The main difference between ophthalmologists and optometrists, is that an ophthalmologists job is to specialize in eye care and handle the bigger jobs like surgeries and advanced treatment. Ophthalmologists handle specialized eye care and treatment, while optometrists mainly diagnose and treat eye diseases and vision problems. For example, an ophthalmologist will preform surgery on a patients eye, and a optometrist will usually help out with regular check ups and most likely handle prescriptions for the patient post-surgery. I think it is important that they know how to do both, but ophthalmologists should stick to specialized care because they were trained for it.