Ophthalmologists, Except Pediatric
Diagnose and perform surgery to treat and help prevent disorders and diseases of the eye. May also provide vision services for treatment including glasses and contacts.
8,950 people do this job in the US. $300,080 a year.
of the working time. Estimate.
- 58%
- 4%
- 38%
Measured, from Anthropic's usage data (2025). Counts help on part of a task.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 4.4 h long four times in five.
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this job's working time was within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 4%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 32%. Today's estimate: 34%.
A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.
The tasks
Sorted by . 18 tasks from .
| Task | Kind | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Develop or implement plans and procedures for ophthalmologic services.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 31% | 3.3 h50 min to 1.7 work days | 21%Half by May 2027 | |
| Perform comprehensive examinations of the visual system to determine the nature or extent of ocular disorders.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 10% | 25 min17 min to 50 min | Stays with people | |
| Develop treatment plans based on patients' histories and goals, the nature and severity of disorders, and treatment risks and benefits.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 7% | 21 min13 min to 38 min | 100%Half by now | |
| Diagnose or treat injuries, disorders, or diseases of the eye and eye structures including the cornea, sclera, conjunctiva, or eyelids.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 7% | 21 min13 min to 50 min | Stays with people | |
| Perform ophthalmic surgeries such as cataract, glaucoma, refractive, corneal, vitro-retinal, eye muscle, or oculoplastic surgeries.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 6% | 1.7 h38 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Document or evaluate patients' medical histories.Done hourly or more by most who do it. AI observed on this task. | 5% | 13 min4 min to 25 min | 100%Half by now | |
| Prescribe ophthalmologic treatments or therapies such as chemotherapy, cryotherapy, or low vision therapy.Done several times a day by most who do it. | 5% | 33 min13 min to 50 min | 100%Half by now | |
| Perform, order, or interpret the results of diagnostic or clinical tests.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 5% | 17 min8 min to 33 min | Stays with people | |
| Provide or direct the provision of postoperative care.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 4% | 17 min8 min to 38 min | Stays with people | |
| Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams of health professionals to provide optimal patient care.Done daily by most who do it. | 4% | 38 min13 min to 1.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Provide ophthalmic consultation to other medical professionals.Done several times a day by most who do it. | 4% | 25 min13 min to 50 min | 100%Half by now | |
| Perform laser surgeries to alter, remove, reshape, or replace ocular tissue.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 3% | 50 min25 min to 1.7 h | Stays with people |
Within reach, per task: the share of the task's time whose instances are short enough for a model to finish at the chosen date, pace and reliability. Half by: the date half of that time comes within reach.
Jobs that share skills with this one
From O*NET's related occupations. Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five.
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025).
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).