NEWS spectrum
CooperVision Launches S&T Awards Program
CooperVision has implemented a new Science and Technology (S&T) Awards Program. The program’s goal is to spur collaboration between recipients in academia and research institutes with CooperVision scientists. The S&T awards program specifically addresses ocular surface health and anterior segment symptomology through technological advances in materials, devices, compounds, or entirely new areas of investigation.
The S&T program consists of two awards: The CooperVision Seedling Award and the CooperVision Translational Award. Early career and established faculty members in areas outside contact lens research are strongly encouraged to apply to either of these categories.
The Seedling Award aims to promote collaboration with CooperVision in a new research area for one year, enabling investigators to develop preliminary data that could be used toward a future Translational Award. The award is a one-year, one-time award amounting to $100,000, including indirect costs.
The CooperVision Translational Award is a multi-year award intended to encourage collaboration between basic scientists, engineers, and clinicians to achieve high-quality cutting-edge translational research. The grant provides funding for up to two years, totaling $400,000 including indirect costs, with a $250,000 maximum for any given year. A CooperVision Translational Research Award may be considered for renewal.
Information about the application process and submission material can be found at http://coopervision.com/our-company/science-and-technology-awards.
PBA to Hold National Eye Health Summit
Prevent Blindness America (PBA) will host the second annual Focus on Eye Health National Summit on June 18, 2013 from 8:00 am to 3:00 pm at the Washington Marriott and Metro Center.
The Summit will include a variety of public health presentations. Scheduled presentation topics include Economic Impact of Vision Problems; Vision Surveillance in the United States; Community Implementation of NEI Audacious Goals; Health Care Reform and Vision Benefits for Children; Women’s Eye Health; Low Vision; Current and Future Trends in Health Care and its Impact on Vision and Eye Health; and A Systems Approach for Vision Health.
Attendees include patient advocates, community-based organizations, national vision and eye health organizations, government agencies, and policy makers.
Registration is free, but seating is limited. For more information or to register, please visit www.preventblindness.org/eyesummit.
John Davis Joins Alden Optical
Alden Optical, a manufacturer of custom soft and GP lenses, recently announced that John Davis has joined the company as a senior product specialist. Mr. Davis has achieved both FCLSA and NCLE Advanced Accreditation status.
He joins the company’s consultation team to ensure outstanding support for the growing demand for Alden Optical products, including NovaKone and Astera Multifocal Toric. In addition, Mr. Davis will be collaborating on the development of key new specialty lens designs.
A trained optician, Mr. Davis brings 30 years of experience to his new position. For the past seven years, he led the consultation team at SynergEyes, Inc. He previously was general manager of Herslof Contact Lens Service, a GP lens lab in Milwaukee, Wisc., where he also directed the contact lens program at the Medical College of Wisconsin.
| For the Record |
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| In the May article titled “Troubleshooting Scleral Lenses,” by Jeffrey Sonsino, OD, FAAO, & Muriel Schornack, OD, FAAO, Table 1 listed the Dk of Contamac’s Optimum Comfort as 100 and its wetting angle as 3 degrees. According to Contamac’s website, these are the values for the Optimum Extra material. Optimum Comfort has a Dk of 65 and a wetting angle of 6 degrees. |
| B+L Appoints VP, Global Development Operations |
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Bausch + Lomb announced that Colonel Donald Gagliano, MD, has joined the company as vice president of Global Development Operations. He will lead the scientific review of global business development opportunities and strategic initiatives for the company’s pharmaceuticals business, as well as support special projects in its surgical business. A retinal ophthalmologist and a Fellow of the American College of Health Care Executives, Colonel Gagliano has a long and distinguished career in the military, having served as executive director, Department of Defense/Department of Veteran Affairs Vision Center of Excellence (VCE) since 2008. In prior appointments he’s held an extraordinary array of leadership posts encompassing clinical investigation, regulatory oversight, and collaborative research and development. Colonel Gagliano also commanded the 30th Medical Brigade in Iraq from February 2003 to February 2004. Under his command the Brigade was awarded the Meritorious Unit Citation for exemplary performance. |
ODLean Program Expands With Seminars, E-Learning
New offerings from The Vision Care Institute’s ODLean Consulting Program are designed to help practitioners manage patient flow, increase productivity, improve the patient experience, and boost profits.
“Operating a Lean Practice” is a one-day seminar for practitioners and staff covering three areas: patient scheduling, clinical balance, and effective communication. Attendees will learn how to create a customized patient schedule, how to structure their clinical workload to ensure that doctors and technicians are in-sync, and communication techniques for effective patient hand-off from technician to practitioner and from practitioner to optician. The seminar will be conducted in multiple locations across the United States at a fee of $350 per attendee.
ODLean Consulting is also launching a series of e-learning modules based on more than 300 ODLean consulting engagements across the United States and Canada. The modules will be available through www.ODLean.com starting in mid-to-late 2013. The first module, called “What is ‘Lean’?” addresses the “Lean” business philosophy of making multistep improvements to drive meaningful change across every aspect of a practice. Future module topics include scheduling, clinical balance, communications, and change management, among others. The modules range in duration from five to 20 minutes and will follow a Learn, See, and Do approach in which ODLean will discuss the topic, demonstrate what it looks like in practice, and then provide several action items viewers can immediately implement.
The new ODLean iPad application, “ODLean Patient Experience,” is a diagnostic tool that allows practices to track patient flow, see in real-time where there are bottlenecks, and immediately make changes that will improve flow and efficiency. The application will send data to a web portal on www.ODLean.com where subscribers can access their metrics. This web portal will also be available mid-to-late 2013. “ODLean Patient Experience” is available in the iTunes Store.
| EyeXam Sponsors to Support Practitioner MVPs |
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| ■ EyeXam, a consumer mobile eyecare application from Global EyeVentures, LLC, now has sponsors who will “mobil-eyez” selected eyecare practices by supporting the development of their Mobile Virtual Profile (MVP), thus highlighting these practices to current and future patients via the mobile space, social media, and other channels. Sponsors to date include Eyefinity, Vision Source, Menicon America, SynergEyes, Focus Laboratories, Inc., and QSpex. MVPs allow practices to enter the mobile space, have a presence on different social media channels (i.e. Facebook, Yelp, etc.) and stay connected with patients anytime, anywhere. Practices can customize their MVP to include any information they wish to share or simply display their Facebook page so patients can “like” their posts, view their photos, and “check-in” while at their office. EyeXam is now available on Apple iOS (iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch) and Android devices. |
| INDUSTRY BRIEFS |
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■ Alcon is planning the launch of its new contact lens, Dailies Total1, at the American Optometric Association’s 116th Annual Congress, June 26 to 30 in San Diego. Recently launched in the UK and other parts of Europe, Dailies Total1 are the first and only water gradient contact lenses featuring an increase from 33 percent to more than 80 percent water content from core to surface, with a surface water content that’s nearly the same as the cornea, according to the company. ■ Bausch + Lomb has received FDA approval for the Trulign Toric posterior chamber intraocular lens (IOL). It is the first toric IOL that corrects for astigmatism. The lens is intended for primary implantation in the eye’s capsular bag for the visual correction of aphakia as well as postoperative refractive astigmatism secondary to removal of a cataractous lens in adult patients with or without presbyopia. ■ Haag-Streit USA and Optovue have joined forces to bundle Haag-Streit’s Octopus perimeter with Optovue’s optical coherence tomography (OCT) technology. The combined Octopus/OCT offering will be distributed by Optovue in the United States. Optovue will be responsible for sales, installation, and training of Octopus in the United States, and Haag-Streit will be responsible for ongoing clinical support and technical service. ■ Bausch + Lomb (B+L) began distributing several lines of PhysIOL’s hydrophilic acrylic intraocular lenses (IOLs) in select markets across Asia, Europe, and the Middle East in May. As per the terms of the agreement, B+L will distribute PhysIOL’s FineVision trifocal and FineVision trifocal toric hydrophilic, UV and blue-blocking, aspheric IOLs, and, when available, the Ankoris toric lenses on an exclusive or co-exclusive basis depending on the market. Additionally, B+L will distribute PhysIOL’s Micro line of hydrophilic preloaded, UV and blue-blocking, aspheric monofocal IOLs in limited markets. B+L also recently launched in Europe the Incise microincision intraocular lens (IOL), an acrylic IOL which, in combination with the capabilities of the Stellaris Vision Enhancement System allows surgeons to perform microincision cataract surgery less than 2mm, according to the company. ■ To educate the public on cataract, Prevent Blindness America (PBA) has declared June as Cataract Awareness Month. PBA provides free information through its web page at preventblindness.org/cataract, or via phone at (800) 331-2020. For those interested in conducting discussions or seminars on the subject, PBA offers a free online module on cataract including a PowerPoint presentation with a complete guide as part of its Healthy Eyes Educational Series at www.preventblindness.org/healthyeyes-education-series. ■ Optometry Giving Sight (OGS) has recognized its top donors for 2012. The newly formed Chairman’s Circle, which recognizes excellence in personal and practice contributions, inducted its first members: Fig Garden Optometry, CA (Dr. Jeffrey Krohn); Vision Source Family Eye Center, TX (Dr. Moes Nasser); Isthmus Eye Care, WI (Drs. Connors, Connors, Jens, & Maursetter); Chapel Hills Vision and Monument Vision, CO (Drs. Puckett & Hendrick); and Carolina Family Eye Care, NC (Drs. Lupinski & Khoshnevis). OGS also recognized Dr. Dennis Kuwabara, Eye Care Associates of Hawaii as Philanthropist of the Year; Isthmus Eye Care, WI as Practice of the Year; and Springfield Vision Clinic, MO for World Sight Day Challenge Outstanding Contribution. |
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