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ICO Leader Letter

April 2010, Volume 7, Number 4

1. Countdown to WOC 2010

At this mailing there are only 43 days until we meet at the World Ophthalmology Congress (WOC) 2010 in Berlin. More than 6,000 ophthalmologists from over 100 different countries have already registered.

You can choose from 2,000 speakers in more than 700 scientific sessions, and much more. You will not want to miss the World Ophthalmology Congress (WOC), June 5-9, 2010 in Berlin.

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

I encourage you to join us and register now for WOC 2010 if you have not already. There are 17 days left to register before the early bird registration pricing expires on May 10.

Please read on for the announcement of the ICO Medal Recipients, a new Peter Watson Award, a new look (visual identity) for the ICO, APAO Sydney 2011, and a reminder about access to the AAO’s ONE Network.

- Bruce Spivey, MD, ICO President

2. Congratulations to ICO Medal and Award Recipients

Congratulations to our colleagues who were selected by the ICO Board of Trustees to receive the following Medals and Awards:

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

• This medal is the most prestigious medal in ophthalmology and has been named the Nobel Prize in Ophthalmology. The Gonin Lecture was delivered by Alan C. Bird on Friday, March 12 in the Jules Gonin Eye Hospital in Lausanne, Switzerland.
• Professor Bird gave a lecture emphasizing his work on onchocercosis and on translational research in retinal dystrophies. His presentation is available at www.icoph.org/ppt/BirdLausanne2010.ppt (PDF - 6.3 MB).

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

• Dr. Soubrane delivered the Jules François Memorial Lecture at the spring meeting of the Belgian Ophthalmological Society in La Hulpe near Brussels on March 6, 2010. She spoke on “Imaging in Age Related Macular Degeneration.” Her presentation is available at www.icoph.org/ppt/Soubrane2010.ppt (PDF - 3.6 MB).

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

• Dr. Khan will give the Duke-Elder Memorial Lecture on May 26, 2010 during the annual congress of the Royal College of Ophthalmology in Liverpool.

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

• Dr. Schlotzer-Schrehardt will give her lecture at the WOC 2010 in Berlin during the Anatomy/Pathology Session on Sunday, June 6, 16:00-17:30 in Hall 7 of the International Congress Center.

All of the ICO Medal awardees will be recognized at the Opening Ceremonies of the 2010 World Ophthalmology Congress in Berlin.

- Jean-Jacques DeLaey, MD, ICO Secretary General

3. Peter Watson Award for Outstanding Examination Performance

We are most pleased to initiate the Peter Watson Award this year, 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 recognize 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.

The 2010 Examinations were held last week on April 15. We had 1,990 candidates register to take the Basic and Clinical Sciences Examinations this year. As a reminder, the new ICO Advanced Examination will be held on October 21, with an application deadline of July 31, 2010.

- David Taylor, FRCOphth, ICO Director for Examinations

4. New ICO Visual Identity

As I announced in the April ICO Notes, we have 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: www.icoph.org/pdf/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. I hope you will agree that it is fresh, modern and eye-catching.

We will be gradually changing our communications to reflect the new identity and hope to launch the new Web site by June.

If you have any questions about the use of the new ICO identity, please write to ICO Communications Manager Monica Slater at mslater@icoph.org.

- Bruce Spivey, MD, ICO President

5. ICO Co-sponsors APAO 2011 in Sydney

The International Council of Ophthalmology (ICO) and Asia-Pacific Academy of Ophthalmology (APAO) invite you to join us at the 26th Congress of the APAO in Sydney, Australia, March 20-24, 2011 at the Darling Harbor Convention and Exhibition Center.

The ICO is a co-sponsor of the 2011 APAO Congress, and it will be hosted by the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists (RANZCO).

The Scientific Program Committee, under Professor Charles McGhee, is assembling an exciting and stimulating scientific program, which will enable both comprehensive ophthalmologists and sub-specialists the opportunity to update their knowledge and skills.

Please mark your calendar for next March 20-24 in Sydney. More details about the scientific program, registration, and housing are available on the Congress website: www.apaosydney2011.com.

We look forward to the participation of ophthalmologists and eye care professionals from the Asia Pacific region and all over the world.

- Frank Martin, MD, APAO President and ICO Board of Trustees Member

6. Access Ophthalmic Education on the AAO’s ONE Network

I would like to remind you that ophthalmologists in developing countries have access to the American Academy of Ophthalmology’s Ophthalmic News and Education (ONE™) Network regardless of their ability to pay. The ONE Network (one.aao.org) is a comprehensive educational online resource, and the AAO and the ICO have collaborated to offer complimentary access for ophthalmologists in developing countries.

We jointly formed an International Advisory Panel to suggest how the ONE Network might be adapted for international use. In response to this, the AAO is launching a text-only version of the ONE Network to make it more accessible through various connection speeds and will be adding educational resources from different regions.

Societies in 26 developing countries have already arranged to make the ONE Network available to their members’ from Afghanistan and Azerbaijan to Haiti, El Salvador, Nigeria, Slovenia, Somalia and Vietnam, among many others.

I encourage societies in other developing countries to make similar arrangements with the Academy, and ophthalmologists can also sign up individually.

To arrange for access, visit www.aao.org/education/one_application.cfm. For questions or to arrange access for ophthalmologists in your country, contact Jane Aguirre, AAO’s Vice President for Global Alliances, at jaguirre@aao.org.

- Eduardo Mayorga, MD, Chair, ICO Task Force on Emerging Technologies for Teaching and Learning

7. WOC 2010 News

• The WOC 2010 final Scientific Program is now available at www.woc2010.org/scientific-program.
• Register before May 10 to take advantage of Early Bird rates: www.woc2010.org/registration.
• Find WOC 2010 on Facebook
  Become a fan! www.facebook.com/WOC2010Berlin
• Help Promote WOC 2010
  Please add a link to the Congress, www.woc2010.org, to your Web site. Download promotional tools from www.woc2010.org/downloads.html. [Username: WOC2010 Password: See_you]

8. Next ICO Meetings and World Ophthalmology Congress (WOC)

• ICO Board of Trustees: June 4, 2010, Berlin, Germany
• ICO General Assembly: June 5, 2010, Berlin, Germany
• World Ophthalmology Congress®: June 5-9, 2010, Berlin, Germany (www.woc2010.org)
• Other future ICO Meetings: www.icoph.org/lead/icomeet.html.

More News

For more news of the ICO and international ophthalmology and resources for ophthalmologic leaders, see the ICO’s Web site at www.icoph.org.

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.

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