(For previous issues of the ICO Leader Letter, see www.icoph.org/news/letters.html.)
The Congress also marked the last meeting of the International Federation of Ophthalmological Societies (IFOS), which voted to change its name to the International Council of Ophthalmology (ICO). The 2008 WOC was widely praised for the breadth and depth of the scientific program, excellent organization and staffing and unforgettable social events. It surpassed all expectations, and great thanks are due to Congress President Dennis Lam, MD, Scientific Program Committee Chair Steve Ryan, MD and all the rest of the superb team that organized it and others who contributed in many ways. President Lam was correct when called the 2008 WOC in Hong Kong the "Olympics of Ophthalmology." - Bruce Spivey, MD, ICO President 2. Highlights of the 2008 WOC 
I would like to echo Dr. Spivey in thanking all those who made the 2008 World Ophthalmology Congress® an outstanding success, particularly the Organizing Committee, Congress staff and speakers. We received critical support from the ICO, College of Ophthalmologists of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Ophthalmological Society, Asia-Pacific Academy of Ophthalmology, Chinese Ophthalmological Society and Hong Kong Government. Among the highlights of the Congress were:
I hope you learned a great deal and have wonderful memories of the Congress and Hong Kong. - Dennis Lam, MD, President, 2008 World Ophthalmology Congress and ICO Council Member 3. 2010 World Congress and WOCtoberfest in Berlin  With the outstanding 2008 WOC in Hong Kong as inspiration, we are already hard at work planning the 2010 World Ophthalmology Congress®, which will be June 5 - 9 in Berlin, hosted by the German Ophthalmological Society (DOG) and co-hosted by the German Academy of Ophthalmology (AAD).
Please mark your calendars and plan to join us. 2008 WOC Scientific Program Director Stephen Ryan, MD, will work with Professor Gabriele Lang, MD, on the scientific program for Berlin, with Congress General Secretary Anselm Kampik, MD, organizing the program for the AAD. The 2010 WOC will also offer subspecialty days and instruction courses. The main social event will be a Bavarian-style Octoberfest, to be called the WOCtoberfest. For more, see www.woc2010.de. - Gerhard Lang, MD, ICO Council Member and President, 2010 World Ophthalmology Congress 4. MEACO Will Host 2012 WOC in Abu Dhabi At its meeting in Hong Kong, the International Council of Ophthalmology (ICO) approved Abu Dhabi, capital city of the United Arab Emirates, as the site for 2012 World Ophthalmology Congress®, which will be hosted by the Middle East African Council of Ophthalmology (MEACO). I visited Abu Dhabi just before the WOC in Hong Kong and am excited to be meeting there in 2012. It is an appealing location with excellent facilities and a strong commitment to support the WOC. "This is the first time in 150 years that the World Ophthalmology Congress will be held in the Middle East African Region, and MEACO proposed Abu Dhabi as the site," said MEACO President Abdulaziz AlRajhi, MD. "MEACO will strive to fulfill the trust placed in it by the ICO and the international ophthalmic community and make this a truly historic meeting." The 2014 World Ophthalmology Congress® will be in Tokyo, hosted by the Japanese Ophthalmological Society. It has been scheduled March 31 to April 4, during cherry blossom time. The 2016 WOC will be in the Americas, with the ICO Board to decide on the host and venue when it meets in Berlin in June 2010. The 2018 WOC will be in Europe, with a decision on that venue in 2012. At its meeting in Hong Kong, the ICO approved a revised policy on future WOCs with rotation among four regions: Asia-Pacific, Europe, the Middle East/Africa and the Americas. You can review the new policy at www.icoph.org/congress/policies.html. - Bruce Spivey, MD, ICO President 5. IFOS Is Now the ICO
The best-attended General Assembly of the International Federation of Ophthalmological Societies (IFOS) in history was also the last, as Representatives of more than 50 IFOS member societies approved revised Statutes that change the name of the organization to the International Council of Ophthalmology (ICO). Those societies are now members of the ICO, and the former Council is now the Board of Trustees of the ICO. The roles and relationships have not changed, just the names. Prior to the vote in Hong Kong, IFOS was the official name of the organization, with the ICO serving as the executive body. But over the years the "ICO" became better known than IFOS, leading to considerable confusion and a proposal to adopt a single name. The next General Assembly of the ICO will be on June 5, 2010 at the World Ophthalmology Congress in Berlin. - Jean-Jacques De Laey, MD, ICO Secretary General 6. First World Ophthalmic Education Colloquium (WOEC) in Hong Kong
More than 100 educators from around the world reported on new initiatives and proven methods for training and continuing education of ophthalmologists and other eye care providers in the first World Ophthalmic Education Colloquium (WOEC) at the World Ophthalmology Congress in Hong Kong. In 18 sessions on June 28, speakers covered topics ranging from teaching practical skills to medical students, training allied eye care personnel, and competency-based residency training to how teach ophthalmic subspecialties and exciting examples of online education. One highlight of the WOEC was an inspirational luncheon keynote talk on "Direction & Development of Ophthalmic Education in the Coming Decade," by ICO President Bruce Spivey, MD. Dr. Spivey reviewed research on how adults learn and compared it to how medical students, residents and ophthalmologists are trained and the continuing education programs that are offered now. He outlined different learning styles and made specific suggestions for enhancing each level of training and CME. Dr. Spivey proposed that the WOEC be the first of a series of regular meetings of ophthalmic educators focused on elevating the level of training and continuing education worldwide. I heartily endorse this proposal. - Mark Tso, MD, DSc, ICO Director of Education 7. Selected 2008 WOC Presentations Available Online
Supported by a grant from Genentech to the International Council of Ophthalmology Foundation, the ICO is offering all of the talks from the World Ophthalmic Education Colloquium (WOEC) and 24 other selected presentations from the World Congress in Hong Kong online. At ico.scientificabstracts.org, you will find all of the slides from the WOEC plus slides with audio from two dozen presentations selected from other symposia. For those with audio, you will need to advance the slides to match the words of the speaker. Please let us know if you find it useful to have these presentations available online. If the response is positive, we will seek support for making more of the WOC available in the future. Bradley R. Straatsma, MD, JD, President, ICOFoundation 8. Next General Assembly and World Ophthalmology Congress (WOC)
Other future ICO/IFOS Meetings: www.icoph.org/lead/icomeet.html. 9. Coming in the Next ICO Leader Letter: New ICO World Ophthalmology Residency Development (WORD) Web Site 10. More News For more news of the ICO and international ophthalmology and resources for ophthalmologic leaders, see the ICO's Eye Site at www.icoph.org. 11. Request for Other News and Resources Do you have other news of international ophthalmology or know resources (particularly on the Web) that would be valuable to ophthalmologic leaders? Please let us know at leader@icoph.org. 12. Comments, Change of Address, Privacy Policy, Subscribe and Unsubscribe Send comments and suggestions for the Leader Letter to leader@icoph.org. You are subscribed as [contact-Email]. Change your address by sending e-mail to: leader@icoph.org. We do not share e-mail addresses with anyone else. Check our privacy policy at: www.icoph.org/ic/privacy.html. To subscribe to the Leader Letter, visit www.icoph.org/news/subscribe.html. To unsubscribe, reply to this e-mail and type "unsubscribe" (without the quotes) as the subject, click on the unsubscribe link at the bottom of this page, or send an e-mail to leader@icoph.org. You can read this ICO Leader Letter online at www.icoph.org/news/leader0808.html. For previous issues, go to www.icoph.org/news/letters.html. Copyright © 2008 International Council of Ophthalmology. All rights reserved. |
