VisionMonday

World Council of Optometry Seeks Nominees for Two International Awards

August 24, 2012 12:30 AM



LONDON—To recognize optometrists who have made significant contributions to global eye and vision care, the World Council of Optometry (WCO) is requesting nominations for its Distinguished Service Award and its International Optometrist Award.

The Distinguished Service Award is WCO’s highest honor and is awarded to an optometrist who has made an outstanding contribution to the achievement of WCO’s vision and mission to create a world where high quality eye health and vision care are accessible to all. Past winners include Anthony Di Stefano, OD, Med, MPH, vice president of academic affairs and professor of public health at Salus University in Elkins Park, Penn.

The International Optometrist Award (previously known as the International Optometrist of the Year Award) is given to an optometrist who has made an outstanding contribution to the development of the profession worldwide. Previous recipients of this award include U.S. optometrist Tom Little, OD, who spent 33 years providing eyecare in Afghanistan and was killed in August 2010 while leading a humanitarian health mission in Nuristan province, and Norwegian optometrist Hans Bjoern Bakketeig for his contribution to “Help Moldova,” a project which trains eyecare professionals in that country.

“These awards give us all a chance to reflect on how far the profession has advanced so far,” said Tone Garaas-Maurdalen, WCO president, “and they are a way for WCO to show the optometric community how grateful we are to the fantastic work that is taking place around the world. There are many optometrists who make an outstanding contribution to the profession, and I urge our members to recognize their community by nominating them for these awards.”

Nominations can be made online at www.worldoptometry.org and must be received by Oct. 1, 2012. Recipients will be announced at the WCO General Delegates’ Meeting in Malaga, Spain, in April 2013. The meeting will take place alongside events hosted by the European Academy of Optometry and Optics, the European Council of Optometry and Optics and the Spanish General Council of Optometry.