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NEWS SPECTRUM

AAOF ANNOUNCES THE 2019 AWARD OF EXCELLENCE IN CONTACT LENS PATIENT CARE RECIPIENTS

The American Academy of Optometry Foundation (AAOF) announced the 2019 Johnson & Johnson Vision Award of Excellence in Contact Lens Patient Care recipients. This award recognizes outstanding fourth-year student clinicians who have demonstrated skillful knowledge of the contact lens field. Each winner will receive a $500 educational award and a personalized plaque commemorating their accomplishment.

This year’s recipients and institutions attended include Mariana Ferraz, Illinois College of Optometry; Mackenzie Speers, Indiana University, School of Optometry; Kevin Hoang, Inter American University of Puerto Rico, School of Optometry; Stephanie Gee, Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, School of Optometry; Kristina Aikens, Michigan College of Optometry at Ferris State University; Christina Wenn, Midwestern University Arizona, College of Optometry; Kendra Phillis, New England College of Optometry; Kelsey Buford, Northeastern State University Oklahoma, College of Optometry; Karla Delgado, Nova Southeastern University, College of Optometry; Ryan Rutschilling, The Ohio State University, College of Optometry; Mari J. Fujimoto, Pacific University, College of Optometry; Nathan Housley, Pennsylvania College of Optometry at Salus University; Brandin Gwinner, Southern California College of Optometry at Marshall B. Ketchum University; Abagail Kirk, Southern College of Optometry; Nicole Poon, State University of New York, College of Optometry; Courtney Sartin, University of Alabama at Birmingham, School of Optometry; Valerie A. Lim, University of California Berkeley, School of Optometry; Theresa Hoang, University of Houston, College of Optometry; Jacquelyn M. Tyra, University of Missouri St. Louis, College of Optometry; Mikhail Lifshits, University of Montreal, School of Optometry; Christina Sally Abuata, University of the Incarnate Word, Rosenberg School of Optometry; Kirsten Carter, University of Waterloo, School of Optometry and Vision Science; and Kimber M. Kenzli, Western University of Health Sciences, College of Optometry. ■

IACLE TO UPDATE ITS FLAGSHIP COURSE WITH ICLC 2020

The International Association of Contact Lens Educators (IACLE) has announced that it will introduce rolling updates to its flagship educational resource, the New IACLE Contact Lens Course (ICLC), starting in 2020. Available online exclusively to IACLE members, the course will be revised and updated at regular intervals by leading authorities in contact lenses, according to the organization. Editors will now review each lecture two years after its completion.

In April, the New ICLC reached a major milestone with the completion of the final lecture, Dry Eye & Contact Lenses, authored by Professor James Wolffsohn of Aston University in the United Kingdom, to reflect the 2017 TFOS DEWS II Report. Work is now under way to translate the current course into key languages. ■

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GMAC PROVIDES PROGRESS UPDATE

The Global Myopia Awareness Coalition (GMAC), which was formed in January 2019 and operates as an advisory board under the World Council of Optometry, already has 11 corporations committed to its efforts. These include Alcon, CooperVision, Essilor, Euclid Systems Corporation, Hoya, Johnson & Johnson, Menicon, Nevakar, Oculus, SightGlass Vision, and Visioneering Technologies.

Message development is under way, including preliminary conversations with communications and creative partners to help shape the narrative. GMAC also has initiated dialog with other industry organizations to better align, complement, and coordinate ongoing efforts. ■

VISIONEERING TECHNOLOGIES, INC. CREATES EDUCATIONAL SERIES

Visioneering Technologies, Inc. has created a new educational series for eyecare practitioners featuring some of the world’s leading researchers and clinicians.

The first installment of the video series highlights the following speakers and topics: Prof. Earl Smith – Impact of Eye Growth, Disease States; Dr. Nicola Anstice – Contact Lenses and Safety with Children; Prof. Padmaja Sankaridurg – Future Prevalence and Implications of Myopia; Dr. Kate Gifford – Helping Parents Manage Childhood Myopia; and Dr. Sally Dillehay – Disease States and Impact of Genetics. The educational series is free and can be accessed at https://vtivision.uk/practitioners/educational-video-series/ .

Future video installments will include more on managing children and presbyopic adults in practice and will feature Prof. Lyndon Jones, Dr. Tom Arnold, Dr. Jeff Cooper, Dr. Brett O’Connor, and Dr. Tom Aller, among others. ■

BHVI REFRESHES GLOBAL MYOPIA CENTRE

Brien Holden Vision Institute (BHVI) announced that its resource platform, Global Myopia Centre, has been refreshed with several new features, a new look, and user-friendly navigation. The website offers a single sign-on feature for users, which allows them to create their own unique Global Myopia Centre account. According to the company, this provides seamless access to a number of online tools designed specifically to help practitioners who are making the transition to managing myopia—including BHVI’s Myopia Guidelines and Myopia Calculator—as well as “member-only” educational resources and infographics. Also new to the site are feature editorials and academic blogs authored by leading experts in myopia management as well as by emerging researchers at BHVI. The new platform will also host the Myopia Education Program. ■

COOPERVISION, LIFETIME TV NETWORK PARTNER TO EDUCATE PATIENTS

To inform the general public about the growing prevalence of digital eye fatigue, the importance of oxygen to eye health, and the advanced contact lens technologies available to help, CooperVision, Inc. partnered with Lifetime’s “The Balancing Act” to produce an educational segment that aired during the show on May 27. The segment featured interviews with Erin Case, OD, and two patients, each with different eyecare needs.

“The Balancing Act” episode featuring contact lenses will air an additional 500 times in National Broadcast Syndication, will appear in approximately 500,000 hotel rooms nationwide, and will be available online at TheBalancingAct.com . In addition, CooperVision has planned a digital advertising campaign featuring the segment, which will run through August. ■

NECO INAUGURATES NEW PRESIDENT

The New England College of Optometry (NECO) inaugurated Dr. Howard B. Purcell as president. Dr. Purcell is the 13th president in the college’s 125-year history. He is a graduate of the program, continuing the legacy of his father, Saul Purcell, OD ’54.

In outlining his strategic priorities for the college, Dr. Purcell said that he plans to diversify revenue; nurture diversity, equity, and inclusion; expand continuing education and specialized degree programs; collaborate with industry; and find ways to best support and prepare NECO’s students for whatever changes may arise. ■

ABB OPTICAL GROUP ANNOUNCES SIXTH ANNUAL ABB CARES PROGRAM

Starting Aug. 1, ABB Optical Group will be accepting applications for the Sixth Annual ABB Cares, its community grants program. Since its inception, ABB Cares has awarded more than $65,000 in grants. This year, ABB Optical Group will award one ABB Cares Platinum Grant of $5,000, two Gold Grants of $2,500 each, and four Silver Grants of $1,000 to charities nominated by professionals in the eyecare industry, including optometrists, opticians, and office staff. Organizations do not need to focus on eye health to qualify for a grant. For more information or to submit an application, visit ABBOptical.com/ABBCares . ■

B+L TO HOST MULTI-CITY WORKSHOP

As part of its CLEAR (Customized Lens Education and Resources) initiative, Bausch + Lomb (B+L) announced that its Specialty Vision Products business will host a multi-city workshop to offer eyecare professionals hands-on training to support their patients who have challenging visual conditions using the Zenlens family of scleral lenses. During the workshops, attendees will learn about the features and benefits of the company’s Zenlens scleral lenses, including SmartCurve technology, Zenlens Multifocal lenses, and the Tangible Hydra-PEG (Tangible Science) coating, and will also be able to gain first-hand experience with the lenses.

The workshops will take place in select cities. Several workshops were held in June. The remaining workshops include:

  • Tuesday, July 16, 2019 – West Conshohocken, PA, hosted by Shelley Cutler, OD
  • Wednesday, July 17, 2019 – Pearl River, NY, hosted by Shelley Cutler, OD
  • Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2019 – Schaumburg, IL, hosted by Jason Jedlicka, OD
  • Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2019 – Oakbrook, IL, hosted by Tiffany M. Andrzejewski, OD
  • Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2019 – Tarrytown, NY, hosted by Susan Resnick, OD

For more information and to register for a workshop, visit www.aldenoptical.com/events . ■

GSLS 2020 SPOTLIGHT: PRECONFERENCE SESSIONS

Attendees of the Global Specialty Lens Symposium program will have the opportunity to mix-and-match among five preconference tracks that will each be comprised of four one-hour CE sessions on Thursday, Jan. 23, 2020 from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. The preconference tracks include GPLI (co-hosted by the Gas Permeable Lens Institute), Myopia (co-hosted by Contact Lens Spectrum), Practice Management (co-hosted by Optometric Management), Irregular Cornea, and Scleral Lenses (co-hosted by the Scleral Lens Education Society). For more information about speakers for these and all of the education sessions at GSLS 2020, visit www.gslsymposium.com . ■

ESSILOR OFFERS FREE WEBINARS

Essilor Custom Contact Lens Specialists is offering four webinars as part of its “Focus on Education” series. Each class will be hosted by Howard Purcell, OD, president and CEO of the New England College of Optometry. Webinar dates of the two remaining workshops, as well as their topics and presenters, are as follows:

  • Sept. 10 at 9:00 p.m. EST: “Success with GP Multifocals,” Brooke Messer, OD
  • Oct. 1 at 9:00 p.m. EST: “Optimizing Your Scleral Lens Fitting,” Clark Chang, OD

For more information or to register, visit https://essilorcontacts.com/content.aspx?category=webinars . ■

INTERNATIONAL PRESCRIBING DATA REQUESTED

In May, 1,000 U.S.-based Contact Lens Spectrum (CLS) readers were sent the annual International Survey of Contact Lens Prescribing. Please check your mailboxes and inboxes to see whether you were one of the lucky few chosen to participate in this important research. Data collected from U.S. prescribers, as well as data collected from more than 30 other global contact lens markets, are tabulated and analyzed by Eurolens Research to create a snapshot of current international contact lens prescribing trends. Your participation in this survey is vital to create an accurate picture of current U.S. prescribing trends. If you received the survey but do not fit contact lenses, please pass it on to a colleague who does. Survey forms must be returned by Aug. 15, 2019. Results will publish in the January 2020 CLS article “International Contact Lens Prescribing in 2019.” ■

20/20NOW LAUNCHES NEW WEBSITE

20/20Now launched its new website at www.for2020now.com , which is designed to provide information and education about the emergence of ocular telehealth and how it benefits consumers and eyecare providers. The website features a financial calculator (designed to calculate the potential incremental revenue and profit that can be achieved by adding ocular telehealth into your operations) and health case studies (which provide real-world examples). ■

INDUSTRY BRIEFS

  • No7 has extended its partnership with CooperVision’s specialty eye care division to launch specialty contact lenses in the United Kingdom. The extension will see the continuation of contact lenses such as EyeDream for orthokeratology from Procornea and the addition of Onefit mini scleral contact lenses from Blanchard.
  • ABB Optical Group appointed Tom Calhoun as senior vice president of operations. According to the company, Mr. Calhoun will be responsible for streamlining ABB Optical Group’s business operations for enhanced efficiency and productivity along with aligning all aspects of the company’s operations to deliver best-in-class service to its customers. He comes to ABB Optical Group with nearly 30 years of experience in the healthcare industry.
    In unrelated news, ABB Optical Group also announced that its informatics service, Glimpse Live, has released a smartphone app for eyecare practitioners (ECPs) to track the data and metrics that matter most to their practice. Available as a native iOS and Android app, Glimpse Mobile features an easy-to-navigate interface with state-of-the-art data encryption, allowing Glimpse customers to access their custom analytics reports anytime from anywhere, safely and securely, according to the company.
  • To explain the simplified diagnostic fitting process of the Ampleye scleral lens, Art Optical has produced a seven-minute animated instructional video. The video explains the benefits of the incorporated 150-micron toric haptic on Ampleye trial lenses as well as the consistent limbal lift (LLZ) and scleral landing (SLZ) zones. These diagnostic lens features result in the application of just one diagnostic lens for accurate on-eye assessment, which reduces chair time, minimizes patient stress, and leads to more accurate initial Rx lens orders, according to the company. In addition to defining the diagnostic set and walking practitioners through the diagnostic assessment steps, the video also explains Ampleye lens construction, adjustments, and lens customization options.
  • Healthy Eyes Advantage, Inc. (HEA) has appointed James Kirchner, OD, to the newly-created position of executive consultant for State and Professional Relations. In this capacity, Dr. Kirchner will serve as the primary practitioner liaison between HEA and professional associations. Dr. Kirchner joins HEA team members Lorie Lippiatt, OD, executive vice president of Professional Strategies, and Laura Dorris, senior director of Community Relations. Dr. Kirchner practiced independent optometry for more than 30 years in Lincoln, NE and is a past-president of the Nebraska Optometric Association and the North Central States Optometric Council. Additionally, he served on the Nebraska Board of Optometry, which he chaired for four years. He has spent the last nine years on the business side of the optical industry, most recently as president and CEO of SynergEyes, Inc.
  • Visioneering Technologies Inc. (VTI), has announced that Mat Hamilton has joined VTI as the executive territory manager to serve eyecare professionals (ECPs) in the Boston Metro Area. In this role, he will support the growth of VTI in this market. Most recently, he was a senior territory sales manager for Alcon for the Boston market.
  • Wöhlk Contactlinsen GmbH has formed a capital alliance with Japanese contact lens manufacturer, SEED Co. Ltd., which acquired a 40% stake in Wöhlk. According to Wöhlk, this international collaboration strengthens its position in the international market and, at the same time, expands its portfolio; while Wöhlk is an expert in individual contact lenses, SEED Contact Lens focuses on the production of daily disposable and two-week lenses.
  • Johnson & Johnson has announced that its Acuvue Oasys with Light Intelligent Technology contact lenses are available now in the United Kingdom. According to the company, the photochromic contact lenses will adapt to changing light conditions both indoors and outdoors, help eyes recover from bright light up to five seconds faster than normal, and reduce halos and starbursts around bright lights at night.
  • EyePoint Pharmaceuticals appointed Scott Jones as chief commercial officer and Said Saim, PhD, as chief technology officer. Mr. Jones will be responsible for the commercialization of Dexycu (dexamethasone intraocular suspension) 9% for the treatment of postoperative inflammation following cataract surgery and of Yutiq (fluocinolone acetonide intravitreal implant) 0.18mg for the treatment of chronic noninfectious uveitis affecting the posterior segment of the eye. Most recently, he was chief commercial officer and vice president, Business Development at Notal Vision. Dr. Saim will be responsible for advancing EyePoint’s pipeline products and technology for ocular treatments from formulation, preclinical research, up to clinical development as well as pharmaceutical sciences, manufacturing, and operations. Most recently, he was vice president, Pharmaceutical Development at Collegium Pharmaceutical.