Committee News Archive

WA dispensing optician elected president of International Opticians Association

WA dispensing optician elected president of International Opticians Association

As reported in INSIGHT, Australia’s leading ophthalmic newspaper – since 1975.

The International Opticians Association (IOA) held its 28th Biennial Convention at the Hilton Lac Leamy Hotel in Ottawa/Gatineau Canada between September 29 and October 4. Dispensing optician Paul Clarke of Perth, Western Australia, was elected president of the IOA at the convention, succeeding Don Smith from Canada. The IOA, which has its head office in London, has representative membership from optical dispensing/opticians associations in Australia, Canada, Ireland, Malaysia, New Zealand, South Africa, United Kingdom and United States. The event was held in conjunction with the Opticians Association of Canada’s National Conference.

The next IOA convention will be held in Perth in October 2012. The last time it was held in Australia was in Sydney in 2000. Qualified optical dispensers and their partners are welcome to attend the IOA conventions. More information about the IOA can be found on the web site of the Association of British Dispensing Opticians at www.abdo.org.uk

Details about the 2012 convention in Perth will be available from the Australasian Dispensing Opticians Association www.adoa.com.au closer to the event.

United voice for optics is launched- UK

United voice for optics is launched- UK

In what was billed as a historic move for eye care in the UK, a new optical confederation has been launched. The move brings together the five representative optical bodies to speak with a stronger united voice for patients, practitioners and the sector as a whole.

The Optical Confederation – The Voice of UK Optics, was launched last week and is committed to greater cohesion and more joint working. It brings together the following bodies for improved unity: the Association of Optometrists, Association of British Dispensing Opticians, the Federation of Ophthalmic and Dispensing Opticians, the Federation of Manufacturing Opticians and the Association of Contact Lens Manufacturers.

At the InterContinental Hotel launch in London last week, David Pickersgill, ACLM chairman said: “This initiative, although it has been informally active for some time, is long overdue. “The benefits this will bring all members are very large, at a time of massive regulation, and massive change, and a large number of bodies to interface with, this is the way to go. “From our point of view, there has never been a better time to be working together, to have one ‘face’ to meet all the challenges ahead.”

John Fried, deputy master of the Worshipful Company of Spectacle Makers, (SMC) explained why the Confederation has been launched.

Speaking for the SMC as “patriarch of the optical family”, Mr Fried explained that the Confederation was “the most productive way of ensuring that we protect patients’ interests, grow the sector, improve scope of practice and ensure that we are listened to.”

He said that the five bodies all stand for excellence in different parts of the optics family. They would retain their autonomy and leadership roles but the Confederation would provide new opportunities for the profession, for businesses and industry and above all, for patients.

Arthur: Optometry Today – UK.   http://www.optometry.co.uk/index.php

Dispenser Profile

Dispenser Profile

Robert Hansen

* I originally followed the career path of a Fitter and Turner, but could no longer fight the strong family ties to Optics.

* After completing Optical Mechanics and obtaining the credentials and license for Optical Dispensing, I began the new career at our family practice in Orange. Here I progressed through the workforce to eventually manage the Glass grind laboratory, right up until Plastic lenses became the norm.

* I worked in the family practice for 25 years, and then felt I needed to spread my wings. This meant doing Locum work throughout NSW and VIC, travelling with my wife, Tracy, in a caravan as our accommodation. We got to stay at many wonderful places.

* Locum work allows me to work in varied demographics (rural to city), meet the many different personalities involved in optics and work with the many types of machinery (I knew Fitting and Turning wasn’t a waste).