise, members of the chamber’s board, and the office’s staff to celebrate the new location.
Maurer said she has been in the field for 22 years, and has worked all around the local area as well as having experience with many different types and sizes of practice. Maurer said she has worked in large and small practices, offices with one doctor and offices with many doctors, and brings a lot of expertise and experience to her own practice.
Maurer said she always wanted her own practice, and ultimately made the decision to go for it during the coronavirus pandemic while looking at her options for the future. At that time, Maurer said her husband asked her, “Wherever you go, you make it more profitable, make the patients happier, organize the practice, so why aren’t you doing this for yourself?”
At that point, Maurer “took some time to reach out to the local optometrists, a lot of local ones are ready to retire soon. I reached out to Dr. Wolf and started talking with him, at that point he had already sold the building on Thorndike Street, so I sat down with him and said ‘I would like to keep it local, would you be interested in starting a practice with me?’”
Dr. Gary Wolf is working as an independent optometrist at the practice, and has been practicing in town for 42 years. He brought with him many of his staff and his office manager, which Maurer said has helped ease the transition for patients to the new spot.
Maurer’s business philosophy centers on positive patient experiences and offering patient focused care. Maurer said, “Patient care is really important — it’s the backbone of what this practice is. It’s the most important thing to me and my staff, making sure the time the patient needs is afforded to them, everyone should feel they are being served adequately.”
At this time, the practice has one optometrist, but Maurer said there is a new optometrist coming in a few months, which she said is exciting because it is hard to find an optometrist to work with now, and many of the established practices locally are seeing a high rate of optometrist retirement. Maurer said there are not enough optometrists to replace them, and with student debt, many younger optometrists are finding it too expensive to purchase and take over existing practices.
Maurer said she would eventually like to add another full-time provider. The practice also has an optical shop, and Maurer said they are able to cut lenses in-house for a much faster turnaround time for clients. “We work with some really great labs, we’re keeping things local, with labs in Pittsfield and Hartford.” The practice will soon begin accepting MassHealth as well, Maurer said.
“We’re just happy to still be here. I always say, ‘See a need, fill a need,’ and that’s what we’ve done here, and kept this local practice going. It’s exciting to see the staff being excited about having a new space,it’s exciting to see patients response to seeing the practice,” Maurer said.
“I love this field. I love working with patients, love bringing the gift of sight back to people — seeing the look on their face when they can actually see again brings me such joy,” Maurer said.
To learn more or book an appointment, contact Quabbin Valley Eye Care at 413-283-2946 or admin@quabbinvalleyeyecare.com. Follow the practice on Facebook and Instagram for updates and news as they grow and progress.