Cheree A. Wilhelmsen, O.D. – Bakersfield, CA

Cheree A. Wilhelmsen, O.D. joined Southwest Eye Care and Laser in Bakersfield, CA in 1998. Dr. Wilhelmsen appreciates the multi-faceted nature of working at a comprehensive practice.

DR. CHEREE WILHELMSEN: My name is Cheree Wilhelmsen and I’m an optometrist here at Southwest Eye Care. I’ve been here since 1998 and I graduated in 1994 from UC Berkeley School of Optometry. I did my undergraduate training at the University of Oregon in Eugene and before I came here, I practiced in Visalia for three years in another ophthalmology optometry practice. The reason I like working in this practice is it is multi-faceted. I do primary care optometry, which is routine exams for kids, for adults, I see patients pre and postoperatively, so that’s LASIK patients, cataract patients, patients that have low vision, contact lens patients. So it kind of covers all aspects of optometry, instead of just focusing on one area and that’s what I enjoy in the most, so each day is a little bit different then the other. So I work two days a week with Dr. Stainer and that’s when we primarily work with the cataract and LASIK patients. I like that a lot because we’re really busy and we go, go, go. That’s when you get to see the most interesting things and you learn a lot on those days, but also you get to treat all kinds of different diseases, as well as see the refractive patients. Those are the patients that are here for happy reasons and they are the ones that leave with a big smile on their face. The other three days of the week, then I primarily work by myself with other staff members helping me, like, with contact lenses and that type of thing.