Member Benefits

Once you sign on as an AAO member, you will receive a Benefits Guide. In the meantime, here is an overview of some of the benefits.

  • A voice in legislative affairs: The AAO is your voice during negotiations with all levels of government regarding fees, billing practices and procedures.  We monitor provincial legislation, attend workshops, and ensure that optometry’s needs and concerns are considered by government. 
  • Find an Optometrist: The population of Alberta continues to grow and that means more people need optometric services.  You will be included in the Find an Optometrist feature on the AAO website, which helps people easily locate a doctor of optometry.
  • Recommended schedule of professional fees: The AAO prepares a guide recommending fees for all services performed for optometric patients, which is made available to you and third party vision care administrators.
  • Patient information materials and aids: Brochures, posters, stickers and even colouring books are produced by the AAO and made available to members. Some promotional materials are made available for purchase, and some are distributed free of charge. 
  • Public promotional campaigns, materials and equipment loans: Each year the AAO creates a robust media and advertising campaign to drive awareness regarding the benefits of regular visits to a doctor of optometry.  There are also display booth backdrops and stand-up retractable banners for members to use when promoting their own clinics at events. 
  • Member discounts: Practice discounts have been arranged with companies to help ease operational costs for your optometric practice, and personal discounts have been arranged at various companies and offer a variety of goods and services.
  • Online CE, AAO Annual Conference, CE Events: These offer a wide variety of continuing education opportunities, with CE credits. The networking at events with fellow AAO members is an added bonus to the annual offerings.
  • Monthly newsletters: The AAO makes every effort to keep members up-to-date on issues impacting the profession, what the AAO is working on to benefit members, and what is new in the industry. 
  • AAO vision care programs are available to members only.  This includes two popular programs: Eye See . . . Eye Learn™ and Eyesafe™.  Both programs are only available to members and create an opportunity to grow your practice.
  • Online resources: There are a number of resources at your fingertips: the drug app; presentations; primary care referrals; OD to OD referrals; patient triage guides – to name a few.
  • Membership with the Canadian Association of Optometrists: This is only open to members of a provincial association.