Shelby Brogdon, OD, graduated from the University of the Incarnate Word Rosenberg School of Optometry in San Antonio, Texas this past May. A native of Benton, Ark., she moved back home after graduation and now practices at Simmons Eye Care and Teague Eye and Vision Clinic in Little Rock. Though she is just starting out as an optometrist, (she has a bachelor’s from Arkansas State University), she has cultivated her Instagram page, Eye Brog Doc, for about a year now and it’s sure to keep growing as she moves forward as an optometrist.

During her last semester in college, Brogdon decided to be more active on Eye Brog Doc, an Instagram page that she created over a year ago, but had never updated. “Eye Brog Doc is a play on my last name, Brogdon. My husband’s friends call him ‘Brogdog’ and we thought it would be funny for me to be ‘Brogdoc,’” she told VMail Weekend. “The concept was just to share my love of my profession and engage others who are also passionate about eyecare and health care. I also wanted to show my journey as a new OD and provide education for my patients and others who follow me.”

Eye Brog Doc consists of feel-good content—from varying eye-related trinkets she finds on the internet or throwback posts from when she was in optometry school—that’s aimed at fellow eyecare and health professionals as well as her patients, family and friends. “Most of my content is based on what is going on in my life or in our practices. I try to sit down once a month and brainstorm ideas on content,” she stated. “I am a little obsessed with Pinterest these days but use it more when I am working on our office’s social media page more than my own. I typically find inspiration from other Instagram pages or things going on in clinic.”

Because she is a practitioner, the biggest challenge for Brogdon has been finding the time to create quality content. She makes an effort to update the page at least once or twice a week and though she’s only been practicing for a few months, she adds patient education posts when she can. “I like putting thought and purpose behind each post and only posting quality photos,” she said. “I sometimes get a little OCD about my Instagram grid matching up perfectly, but I try not to get too hung up on it.”

Though it’s not always easy to carve out time for Eye Brog Doc, her hard work has already started paying off . With just over 1,000 followers, Brogdon finds that making new connections is the most rewarding aspect of Eye Brog Doc and she hopes to continue doing so. “I hope to connect with people who are looking into optometry, in optometry school, fellow ODs, and other health care professionals. I hope people understand my passion for this profession and learn a little something along the way,” she stated.

As she gains more experience as an optometrist, she hopes the page continues to grow with her as well. “I hope to start incorporating more vision therapy info, interesting cases/notes, and my social media tips/tricks for eyecare providers. I have recently started working on a blog to help share these things more easily.”