I think they have doctoral degrees, yes, like dentists do in the US.
Fun fact - most doctors in the UK do not have any kind of doctoral degree! Just bachelors degrees (they're sort of treated like masters degrees though.)
Ophthalmologists are doctors. Optometrists [people who give eye examinations] are almost never doctors.
(edited in response to comments - seems, once again, that things are different in the US; so i'll clarify, they are almost never Doctors in AUS/UK/NZ)
Medical doctors in the UK and other commonwealth countries have traditionally been MBBS.
In Australia, the adoption of the Australian Qualifications Framework and pressure from the US, where people seem to expect 'MD's has lead to most universities shifting to MD programs from MBBS (an AQF level 7 -> AQF level 9).
The bottom line on this is substantively nothing, except a bit less ink being used on business cards, millions of dollars spent on website rebranding by medical schools and endless posturing by faculty for students.
So basically, whether you are a 'Doctor' by post-nominals or a 'Doctor' by recognition of your MBBS, your education has been effectively the same, and the distinction is actually meaningless.
It's been my understanding since I started getting glasses in the 8th grade in the in the United States that Optometrists have an OD (a non-medical doctorate), Ophthalmologists have an MD from a medical school (with the full rights thereof, such as prescribing medicine), and Opticians are the technicians who fit and order your prescription.
That same Optometrist who taught me that also taught me about diopters (the inverse of the focal length in meters squared) and optics of my negative prescription.
In the United States, an "ophthalmologist" has an M.D.
An "optometrist" has a Doctorate in Optometry, which is several years of post-college education and internship. They can write some prescriptions, too, and diagnose, etc.
An "optician" is a person certified to give eye exams. They do not have a graduate degree.
Ophthalmologists are medical doctors, but also have post-graduate training in Ophthalmology.
In Australia this is a closed shop, in that the College of Ophthalmology has a very entrance hard exam and effectively regulates the number of new Fellows to maintain scarcity/standards.
I wonder if there been a study on if there is any difference in outcomes. Japan also has a lower barrier to entry to be a doctor than the USA. Medical care is much less expensive but I run into plenty of quack doctors that would not qualify as doctors in the USA
We have quack “doctors” that don’t qualify as doctors in the US, too. They’ve just managed to convince several state legislatures to allow them to practice medicine and call themselves doctors or physicians anyway.
Some of them are even allowed to prescribe medicine and perform surgical procedures. And just about all of this “naturopathic medicine” is entirely without evidence.
Right, they have a "doctoral" degree, which is a bit bizarre (compared to the BOptom or similar undergrad degree that you'd do in the Commonwealth).
But what I'm more interested in - is it common to _call_ an optometrist a doctor in the US? As opposed to an opthalmologist? Or is this just a weirdness in this article?
>But what I'm more interested in - is it common to _call_ an optometrist a doctor in the US? As opposed to an opthalmologist? Or is this just a weirdness in this article?
People, at least here in Indy, don't (generally) say "I'm going to the optometrist" we say "I'm going to the eye doctor" because they are doctors (they've obtained a Doctor of Optometry degree).
Interesting! Whereas here (Australia), at least in my region/social class/etc if I heard someone say "the eye doctor" I'd assume they're going to an ophthalmologist for surgery. Optometrists are their own category of healthcare worker.
Another English dialectical difference I wasn't aware of.
In general, people don't typically distinguish between MDs/optometrists/podiatrists (in some contexts)/etc. in the US in casual conversation. (A dentist they'll call a dentist.)
Fun fact - most doctors in the UK do not have any kind of doctoral degree! Just bachelors degrees (they're sort of treated like masters degrees though.)