Dr. Paul Beaumont AM, the founding director and the first Chairman of the Macular Disease Foundation Australia, has retired from the Foundation’s board after 12 years service.
The announcement was made at the Annual General Meeting of the Foundation in Sydney on 10 December 2013.
The Foundation’s Ambassador, Ita Buttrose, thanked Dr. Beaumont for his “outstanding contribution to the Foundation”. She acknowledged the “unlimited time, expertise and energy” he had put into the Foundation.
Ms. Buttrose said Dr. Beaumont’s foresight had ensured policy makers are better aware of macular disease today.
Dr Beaumont provided outstanding support to the Foundation through his role as a Foundation director, chairman of the Medical Committee, Research Committee member and most importantly as teacher and clinician.
Dr. Beaumont said his retirement from the board was with great regret but necessary to comply with the Board’s tenure policy. He said the Foundation has grown from strength to strength and is “going to go far” and acknowledged the contribution of past and current board members and staff. “How lucky was I to have scattered the seeds. Others came along and watered the seeds – they grew. Then others put a fence around them and protected them,” he said.
Dr. Beaumont has been a pioneer in intensive counselling for patients with macular degeneration. He trains doctors worldwide in his approach to macular degeneration and has a particular interest in nutritional epidemiology.
In recognition of Dr. Beaumont’s contribution to the Foundation, the Blackmores Dr. Paul Beaumont Research Fellowship was launched in 2011. The Fellowship is awarded to enable researchers to pursue research into nutritional and/or lifestyle aspects of macular degeneration.
