Historic Vote Needs Your Attention

Members should have received by e-mail a flyer explaining the proposed name change of the academy and a ballot. Our new name would be the American Society of Orthokeratology and Refractive Therapy(ASORT).The reasons why this action is recommended are many but the key point is that our group if were to grow needs to expand our scope to include not only Ortho-K but the emerging field of myopia control with all of its different treatment approaches. Another compelling reason has to do with the best ways to approach our colleagues who presently are not doing OK but interested in controlling myopia in their patients. The name change would be a first step in both broadening our base and appealing to our colleagues in a manner that they are more comfortable with. It would be fair to point out that though we are the largest section of the IAO we represent less then 1% of all US ODs. All the Ortho-K lenses fit in our marketplace last year represented less then 1% of the total contact lenses fit last year. These sobering facts tell us that not only haven't we attained any traction here in the US but that there has been almost zero growth since the OAA was founded. We need to try another tact while still championing our specialty if we are to corral the attention of our colleagues. We need also to be aware that our Optometric institutions of learning are not turning out in any great number new Orthokeratologists . Plainly everything rests on post graduate education and how effective we can become in reaching those grads in a language they recognize. That's where the exciting field of Refractive Therapy and all its possible applications can be more effective. It encompasses OK itself but in addition Bifocal SCLs, low dose Atropine, behavioral modification and whatever else becomes available in the future for myopia inhibition. It allows us to look into a future of possibilities instead of limiting ourselves to one. Myself and your Board Of Directors is recommending you vote yes for our new name and scope.

Please note if you have not received the flyer and ballot please contact the Executive Director Matt Herzberg at oaaexd@ gmail.com. If you have everything please vote.

Cary M Herzberg O.D. FIAO
President IAO,OAA

It's Time To Vote

Members in good standing will be receiving by e-mail a ballot on the initiative to change the name of the academy. I am encouraging all of you to vote on this issue. Change is often hard especially when I was part of the process in picking out the original name of the group. Even at that point however all of us who made up the original board understood that the name we had chosen for our organization would need to change at some point to reflect the newer realities of the marketplace that were still in their infancy ba ck then. Our original goal to promote Ortho-K is still there but we also realize that what we are doing in our practices especially concerning refractive error regulation and non invasive semi permanent ways of correcting refractive error reflect so much more.

So I encourage all of you to take a few minutes to look over the attached informational flyer and then vote. I with your Board of Directors look forward to seeing you in Chicago next month.

Cary M Herzberg O.D. FIAO
President of IAO,OAA

Successful meetings at The Global Specialty Lens Symposium in Las Vegas

I have just returned from a whirlwind trip to Las Vegas where I presented at our Corneal Reshaping Fundamentals Course. We had more then fifty attendees who were quite enthusiastic in their desire to learn more about corneal reshaping. The OAA also had a booth at the meeting which facilitated our efforts to recruit new members and attendees to our own Vision By Design course in early April in Chicago.

While in Las Vegas we we had our Board Meeting and I would like to personally thank the directors who took the time to attend. They were Caroline Cauchi,Cornel LeBlanc,Dennis Leung,Wilda Santiago,Bruce Williams and Matt Herzberg. This was an historic board meeting as the decision was made to expand our board to include for the first time a director from the Ophthalmology community. This was an important step as we move to be more inclusive to our Ophthalmology colleagues both here in the US and overseas.We also as a board took the positive action of recommending changing the name of our organization to include the new field of Refractive Therapy in our name. The new name is The American Society of Orthokeratology and Refractive Therapy(ASORT). The academy will continue to use our search engines and our orginal OAA until we make the transition to the new name. This is a process that will take several years.We will be asking our membership to endorse this new name through a ballot before our annual meeting in Chicago.

While in Las Vegas we were joined by the EurOK President Marino Formenti. Together we met with our vendor sponsors to plan out their participation in both VBD and EurOK/IAO(Brussels June 28-30). Especially noteworthy were meetings with Paragon Vision Sciences and Bausch & Lomb.

This meeting exceeded my expectations in every way. We arranged to meet with practitioners from ten countries in Latin America. It was decided that they would form a new section of the IAO representing the region. Our own Wilda Santiago and Joan Perez of EurOK will play a vital role here. We also signed up more then fifteen new members and at least ten new registrations for VBD during the meeting and after the event. This was directly the result of our participation in the GSLS program. It was no coincidence that this Symposium set a record for attendance. We have been asked to return next year to build on the momentum we have created for corneal reshaping and specialty lens fitting.

Cary M Herzberg O.D. FIAO
President IAO,OAA

Ortho-k Fundamentals Course at the GSLS January 24th 2013

We are pleased to announce that our comprehensive fundamentals course will be offered as a 4 hour workshop at the Global Speciality Lens Symposium on January 2013.

For more information about the GSLS and the detials for our course, please visit the following website http://www.springervisionevents.com/event.aspx?eid=4

Do you realize that we are in the middle of an epidemic? A myopia epidemic. The number of children becoming myopic is increasing in record proportions and at a staggering rate. As doctors, we know that high myopia is a risk factor for retinal detachments, glaucoma and social development. We have an opportunity and an obligation to attempt to slow or stop this myopic epidemic. One of the tools in our practice is Orthokeratology. Research has demonstrated orthoK to be effective in slowing or even stopping myopic progression.   

Becoming a successful orthokeratologist doesn’t happen by accident. You need specialized training, skills, forms, marketing plans and instrumentation if you want to become great. This can't happen in a quick two hour vendor sponsored fitting lesson.

If you aren’t fitting orthoK consider this:  orthoK sets you apart from the crowd. It provides Lasik patients with an option free surgical risk. It offers dry eyed patients the opportunity to return to contact lenses. It gives atheletes and weekend warriors the option of clear vision without glasses or contacts. And of course, it empowers you to help fight the myopia epidemic.

 

OrthoK  will bring a renewed level of excitement to you and your coworkers.  Come join us in Las Vegas  on Thursday, January 24, 2013.  The workshop is 4 hours of intensive fundamentals.  You will leave with the skills and motivation to become a great orthokeratologist .  Join our fight against the myopic epidemic, change your life as well as the children you help.  

Save The Date for VBD 2013!

We are very excited to have chosen a date and location for Vision By Design 2013.  It is April 4-7 Chicago Illinois.  We will be posting a tentative agenda soon and all details as they are finialized. Stay up to date on our meeting website www.orthokmeeting.com

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