(PRESS RELEASE) ST. LOUIS — The World Council of Optometry (WCO), in partnership with CooperVision, a leader in addressing myopia, presents a worldwide virtual event, “Myopia Management: Advancing the Global Standard of Care” Thursday, February 16, 2023. The complimentary online event features industry experts sharing their insights on the global standard of care and how they have made myopia management an integral part of their work. Register for the second annual WCO virtual event, delivered in multiple time zones worldwide, here.
The World Council of Optometry introduced the myopia management standard of care resolution in April 2021, defining an evidence-based standard of care comprised of the three main pillars of mitigation, measurement, and management.
WCO President-elect Dr. Sandra Block said, “We invite optometrists and other eye care professionals from around the world to attend this virtual event. It will help the listener gain a broader perspective on how to incorporate myopia management as the standard of care in their practices. As myopia has risen to an epidemic level globally, early mitigation, measurement, and management of myopia in young patients can help reduce the risk of serious eye health issues as adults. The World Council of Optometry is grateful to CooperVision for its partnership in this important mission to spread the word.”
The February 16 WCO “Myopia Management: Advancing the Global Standard of Care” virtual event explores the myopia epidemic through real stories told by patients and leading eye care professionals including:
- Prof. Seang-Mei Saw, MBBS, MPH, PhD, FAMS is the Distinguished Wallace Foulds Professor at the Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore, and Co-Chair (Biomedical) of the NUS Institutional Review Board. Prof. Saw is internationally recognized as one of the leading researchers in the myopia field and has made major observations and key discoveries in the field of the epidemiology of myopia, characterizing the environmental, genetic, and anatomical predictors of myopia in children and adults in Singapore and worldwide.
- Dr. Kai-yip Choi is a Research Assistant Professor at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University School of Optometry. He obtained his BSc and PhD degrees in Optometry in 2014 and 2021 respectively from The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. He has been providing optometric clinical care in the university clinic since 2014.
- Dr. Foo Li Lian is a consultant ophthalmologist with the Myopia Service and Refractive Department, Singapore National Eye Centre, and Myopia Centre of Excellence. Subspecializing in the field of myopia focusing on childhood myopia control as well as refractive and cataract surgeries, Dr. Foo aims to create the next generation of treatment modalities that can halt the relentless march of myopia.
- Indie Grewal, BSc (Hons) MCOptom DipTp (IP) Prof Cert Glau FBDO FBCLA is a qualified dispensing optician and optometrist with more than three decades of experience within the optical industry. As well as participating in contact lens clinical trials, he has a special interest in myopia management and multifocal contact lens fitting.
- Jessica Haynes, OD, FAAO, FORS, Dipl ABO practices as consulting faculty in the Southern College of Optometry Advanced Care Ocular Disease clinic and as a full-time associate optometrist at Charles Retina Institute. She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry and the Optometric Retina Society and is a Diplomate of the American Board of Optometry.
- Yasmin Whayeb, BSc (Hons) MCOptom is an optometrist and PhD student at Aston University, Birmingham, UK. Her research interests include the progression and management of myopia in children, and the choroidal response to optical myopia intervention methods.
- Kyle Klute, OD, owns and practices at Good Life Eyecare, a multilocation practice in Eastern Nebraska and Western Iowa. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry, certified by the American Board of Certification in Medical Optometry, and an editor for the Journal of Medical Optometry.
Learn more about the full slate of speakers here. Register for the event here.
Visit the World Council of Optometry myopia management online resource featuring the standard of care pledge signup page, resolution, and practical tools and information for optometrists here.