(PRESS RELEASE) BHVI is embarking on a new strategic roadmap for its organization and announced Tim Fricke as acting executive director of its social enterprise delivering improved eyecare to those most in need in Australia and across the world. Fricke will manage the team while Executive Director Leigh Cleave fulfills her lifelong dream of exploring new countries for the next year.
Fricke is a senior research fellow with BHVI. He is an optometrist, researcher and international development practitioner and has held management and leadership roles in private, public and community health. He brings extensive pediatrics clinical experience and post-graduate research in pediatrics eyecare and health economics, along with his international research into the development of local systems and skills for eyecare in developing countries.
“Vision impairment is a major contributor to global poverty. There are more than 1.22 billion people who are blind, or vision impaired simply because they do not have access to eye examinations and glasses – things most Australian’s take for granted,” says BHVI CEO Yvette Waddell. “We believe this is a crisis which requires an urgent and massive response. At BHVI, we are committed to researching and implementing solutions to meet this crisis head on and reverse the trend towards blindness.”
Fricke says: “I am a passionate advocate for sight being a fundamental right for everyone, regardless of where they live and BHVI is the world leader in ensuring this vision becomes a reality. It is an exciting time to be taking BHVI to the world.”
