The Eye Site:

News and Resources for Ophthalmology and Vision

Top headlines:

• More than 6000 Registered for WOC 2010
  
  
• New ICO Identity
  
  
• Congratulations to 2010 ICO Medal Awardees
  
  
• Peter Watson Award for Outstanding ICO Examination Performance
  
  
• LAICO’s EYEXCEL Course to Develop Capacity in Eye Care Organizations
  
  
• Please Help Us Estimate the Number of Ophthalmologists
  
  
• Share Your Photographs of Ophthalmology in Action
  
  
• ICO Co-Sponsors 2011 APAO Congress in Sydney
  
  
• WOC 2010: Second Early Bird Registration Until 10 May
  
  
• Call for Proposals to Host WOC 2016
  
  
• ICO Recognizes World Glaucoma Week
  
  
• Remembering Yasuo Tano--Fellowship and WOC Travel Grant
  
  
• Pan-American Haiti Relief Project
  
  
• Middle East African Journal now on PubMed
  
  
• 2010 ICO Directory of Ophthalmologic Societies
  
  
• ICO to Honor Medal and Award Winners at WOC 2010, June 5–9 in Berlin
  
  
• Experts Enrich WOC Scientific Program
  
  
• New Advanced ICO Examination
  
  
• 2010 Helmerich Fellowship Awardees and 2011 Application
  

Also see:

• more news
• the latest ICO Leader Letter.

(The Eye Site is the Internet home of the International Council of Ophthalmology (ICO).)

More than 6000 Registered for WOC 2010

Offering some 2,000 speakers in more than 700 scientific sessions, 1,120 posters, and with more than 6,000 ophthalmologists already registered (and more to come), the World Ophthalmology Congress (WOC) June 5–9, 2010 in Berlin will be an outstanding opportunity for the world’s ophthalmologists to gather.

The final scientific program is now available on the WOC 2010 Web site: www.woc2010.org/scientific-program.

Early bird registration rates are still available through May 10. Visit www.woc2010.org/registration to register. Hotel information and air and train transportation discounts are available here: www.woc2010.org/hotels-and-travel.

New ICO Identity

The ICO has defined a new visual identity for the ICO, including a new logo. A two-page summary with some applications of the new logo is available here: ICOlogocolors2010.pdf (PDF–480 KB).

This new visual identity grew out of our plans for new technology, specifically a new ICO Web site. We contacted many of our members and colleagues to gather input on developing a new logo, colors and look for the ICO. We will be gradually changing our communications to reflect the new identity and hope to launch the new Web site by June.

We would like to thank everyone who participated in this process, particularly the ICO Task Force on Identity who helped shape some of the preliminary ideas last fall and the new ICO Communications Committee who provided valuable input in the final stages this spring. Many were involved in creating our new look.

Congratulations to 2010 ICO Medal Awardees

We would like to recognize our colleagues who were selected by the ICO Board to receive ICO Medals and Awards in 2010. All of the ICO Medal awardees will be recognized at the Opening Ceremonies of the 2010 World Ophthalmology Congress (WOC) in Berlin.

• Gonin Medal for outstanding work or research: Alan Bird, MD (United Kingdom)

• Jules Francois Golden Medal for ophthalmic work of high scientific quality: Gisele Soubrane, MD, PhD (France)

• International Duke Elder Medal for the development of international relations and friendship between ophthalmologists: Mohammed Daud Khan, MD (Pakistan)

• ICO Ophthalmic Pathology Award: Ursula Schlotzer-Schrehardt, PhD (Germany)

Peter Watson Award for Outstanding ICO Examination Performance

Moh'd Mah'd Moh'd Abu Dab'at, MD

The ICO has initiated the Peter Watson Award in 2010, which will be given annually to the ICO Examinations candidate with the most outstanding performance on both the Clinical Sciences and the Basic Sciences Examinations.

The award is named for the founder of the ICO Examinations, Mr. Peter Watson. We applaud Professor Watson for the tremendous contributions he has made, not only to the ICO, but also to the education of ophthalmologists and the betterment of world ophthalmology.

Dr. Moh'd Mah'd Moh'd Abu Dab'at of Jordan is the first recipient of the Peter Watson Award, which carries with it a special certificate and the right to an ICO Fellowship. Dr. Abu Dab'at will receive the award at the ICO General Assembly, June 5 at the WOC 2010 in Berlin.

LAICO’s EYEXCEL Course to Develop Capacity in Eye Care Organizations

August 11–14, 2010, Lions Aravind Institute of Community Ophthalmology (LAICO) “EYEXCEL - Expanding Global Eye Care Workforce through Excellence in Training” course in collaboration with the ICO. This four-day training program aims to develop the capacity for in eye care organizations to deliver quality training programs on a regular basis.

This course is for institutions currently offering or planning to offer training courses. Registrants should be a team of two representing each institution, to ensure that ideas generated in the training workshop will be established in the institution. The application deadline is July 15, 2010. For more information, download the EYEXCEL course brochure, archive.icoph.org/pdf/Final Eyexcel.pdf.

Please Help Us Estimate the Number of Ophthalmologists

Last year, the World Health Assembly endorsed the World Health Organization’s Action Plan for the Prevention of Blindness and Visual Impairment. To support implementation of the Action Plan, the ICO is working to obtain the best possible data on the number of ophthalmologists in practice and in training in each country.

We would deeply appreciate your help to obtain this data so that we can all advocate effectively for improving eye care.

ICO Director for Advocacy, Serge Resnikoff, MD, PhD, has sent a questionnaire to national ophthalmologic society presidents (and individuals in countries without societies) asking them to estimate the numbers of practicing ophthalmologists and trainees.

Please be sure your society responds to this survey by April 10, 2010. If your society did not receive it, please send a message to leader@icoph.org, and we will send a survey to you.

Share Your Photographs of Ophthalmology in Action

ICO Members: please share your photographs of ophthalmology in action with us. We want to include them on the new ICO Web site.

We are looking for high quality images that show ophthalmologists involved in eye care, ophthalmic education and leadership activities. Please send your best photographs (clear, high quality jpg files) for consideration to leader@icoph.org. Be sure to include your name, image description and any other important details.

We look forward to learning more about you through your photos.

ICO Co-Sponsors 2011 APAO Congress in Sydney

The International Council of Ophthalmology (ICO) and Asia Pacific Academy of Ophthalmology (APAO) invite you to join us at the 2011 Congress of APAO, 20 - 24 March at the Darling Harbour Convention and Exhibition Center in Sydney, Australia. The ICO is a co-sponsor of the Congress.

APAO's congresses are the largest ophthalmic meetings in the Asia Pacific Region. We look forward to the participation of ophthalmologists and eye care professionals from the area and all over the world.

Please join us next March in Australia. Online registration, housing and visa application information will be available on the Congress Web site: www.apaosydney2011.com.

WOC 2010: Second Early Bird Registration Until 10 May

Register before May 10, 2010 to take advantage of the second “Early Bird” registration pricing.

You will not want to miss WOC 2010, June 5–9 in Berlin. Stephen Ryan, MD, will chair an outstanding Scientific Program designed to address global concerns. A special social highlight will be a Bavarian-style Oktoberfest called “WOCtoberfest” with beer, German food and entertainment for WOC attendees and their families. To read more details about this year’s World Congress, see the January 2010 ICO Leader Letter.

For the most complete information, visit the WOC 2010 Web site at www.woc2010.org. You can sign up to receive email updates at www.woc2010.org/request-information.html, or contact the WOC 2010 at pco@woc2010.de.

Call for Proposals to Host WOC 2016

The ICO is now accepting inquiries and proposals to host the 2016 World Ophthalmology Congress (WOC), which will be in the Americas.

Societies that are interested should notify the ICO (info@icoph.org) and the Pan American Association of Ophthalmology (info@paao.org) no later than March 17.

Interested societies will be given the criteria for selection of sites for the WOC and a draft document that outlines ICO expectations for the WOC, along with examples of proposals from past WOCs.

Proposals should be submitted to the PAAO no later than by April 10.

The PAAO will then choose up to three proposals to submit to the ICO. Potential hosts will be asked to make a 10-minute presentation to the ICO Board when it meets in Berlin on June 4 at the 2010 WOC.

Only ICO Member societies who have paid their dues for 2010 are eligible to submit proposals. We ask potential hosts to communicate with the ICO Board only through the official proposal process.

WOC 2018 will be held in Europe, and the ICO Board of Trustees will review proposals for 2018 at the WOC 2012 in Abu Dhabi.

ICO Recognizes World Glaucoma Week

What can we do now to decrease vision loss related to glaucoma? To acknowledge World Glaucoma Week (March 7-13, 2010), the ICO shares local perspectives on this question from three glaucoma specialists. Read the details in the March 2010 Leader Letter.

We also highlight Glaucoma Subspecialty Day and Other Sessions at the 2010 World Ophthalmology Congress in Berlin. For more details on the Glaucoma Subspecialty Day program, see: www.woc2010.org/scientific-program/subspecialty-day-program/glaucoma-subspecialty-day.html. The advance scientific program information is here: www.woc2010.org/scientific-program.html.

A few glaucoma resources:

• Atlas of Gonioscopy: www.gonioscopy.org
  
• International Glaucoma Review Web site and Journal: www.e-igr.com
  
• ICO International Clinical Guidelines on Glaucoma in English:
  archive.icoph.org/guide/guidelist.html and Portuguese: archive.icoph.org/guide/languages.html#portuguese

And for more information on World Glaucoma Day and Week, visit www.wgday.net.

Remembering Yasuo Tano--Fellowship and WOC Travel Grant

In recognition of the one-year anniversary of the passing of Yasuo Tano, MD, former ICO Treasurer and President of the Japanese Ophthalmological Society (JOS), the ICO has established the ICO Yasuo Tano Fellowship to be awarded each year as part of the ICO Fellowship Program.

In addition, the JOS has created the World Ophthalmology Congress (WOC) Tano Travel Grant to send 80 Japanese young ophthalmologists to Berlin for the WOC 2010, to Abu Dhabi for WOC 2012. They will target doctors from developing countries to travel to WOC 2014 in Tokyo.

Pan-American Haiti Relief Project

The recent devastating earthquake in Haiti has affected millions. They are without food, water, and medical supplies.

The Pan-American Association of Ophthalmology (PAAO) has just created the Pan-American Haiti Relief Project. PAAO President Drs. Cristián Luco and Natalio Izquierdo, (project manager), will work closely with our Haitian colleagues and the Haitian Society of Ophthalmology to assess their needs and distribute funds and assistance accordingly.

The Pan-American Ophthalmological Foundation made an initial pledge of US $10,000 to start this campaign, and the ICO and ICOFoundation have matched this pledge with a contribution of $10,000. If you would like to make a donation, visit the PAAO's secure Web page: www.paao.org/donateforhaiti.html.

100% of all donations will be dedicated to the Pan-American Haiti Relief Project. No administrative expenses will be removed.

The American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) has also become involved in helping Haiti by forming the Task Force on Haiti Recovery. More information on how to contribute and volunteer is available at www.aao.org/haiti/task-force.cfm.

Middle East African Journal now on PubMed

The Editorial Board of the Middle East African Journal of Ophthalmology (MEAJO) announces their articles are now indexed on PubMed, the free database of citations, abstracts and articles on life sciences and biomedical topics.

In 2009, the number of submissions to MEAJO tripled to a total of 169 manuscripts, and it is being accessed 6000-8000 times monthly. MEAJO encourages new submissions and notes the average time from submission to acceptance is approximately 75 days.

Deepak Edward, MD, FACS, is the editor-in-chief of MEAJO. To view more details, visit www.meajo.org.

2010 ICO Directory of Ophthalmologic Societies

The ICO will be compiling information for the ICO Directory of Ophthalmologic Societies in time for the World Ophthalmology Congress this June. The Directory will list all of the national and international ophthalmologic societies in the world.

We recently sent an e-mail to those who are listed as contacts for the ICO database with complete instructions for updating your society's listing. The text of that message is available at archive.icoph.org/news/directory1001.html.

If your society's listing is not accurate, please update the database. If you can not access the database, send an e-mail to info@icoph.org, and we can send your username and password. In addition you may send an e-mail with the correct information to be listed in the Directory.

We look forward to including all societies in the 2010 ICO Directory of Ophthalmologic Societies.

ICO to Honor Medal and Award Winners at WOC 2010, June 5–9 in Berlin

Congratulations to the recipients of the ICO Medals and Awards who will be recognized at the WOC 2010 opening ceremonies this June in Berlin:

• Gonin Medal for outstanding work or research: Alan Bird, MD (United Kingdom)
  
  
• International Duke Elder Medal for the development of international relations and friendship between ophthalmologists: Mohammed Daud Khan, MD (Pakistan)
  
  
• Jules Francois Golden Medal for ophthalmic work of high scientific quality: Gisele Soubrane, MD, PhD (France)
  
  
• ICO Ophthalmic Pathology Award: Ursula Schlotzer-Schrehardt, PhD (Germany)

New Advanced ICO Examination

The ICO Board of trustees recently approved a new advanced examination for ophthalmologists who have passed the complete Basic Science (including Optics and Refraction) and the Clinical Science or an examination of similar standard recognized by the International Council of Ophthalmology. This examination will test up-to-date knowledge and common sense decision-making.

Passing the ICO Advanced Examination will entitle the successful candidate to use the post-nominal acronym, FICO. The first advanced examination will be offered on October 21, 2010, and the application deadline is July 31, 2010. More detailed information on the Examinations is now available at www.icoexams.org.

Experts Enrich WOC Scientific Program

Berlin is a city of science, technology, innovation and invention. It is also the city of Hermann von Helmholtz and Albrecht von Graefe, two great men whose work has inspired generations of ophthalmologists.

It is in this spirit that the world’s experts in ophthalmology will gather together at WOC 2010 to share recent developments and their latest contributions in the scientific program. Over 3,000 speakers from around the world will present a wide variety of topics in more than 600 sessions.

The WOC is fortunate that so many outstanding ophthalmologists will participate in the 2010 WOC scientific program.

An excellent subspecialty program is also planned with subspecialty days in cataract surgery, refractive surgery, glaucoma and retina. More details will be available in the WOC 2010 advance program, due to be released January 31.

2010 Helmerich Fellowship Awardees and 2011 Application

The International Council of Ophthalmology 2010 Helmerich – Retina Research Foundation Fellowships were awarded to:

• Dr. Mohammed El-hanan, Egypt, for training in cornea and anterior segment at L.V. Prasad Eye Institute, Hyderbad, India. After the fellowship, Dr. El-hanan will return to The Research Institute of Ophthalmology, Cairo, Egypt.
  
  
• Dr. Siamak Zarei-Ghanavati, Iran, for training in cornea at Melles Cornea Clinic, Rotterdam, The Netherlands and Ocular Surface Research and Education Foundation, Miami, Florida. After the fellowship, Dr Zarei-Ghanavati will return to Mashhad University Medical Sciences, University Hospital of Khatam-al-Anbia Eye Hospital, Mashhad, Iran.

The ICO is now accepting applications for the 2011 Helmerich Fellowships. Application letters and related information should be sent to the ICO Helmerich International Fellowship Committee by e-mail at helmerich@icoph.org prior to next September 1, 2010. A complete description and application details are available for download via archive.icoph.org/pdf/helmerichfellowships.pdf.

Next: More News.

Also see:

• Other recent news.
• the latest ICO Leader Letter.