VISION RESEARCH GETS $230 MILLION BOOST IN 2009

First, let me encourage you to pay your 2010 dues if you have not done so yet! By paying your dues today, you’ll help us save some trees and put your dues dollars to work on worthy projects instead of printing and mailing paper statements.

Next, let me tell you about some exciting news about funding being directed towards vision research! The National Alliance for Eye and Vision Research (NAEVR) is a non-profit advocacy organization comprised of a coalition of 55 professional, consumer and industry organizations involved in eye and vision research. NAEVR's goal is to achieve the best eye and vision care for all Americans through advocacy and public education for eye and vision research sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Eye Institute (NEI) and other federal research entities.

NAEVR was formed in 1997 as an affiliated organization of the Alliance for Eye and Vision Research (AEVR) to carry out advocacy activities of the coalition. The organization has had a presence at our annual meeting for many years. Many of you have stopped by their “Contact Congress” booth and have had the opportunity to speak with NAEVR’s Executive Director, James (Jim) Jorkasky. Jim has played an integral part in helping optometry obtain funding for many worthwhile research initiatives at nearly every school or college of optometry in the country.

Jim has reported recently released NIH data. Between the regular/ARRA (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act) NEI funding and Department of Defense (DOD) extramural research awards, vision research funding has increased by an unprecedented $230 million! Just from NEI-ARRA funding alone, optometric researchers received $5.4 million of the $142 million awarded to date, or about 4 percent, which is consistent with that received in regular appropriations. Jim anticipates those numbers will continue to increase. The attached chart shows the $5+ million in funding for optometry research.

In 2009, NAEVR coordinated both House and Senate resolutions that acknowledged the 40th anniversary of the NEI and designated 2010-2020 as the decade of vision. Jim says, “With the start of 2010 and this bolus of increased funding, we are on the threshold of an exciting decade of research to prevent blindness and restore vision.”

While NAEVR considers itself a “friend of NEI,” I hope you recognize James Jorkasky and NAEVR as a “friend of the Academy and the profession” and as our advocate for vision research funding. If you would like more information about NAEVR, please visit their website. Please stop by the NAEVR booth to contact your congressman later this year when we all meet again in San Francisco; your voice could greatly benefit the field of optometry!

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SECTIONS AND SIGS

The Academy has a rich history and many proud traditions. In 1940, sixty doctors were the pioneers taking the exam for Fellowship designation. The 1940s also witnessed the birth of our Sections. This marked the beginning of interest in and concern about proof of competence in specialty areas, and led to the development of “Diplomate” programs.

We have often stated that the Academy Sections offer a “home” for Fellows to expand their expertise in specialty areas, to facilitate information sharing for the benefit of the Academy and profession, to promote camaraderie, to encourage leadership, and to recognize those with significant accomplishments in their specialty. With the recent upswing of interest groups in the ophthalmic industry in areas that include glaucoma, dry eye, nutrition, and retina, among others, the time is right for a structure that allows these interest groups to form Special Interest Groups (SIG) within the American Academy of Optometry.

Over the past several years, the Board of Directors and a hard-working Presidential Advisory Task Force did a careful review of the Academy Sections. Included in the evaluation was a Section self-assessment with the following components examined: Section Bylaws, Diplomate programs, symposium development and coordination, leadership, and benefit to AAO membership. The Board has decided that there should be requirements for Sections to remain viable, and for SIGs to be created; this will be discussed further in detail at the business meeting.

Your Board welcomes you to attend the business meeting on Friday, November 13th at 6:00 PM in Grand Ballroom 8A where we will make this recommendation to the Academy membership and present a necessary Bylaws amendment. Our goal is to incorporate Special Interest Groups (SIGs) into our organizational structure. You will receive a detailed presentation of this proposal, and have an opportunity to ask questions and participate in further discussion prior to the vote on the issue.

Won’t you please join us?

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MAINTENANCE OF FELLOWSHIP

For several years the Academy Board of Directors has discussed the issue of Maintenance of Fellowship. Our discussions began after our Ontario, Canada optometrists received notice from their licensure board that they would no longer be allowed to use the designation “FAAO.” While the Academy was persuasive in its argument to the Ontario College of Optometry (equivalent to our state board) and the ruling was suspended, it was made clear to us that the College’s concern was that fellowship was granted for a lifetime without any mechanism for renewal throughout an optometrist’s career. While they realized that becoming a Fellow involved extraordinary efforts and peer review, they were not convinced that this merited special recognition if there were no requirements to periodically certify that an individual was still worthy of holding the designation of FAAO. With so much attention in the past two years in the United States devoted to the issue of maintenance of competence, Maintenance of Fellowship has taken on new importance for your Board of Directors. Since all of our Diplomate programs require periodic renewal, it is the Board of Directors’ belief that requiring the same for Fellowship is reasonable and will add even more credibility to the designation of FAAO both within and outside of the profession. Board members Brett Bence and Bernie Dolan have spent many hours along with the Academy’s Presidential Advisory Task Force examining this issue and developing a point-system model for achieving Maintenance of Fellowship. It is the intention of the Board that this will be voluntary for all Fellows who earned their FAAO designation prior to 2010 and will become mandatory for all those earning Fellowship in 2010 and after. Please watch for details of this program, and I would encourage you to attend the business meeting of the Academy when we meet next month in Orlando, where this issue will be on the agenda. The necessary bylaws amendment will be discussed. This will be a good opportunity to express your opinion as you will have ample opportunity to learn the details of the program.[To Top]  

TODAY'S RESEARCH, TOMORROW'S PRACTICE®: LONG-TERM DEPRIVATION AND PERCEPTION

We all spend our days trying to improve our patients’ vision. So imagine offering one of those patients restored vision after he had spent nearly a lifetime without sight. And imagine that he hesitates before saying yes! Mike May was such a patient. Mike is a phenomenal individual and one of the key speakers at this year’s Plenary Session at Academy 2009 Orlando, November 11-14, 2009. Mike was blinded at age three when a chemical explosion destroyed his left eye and badly scarred the cornea of his right eye. Despite the handicap resulting from the accident, Mike went on to achieve extraordinary feats. He could ride a bicycle through his neighborhood as if he were sighted, he holds the world downhill speed skiing record for blind individuals, and he created a mobility device for the blind using GPS. These are but a few of his many accomplishments. Corneal grafts had been tried on three occasions, but sadly none took. After resigning himself to the fact that he would always be blind, new technology held the key to restore his sight. That technology was a corneal stem cell transplant. Mike was comfortable with his life. He was a role model for everyone. Wouldn’t it be great, though, if he could see the faces of his wife and children? Wouldn’t you want that opportunity if you were in his position? Why then, would Mike even hesitate? To learn the answer, you need to attend this year’s Plenary Session! If you can’t wait that long, then first read his life’s story in the book entitled Crashing Through by Robert Kurson. Please join us for an experience I don’t think you will forget. Some of you who provide low vision services to your patients may already know that Mike is a gifted speaker. It will be wonderful to have him tell his story and for us to learn about the science of what the implications are after so many years of sight deprivation. We will have the opportunity to hear Ione Fine, PhD, an Assistant Professor of Psychology at the University of Washington, who conducted extensive psychophysical testing on Mike after his surgery to explain why that process is so difficult. I look forward to what Mike May and Dr. Ione Fine have prepared for us, and I want to remind you that like all the programs at the Academy meeting, you will earn CE and, in this case, enjoy a great lunch. Why would you want to miss this event? Be sure to check the box for Plenary Lunch when registering! Mark Eger, OD, FAAO President [To Top]

AWARD WINNERS AT ACADEMY 2009 ORLANDO

When our Academy was formed over eighty years ago, it was to give our profession a scientific base. The Academy has been very successful in providing a forum for research in the optometry and vision science field. Today, optometrists and vision scientists are recognized throughout the world as preeminent authorities in our given disciplines. There can be no better way for an organization to honor their members who have helped advance its knowledge base than to publicly acknowledge individual contributions. Fortunately for the Academy, there are numerous individuals nominated every year who are most worthy of such recognition. It is the Academy’s Awards Committee that is charged with the arduous task of selecting the recipients for very deserving recognition. Chris Johnson, Chair, and his colleagues on the Academy Awards Committee have again brought us a slate of outstanding individuals who will receive the affirmation of their colleagues as representatives of the best-of-the-best. While it is an honor for each awardee to be recognized in this way, it is our honor as members to have them represent us! Let us demonstrate our appreciation by attending the program where they will be recognized. For those who have not experienced the Award’s program before, there are unique lectures presented by the Prentice Medal and Fry Award recipients that are always educational and thought provoking, and, yes, you will receive one CE credit for attending the two-hour Awards program. Please join me in Orlando on Friday, November 13th from 8-10 AM to help me extend our congratulations to all of this year’s worthy award recipients. They are as follows: The Charles F. Prentice Medal: Jacob Sivak, LScO, MS, PhD, OD, Doctorat HC, FRSC, FAAO Glenn A. Fry Lecture Award: Austin Roorda, PhD Irvin M. and Beatrice Borish Award: Kelly K. Nichols, OD, MPH, PhD, FAAO, Diplomate, Public Health Essilor Award for Outstanding International Contributions to Optometry: Gullapalli N. Rao, MD William Feinbloom Award: Eli Peli, MSc, OD, FAAO Carel C. Koch Memorial Medal Award: James Saviola, OD, FAAO Eminent Service Award: Joan Exford, OD, FAAO and Donald R. Korb, OD, FAAO Honorary Fellowship Award: Philip R. Keefer Garland W. Clay Award: Konrad Pesudovs, BSc Optom, PhD, DipAdvClinOptom, FCLSA, FAAO, FVCO, Esti Garamendi, MSc, David B. Elliott, PhD, MCOptom, FAAO The Michael G. Harris Family Award for Excellence in Optometric Education: Gunilla Haegerström-Portnoy, OD, PhD, FAAO Section on Cornea, Contact Lenses and Refractive Technologies Awards The Max Schapero Memorial Lecture Award – Karla Zadnik, OD, PhD, FAAO Founder’s Award – John DeCarle Please visit the Awards webpage to find out more about these awards. [To Top]

COME TO THE PRESS CONFERENCE AT ACADEMY 2009 ORLANDO!

Did you know that there is a press conference held during the Academy annual meeting? In the past, this event has only been open to the optometric and ophthalmic press, but I am happy to inform you that beginning this year, all meeting attendees are welcome. The press conference provides a forum for quick and succinct abstracts of the most press-friendly research presented at the annual meeting. The research presented there has been selected by the Academy’s Scientific Program Committee and the Communications Committee for its press worthiness. The press conference includes the most important research with the broadest appeal. The press conference also includes carefully selected presentations of advances by ophthalmic corporations. So, why would you want to attend this event if you aren’t a member of the press? I’m glad you asked. The format of the press conference is fast-paced, with each presenter allowed five minutes to state his or her case. You will hear snippets of research that may affect your patient care immediately or in the very near future. If your scientific curiosity is piqued by what you hear there, you can attend the full presentation of the paper, poster, or symposium that will discuss those findings in detail. Presenters from various companies often launch their latest products in this venue, so you can stop by their booths in the exhibit hall to learn how you can incorporate the use of these latest products in the care of your patients. This year’s press conference will be at 8:00 a.m. on Thursday, November 12. I have always found the press conference very interesting and informative. I love its fast pace. Jim Sheedy, Chair of the Communications Committee, and the other committee members will have selected a program well worth your time, and I know you will come away from the press conference wanting to attend presentations you might have not otherwise considered attending. If you are a clinician, our meeting has far more to offer you than just outstanding traditional CE, and if you haven’t yet had exposure to these other offerings, you shouldn’t hesitate this year! I hope to see you at Academy 2009 Orlando! [To Top]

CAMARADERIE UNDER ONE ROOF

By now you should have received information regarding registration for this year’s annual meeting in Orlando, FL, November 11-14. As a seasoned veteran of the Academy, I wax nostalgic when considering this year’s venue. When I first began to attend Academy meetings in the 1970’s, the educational events and the attendee accommodations were in the same venue; the environment generated wonderful camaraderie. It was terrific to wander by the lobby bar and recognize so many of the stalwarts of the profession who had congregated to renew old friendships, discuss new scientific discoveries presented at the meeting, or answer questions from someone who had just heard an amazing lecture. It was also a given that friends and colleagues would get together for even more socializing after they returned from dinner each evening. The atmosphere was so conducive to renewing old friendships and starting new ones, it was a hallmark of Academy meetings. While growth of the Academy has been sensational, it has come with a price. Since the Academy meetings have outgrown the facilities that even the larger hotels provide, we had to rely on utilizing convention centers and multiple hotels. In my opinion, this resulted in a loss of some of the warmth those meetings of the past generated. That won’t be the case for Academy 2009 Orlando. This year, we are once again all under one roof at the Orlando World Center Marriott, and I believe we will all experience yet another great Academy meeting with the added bonus of the flavor of the past. You will need to register for the meeting in order to make your hotel reservations. I’m sure once you review the program preview you recently received and see all of the offerings you have to choose from that you will want to make your reservations early. For more information on Academy 2009 Orlando, please visit here. [To Top] LEADERSHIP KEY #4: IS LEADERSHIP INBORN OR LEARNED? Merton C. Flom, OD, PhD, FAAO   Some Academy colleagues believe that leadership is basically inborn, and that education to learn leadership is largely unnecessary. They are thinking of people who are in high positions or who lead others in tasks. These people are called “leaders,” and what they do, “leadership.” Indeed, people who have never had any formal leadership training have reached high leadership positions or have led others to accomplish important tasks. The qualities needed for these kinds of leadership are inborn or developed by an early age. Often, this kind of leadership is likened to the sport of running — noting that some of the best marathoners come from Ethiopia where bare-footed young children run great distances— without any formal training. Other colleagues believe leadership is basically learned, and requires education. They are thinking of leadership as a process that brings about change. Inborn or early developed characteristics cannot provide knowledge of the principles and skills needed to practice the leadership of change. World-class marathoners routinely receive training from sports physiologists and other experts who teach the principles of running and specific skills such as breathing, sprints, and arm pumping. Interestingly, this disagreement about leadership — inborn vs learned — vanishes when language and ideas are clarified. Certainly, people can attain high leadership positions or lead others in tasks without having any formal education in leadership. Usually these kinds of leaders are involved mainly in the process of management — keeping organizational activities coordinated, on time, within budget, and constant — and are not involved in the process of leadership that brings about effective change. Why would we expect a person, even a gifted one, to automatically know the principles and be able carry out the steps involved in the change leadership process — any more than we would expect a gifted student to automatically know the principles and practice of optometry? Just as the sport of running can be an individual or group activity — think of the 400-meter relay — so it is with change leadership. Indeed, the “new leadership” is leadership of change brought about by a group. Is leadership inborn or learned? For positional leadership (president or CEO) or leading leadership (an individual leads groups in specific tasks), characteristics that are inborn or developed early in life may be sufficient. Change leadership (a process that brings about effective organizational change) requires learning. [To Top]