Conferences in Victoria and Tasmania provide great reason to take time out in the southern States over the coming months.
O Tas
Jonathan Jones
Tasmania recently held its state election with the Liberal party achieving majority government. The electorate appeared wary of returning to a power sharing minority Government so it was with some relief that we found we now have a party with a majority. Health policy in Tasmania currently focuses on hospital waiting lists. We are very fortunate in the State to be able to readily access Ministers and their senior advisors.
Eye Care for Indigenous People in Tasmania
A little known fact is that as a State, Tasmania has the second highest percentage of indigenous Australians in the country. Mitchell Anjou, Melbourne University, has been working on improving eye health outcome for indigenous Australians for some time. We are in the process of contacting practices to request information on bulk-billing Aboriginal diabetes eye health checks and eye photo charges on an opt-in basis. This information will then be forwarded to the Aboriginal Health Care Centre for reference and use. Practices are not expected to provide free optical coherence tomography (OCT).
Supported by a stellar local cast of optometrists and ophthalmologists… the headline acts this year are Kelly Gibbons and Nate Lighthizer
Tasmania Lifestyle Congress
This year the Tasmania Lifestyle Congress (TLC) will be held from 24 – 26 August at the Wrest Point Hotel, as the Hotel Grand Chancellor was fully booked. The Wrest Point Hotel has many advantages, among them ample parking and excellent accommodation rates.
We hope to build on the success of last year’s TLC. The highlight of the conference will be the Keith Mackriell lecture, this year delivered by Professor Alex Gentle, Deakin University Associate Head of School (Teaching and Learning), Chair in Vision Science and Course Director. Professor Gentle will speak on ‘Evidenced-based management of ocular allergy’.
For details visit: www.optometry.org.au/tas/tlc/
O Vic
Pete Haydon
We’re all really looking forward to Southern Regional Congress in Melbourne, on the last weekend in May. This remains one of our most significant member engagement events, allowing optometrists from around the country and the world the chance to experience Melbourne, and a key plank in Optometry Victoria’s ever-expanding continuing professional development program.
At the time of writing, registrations for the event are really pleasing – well ahead of the corresponding numbers for the previous years in our current venue. This illustrates a couple of things. One, people like and respect SRC and its place in the optometric education market. Second, and maybe more importantly, it says that people are excited by the 2018 program, developed as always by optometrists for optometrists.
This is not surprising to me. Supported by a stellar cast of local optometrists and ophthalmologists, among them Kate Gifford, Allison McKendrick, Laura Downie, Christolyn Raj and Michael Yapp, the headline acts this year are Kelly Gibbons and Nate Lighthizer.
Nate is well known to Australian audiences, but Kelly is an SRC first timer, and we’re delighted to have secured her services. From Pennsylvania College of Optometry at Salus University, where she specialises in neuro-ophthalmic disease, Kelly’s expertise in visual and ocular conditions related to the brain or manifested as a more global systemic or neurologic process, is known throughout the United States and beyond.
Kelly has been described – by no less an authoritative voice than Blair Lonsberry – as one of the most brilliant optometrists around. He recently confided that he was jealous he wouldn’t be at SRC in 2018 because combining Kelly with Nate will make this a stellar conference.
Blair doesn’t get to go, but mivision readers do!
Hope to see you there.
