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2023 Award Recipients

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IACLE honors the recipients of the 2023 awards

IACLE is thrilled to announce the winners of the 2023 IACLE Contact Lens Educator of the Year Awards, which recognize and reward achievement in contact lens education. Three winners will attend a major international meeting this year.

Contact lens educators from three countries – Colombia, Jordan and India – are recognized with prestigious awards from IACLE for their outstanding contributions to contact lens education.  

Thanks to the generous sponsorship from CooperVision, and co-sponsorship from the British Contact Lens Association (BCLA), three IACLE Contact Lens Educators of the Year Award winners will attend the BCLA’s Clinical Conference & Exhibition (9-11 June) and receive their awards during the Gala Dinner at the 4th IACLE World Congress in Birmingham, UK. 

‘Inspiring a future generation of eye care professionals is at the heart of the IACLE Contact Lens Educator of the Year Award,’ said Karen Walsh, CooperVision Director, Global Professional Affairs – 1 Day & FRP Brands. ‘Passionate educators, committed to evidence-based contact lens practice, are a crucial part of this process. We are delighted to sponsor these awards and congratulate the 2023 recipients.’

BCLA President Neil Retallic commented, ‘The BCLA is delighted to see well-respected educators receive the recognition they deserve through the IACLE awards. I look forward to hearing more about their outstanding contribution to our profession and the chance to get to know the winners more at both the BCLA conference and the awards dinner during the 4th IACLE World Congress. 

The 2023 IACLE Contact Lens Educators of the Year are:

IACLE Americas Contact Lens Educator of the Year
Dr Myriam Teresa Mayorga
La Salle University, Bogotá, Colombia

‘Many thanks to IACLE for granting me this recognition – it represents a lot to me. IACLE has played a significant role in my professional and teaching performance. I will always remember with great gratitude Dr Brien Holden and Dr Gina Sorbara (rest in peace), Professor Desmond Fonn, Professor Debbie Sweeney, and Dr Percy Lazon, who profoundly influenced my vocation as a contact lens teacher. They left their legacy to those who continue the admirable work of IACLE, led by Professors Philip Morgan and Shehzad Naroo and Dr Etty Bitton. I sincerely thank Bonnie Boshart, Guillermo Carrillo, and Martín Giraldo for their permanent support. A very special mention to CooperVision and the BCLA for their contribution to this award. This distinction as the 2023 Contact Lens Educator of the Year for the Americas is dedicated to my family and all those committed to contact lens teaching. I invite all to keep exploring and improving as educators to benefit both our students and our patients.’

IACLE Europe, Africa and Middle East Contact Lens Educator of the Year
Dr May Bakkar
Jordan University of Science and Technology, Ar-Ramtha, Jordan

‘It is a great honor to be awarded the 2023 IACLE Contact Lens Educator of the Year Award. I am sincerely grateful to the IACLE team, who has nominated me for the award. On this occasion, I feel indebted to show gratitude to IACLE and its sponsors for their distinguished effort and support in providing us with outstanding teaching material, webinars, and conferences. All of these have assisted us in raising the standards of contact lens education in Jordan and the Middle East. I want to extend my gratitude to all IACLE Fellows and colleagues with whom I have worked and from whom I have learned enthusiasm, determination, and discipline in running the IACLE organization. On behalf of all contact lens educators, practitioners, and students in the Middle East, thank you IACLE.’


IACLE Asia Pacific Contact Lens Educator of the Year
Isha Dave
Lotus College of Optometry, Mumbai, India

‘It’s an absolute honour and privilege to win this award. I have to dedicate it to Lotus College of Optometry, Mumbai, for the continuous support over the years, and I am very grateful to IACLE for providing the resources to take contact lens education to the next level.’

IACLE President Professor Philip Morgan commented, ‘It is wonderful to be able to announce this year’s Educator of the Year Awards. I would personally like to congratulate our three winners – this is a great accolade for them all and an acknowledgement of their commitment, enthusiasm, and skills. We are lucky to have them working in our field. Thanks to CooperVision and the BCLA for sponsoring these awards and indeed to all our sponsors for their ongoing support of our work.’

For more information on the IACLE Contact Lens Educator of the Year Awards

IACLE IS SPONSORED BY

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COVID-19 Update #3

Key considerations for contact lens practitioners

Optician and Contact Lens Spectrum summarize the Contact Lens & Anterior Eye paper by Jones et al, ‘COVID-19 pandemic: Important considerations for contact lens practitioners’.

Read the summary

Special Edition of Contact Lens Update

The Centre for Ocular Research & Education (CORE) has a COVI-19 Special Edition with an editorial, feature and clinical insights on contact lenses during the pandemic.

Read more

Patient handouts on COVID-19 and hygiene

CORE also has a range of handouts supporting good habits for contact lens wearers for practitioners to download, print and make use of in practice.

Access handouts

Survey of future use of PPE in optometric practice

Most eye care practitioners plan to continue using higher standards of personal protective equipment (PPE), according to a survey by Dr Heiko Pult.

Read more

Contact lens wearers reduce use during lockdown

More than seven in 10 contact lens wearers have reduced their use of contact lenses during lockdown, according to a UK survey by IACLE Vice President Professor Philip Morgan. 

Read more

IACLE Web Lectures around the world

IACLE India and members in Germany are broadcasting live online lectures to support members in their online teaching. A new series of global weekly lectures will run in May.

Read more

IACLE Position Statement in Spanish

The IACLE LA office has translated our Position Statement on the COVID-19 pandemic and contact lens use for distribution in Spanish-speaking countries.

Read more

THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS

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Narrate Lectures Worldwide

IACLE to deliver narrated lectures to members worldwide

Members of the International Association of Contact Lens Educators (IACLE) around the world are invited to take part in a series of live and recorded online lectures starting from next week.

The live narrated lectures from IACLE Executive Board members and staff will run daily at 12 noon London time (BST British Summer Time) from Monday 6 April to Thursday 9 April on the Zoom platform. Recorded versions will be posted online and will be accessible via Member Login under Video Resources. 

Lectures will be a maximum of one hour, including questions from participants, and will initially be conducted in English. A maximum of 100 participants can take part in each lecture, on a first-come-first-served basis. 

The theme for the lectures is Building successful contact lens practice, with topics and speakers as follows:

Monday 6 April:
Minimising dropouts and maximising success
IACLE Vice President: Professor Philip Morgan

Tuesday 7 April:
Soft contact lens aftercare
Director of Global Education: Lakshmi Shinde

Wednesday 8 April:
Proactive recommendation of contact lenses
Director of Educational Programs: Nilesh Thite (pictured above)

Thursday 9 April:
Business aspects of contact lenses
IACLE President: Dr Shehzad Naroo

Links to each lecture have been sent to IACLE members. Priority for watching the live lectures will be given to educators, who can then use the recorded versions with their students.

Regional / National Coordinators can invite local groups to watch the recorded lectures in their regions and countries, with their own question and answer sessions.

Recordings of lectures will initially be located under Member Login in the Video Resources section.

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS

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IACLE at the BCLA

18 June 2019 

IACLE makes its mark at BCLA 2019 to celebrate 40th year

The International Association of Contact Lens Educators celebrated 40 years of ‘Exceptional Education. Exponential Impact’ at the British Contact Lens Association Clinical Conference in Manchester, UK (30 May – 2 June).

Read a full report on IACLE’s presence at BCLA

More than 100 delegates took up the invitation to ‘Make Your Mark’ at the IACLE exhibition booth on a time wall of milestones in the association’s history. Visitors also contributed ideas for the future of contact lens education.

Three of the Founding Members of IACLE who attended its very first meeting – in Monte Carlo, Monaco in November 1979 – were saluted at the IACLE / BUCCLE Education Day held on 29 May to coincide with the conference. The day was jointly organized with the British & Irish University & College Contact Lens Educators, and attracted 80 members and guests.

IACLE’s Founding President Dr Hilmar Bussacker, first BUCCLE Chair Richard Pearson and former IACLE Vice President Professor Des Fonn described their experiences of the early days of IACLE and were awarded certificates to mark the 40th Anniversary. First IACLE Secretary Dr John de Brabander sent a video message to delegates.

Outgoing industry supporters Dr Dwight Akerman (recently retired from IACLE Platinum Sponsor, Alcon) and Ian Davies (formerly of IACLE Silver Sponsor, Johnson & Johnson Vision) were also acknowledged, with IACLE Awards for Outstanding Contribution to Contact Lens Education. Professor Lyndon Jones received the Lester Janoff Memorial Award 2019 from the Association of Optometric Contact Lens Educators. His colleague at the University of Waterloo, Canada, IACLE Assistant Secretary Dr Luigina Sorbara,presented the award.

40th Anniversary celebrations continued at the BCLA Conference on 30 May with a presentation from IACLE President Dr Shehzad Narooduring the International Perspectives session, followed by a reception and cake-cutting hosted with Vice President Professor Philip Morgan of the University of Manchester at the association’s exhibition booth. 

The 2019 IACLE Contact Lens Educators of the Yearstepped up to the stage at the IACLE Awards Presentation in the main auditorium on 1 June. Receiving their certificates from Dr Gary Orsborn Vice President of Global Professional & Clinical Affairs at CooperVision, sponsor of the Educator Awards, were:

  • IACLE Americas Contact Lens Educator of the Year

Dr Rubén Velázquez, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City

  • IACLE Asia Pacific Contact Lens Educator of the Year

Professor Craig Woods, Deakin University, Victoria, Australia

  • IACLE Europe/Africa – Middle East Contact Lens Educator of the Year

Dr Fabrizio Zeri, Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy

Also receiving his certificate from BCLA President Professor Sunil Shah was one of five IACLE Travel Award recipients for 2019, Joseph Afonne from Mzuzu University in Malawi. The annual Travel Awards are funded by IACLE and all its corporate sponsors. All the awards presented were co-sponsored by the BCLA.

The Awards ceremony completed a very successful week for IACLE that saw its members and Fellows involved throughout the program at BCLA 2019, as they chaired sessions, joined panel discussions, and delivered lectures and workshops.

Judith Morris, IACLE Regional President for Europe / Africa – Middle East and organizer of IACLE / BUCCLE Education Day commented: ‘The 40th celebration at the BCLA exhibition booth had such a buzz, and the events in the UK will help make 2019 a memorable episode in the life of IACLE. The Education Day also had a very positive atmosphere.’

IACLE’s 40th anniversary events now move on to the Asia Pacific Optometric Congress (APOC) in Manila, Philippines (17-20 June). Celebrations will be held at two further major international meetings during 2019: the Colegio Federación Colombiana de Optómetras (FEDOPTO) Congress in Bogotá, Colombia (8-10 August), and Academy 2019 and the 3rd World Congress of Optometry in Orlando, Florida, USA (23-27 October). Many more national and local meetings around the world will mark the occasion.


PICTURE CAPTIONS

TOP LEFT: IACLE member Dr Mohammad Abahussin from Saudi Arabia makes his mark on the time wall at the association’s exhibition booth.

TOP MIDDLE: IACLE President Dr Shehzad Naroo and Vice President Professor Philip Morgan (right) cut an anniversary cake at the 40th reception.

TOP RIGHT: Pictured at the 2019 IACLE Awards Presentation (left to right) are: IACLE President Dr Shehzad Naroo, Dr Fabrizio Zeri, Professor Craig Woods, Joseph Afonne, Dr Rubén Velázquez, BCLA President Professor Sunil Shah and Dr Gary Orsborn, Vice President of Global Professional & Clinical Affairs at CooperVision, sponsor of the IACLE Contact Lens Educator of the Year Awards.

BOTTOM: Founding Members of IACLE (left to right), Richard Pearson, Dr Hilmar Bussacker and Professor Desmond Fonn, receive certificates to mark the 40th Anniversary.

Find out more about IACLE’s 40th Anniversary events

Information on all IACLE membership benefits is available at www.iacle.org.

International Association of Contact Lens Educators

E: iacle@iacle.org
W: www.iacle.org

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2019 Press

19 December 2019 – No Cut News (Korea) IACLE’s STE program

3 December 2019 – Headline Je Ju (Korea) IACLE’s STE program

6 November 2019 – World Council of Optometry – IACLE at 2019 Academy & WCO Conference

November 2019 – OPCHAT – IACLE at 2019 Academy & WCO Conference

November 2019 – AOCLE Fall ’19 Newsletter – Update on IACLE (pages 4-5)

19 September 2019 – World Council of Optometry – IACLE events at Academy 2019 Orlando and 3rd World Congress of Optometry

July – August 2019 – Indian Optician – IACLE at APOC celebrating 40th anniversary

17 June 2019 – Optometry Australia – 2019 Asia Pacific Educator of the Year

Spring 2019 – AOCLE Newsletter – IACLE’s 40th anniversary and 2019 Award Winners

6 June 2019 – Vision Plus – IACLE at 2019 APOC

June 2019 – OPCHAT – IACLE at the BCLA 2019

1 June 2019 Federottica.org – IACLE meeting in Rome (Italian)

5 June 2019 optimoda – New ICLC updates from 2020 (Spanish)

30 June 2019 mivision – New ICLC updates from 2020

2 June 2019 Contact Lenses Today – New ICLC updates from 2020

2019 Optometry Today – IACLE announces award winners

7 June 2019 Dispensing Optics – IACLE marks 40 year milestone

20 May 2019 World Council of Optometry – New ICLC updates from 2020

12 May 2019 Contact Lenses Today – IACLE to Mark 40th Anniversary at Industry Shows

6 May 2019 – mivision – IACLE celebrates 40 Years at BCLA

1 May 2019 – Contact Lens Spectrum – IACLE Announces Winners of Awards

May 2019 – OPCHAT – New ICLC updates from 2020

7 April 2019 – Contact Lenses Today – IACLE Announces Winners of Awards

5 April 2019 – Optician – IACLE announces award winners

4 April 2019 – Universita’ Degli Studi Milano – IACLE EAME Contact Lens Educator of the Year

1 April 2019 – World Council of Optometry – IACLE awards winners

April 2019 – OPCHAT – IACLE announces award winners in anniversary year

March 2019 – Optometry Today – IACLE Awards referenced by member

3 March 2019 – Contact Lenses Today – 2019 Fellowship Exam

February 2019 – Opchat – 2019 Fellowship Exam

22 February 2019 – Optician – 2019 IACLE Fellowship Exam

24 January 2019 – de opticien – IACLE’s 40th anniversary

23 January 2019 – NZ Optics – IACLE’s 40th anniversary

6 January 2019 Contact Lens Today – IACLE’s 40th anniversary

4 January 2019 Optician Online – IACLE’s 40th anniversary

2 January 2019 – OPTICAPRO – IACLE’s 40th anniversary

2 January 2019 – DOZ Optometrie & Fashion (German) – IACLE’s 40th anniversary

2 January 2019 OFTALPRO (Spanish) – IACLE’s 40th anniversary

Optometric Association of the Philippines – OAP event announcement mentioning the celebration of IACLE’s 40th anniversary

January 2019 Primary Health OPCHAT – IACLE’s 40th anniversary

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Educators from across the region meet up in Mexico

Members from eight institutions in Venezuela, Argentina, Bolivia, Mexico, El Salvador, Colombia and Perú attended an IACLE Educators’ Meeting (30 November) to coincide with the ALDOO Congress in León Guanajuato, Mexico. In other news, IACLE Secretary Dr Janice Jurkus travelled to Argentina last month to take part in the Contactología Sin Fronteras meeting and IACLE Americas Regional Coordinator Guillermo Carrillo visited the Universidad Latina de Costa Rica.

Read Willy’s report on the IACLE meeting and other activities in the region here

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NEW Registration opens for the 2019 Fellowship Exam

A date for your new 2019 Diary! The next IACLE Fellowship Exam will be held on Saturday 16 November 2019. The exam will be the first administration for which members can use the New Distance Learning Program to prepare. Registration is now open and all existing and new IACLE members are eligible to sit the exam. A successful outcome means members can apply for Fellowship and, if eligible, use the affix FIACLE after their names. Register by 30 June to take part.

Find full details on the Fellowship Exam and registration here