(PRESS RELEASE) After a successful launch last year, the American Optometric Association (AOA) is once again hosting its Virtual Learning Livecast on Oct. 1 and 2, offering doctors of optometry, students and paraoptometric staff easy access to a host of expert-led contemporary, optometric continuing education courses and professional development—when it’s convenient for them.
The lineup of 32 expert-led courses covers 43 total assorted AOA-, COPE- and CPC-approved CE credits. The event reflects the AOA’s focus on year-round professional development for doctors, students and paraoptometrics at their convenience. One- and two-hour courses are scheduled for 6-10 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 1, and from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 2, all Central Time.
New courses include “Hiring the RIGHT people!”, “Commercial Real Estate Strategies for Optometrists” and “Ophthalmic Utilization of Botulinum Toxin in Clinical Practice.” Courses such as “A Guide to Effectively Communicating Patient Education” are designed for doctors and paraoptometrics to attend jointly.
George Veliky, O.D., AOA Education Center Committee co-chair, says the event’s organizers are looking to build on their success of the AOA’s first-ever virtual CE event. “This year’s Virtual Learning Livecast offers AOA members an opportunity to not only obtain bulk credit toward licensing renewal but also the opportunity to continue the lifelong journey of professional development beyond the confines of a once-a-year conference,” Dr. Veliky says. “Providing our members access to the livecast in a time separate from Optometry’s Meeting allows the Education Center Committee to offer CE classes that can build off each other sequentially.”
Erlinda Rodriguez, CPO, chair of the AOA’s Paraoptometric Resource Center Committee, calls the livecast an “excellent opportunity” for paraoptometrics to advance their knowledge by easily accessing courses with new and timely topics. “The Virtual Learning Livecast offers a new approach to learning in a more flexible environment, compared to taking the time to attend an in-person even,” Rodriguez says. “The AOA Education Center provides different learning platforms throughout the year to member doctors of optometry and paraoptometric associate members.
“The livecast’s paraoptometric-specific courses are geared to increase the paraoptometrics’ knowledge in areas of patient care that paraoptometrics are exclusively engaged in day to day,” she adds. “The integrated courses encourage the teamwork approach, providing information and education necessary to both the paraoptometric and the doctor in order to effectively coordinate a comprehensive plan of patient care. As optometry’s scope of practice expands, the need for highly educated and trained paraoptometrics is required to meet the many clinical and administrative demands in practices.”
Jacqueline M. Bowen, O.D., the AOA Board of Trustees liaison to the AOA Education Center Committee, agrees. “I find the livecast to be very valuable for doctors and our paraoptometric staff,” Dr. Bowen says. “Whether certified or prospective CPOs (certified paraoptometrics), the opportunity to jointly ‘attend’ the highest-level courses bonds their understanding of excellence in patient care with our doctors. When we recognize an opportunity for positive change through what we’ve learned together, we don’t start from square one but have a common understanding of the end game—the best care for patients.”
Seats for each course are limited; click here to register.