Optician articles from August 2006

Optician archives from August 2006

Cilioretinal artery occlusion Vascular occlusion.
August 25, 2006... DESCRIPTIONThe cilioretinal artery is so-called because it arises from the posterior ciliary circulation and perfuses the retina. It is a congenital anomaly, being present in only 20-30 per cent of people. The cilioretinal artery is seen...

Course recognition.(Advanced Contact Lens Practice)(Brief article)
August 25, 2006... Regulatory authorities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland have accredited the ABDO Diploma in Advanced Contact Lens Practice and the Diploma in the Geometric Optics of Ophthalmic Lens at level 7 on the National Qualifications...

CET grant deadline.
August 25, 2006... Optometrists and ophthalmic medical practitioners are reminded that they must submit claims for their CET payment undertaken in the year to December 31 2005 by August 31 this year. Claims for the agreed sum for 2005 of ?425 must be made in...

Features.
August 25, 2006... Stokes Opticians is very much a family business. Robert Stokes, a contact lens optician, established the practice in 1980 in West Bromwich. Since then he has been supported by his wife on reception and accounts, and gradually joined by their...

Footfall the downfall?
August 25, 2006... Lectures have been listened to, courses attended and techniques adopted.It's official, practices can sell big ticket optical appliances to their customers.The value of products sold through optical practices is rising as is the number of...

Lens is good news for presbyopes.
August 25, 2006... ? CIBA Vision claims it has found the answer for astigmatic presbyopic patients looking to find contact lenses that provide good near vision without the use of spectacles.The near zone diameter of CIBASoft Progressive Toric lenses has been...

Eye and mind.
August 25, 2006... In their day-to-day professional activity, optometrists come in contact with a large variety of eye disorders. However, in many of our patients ocular diseases are associated with various degrees of disability due to visual loss in addition,...

Time to get web-wise.
August 25, 2006... The Optician Index only recently contained a stark warning for the industry showing all areas in decline, from turnover to the number of eye exams handled and frames dispensed. Some of the blame can be attributed to the inexorable rise of the...

Support staff training programme.
August 25, 2006... Merchandising is the branch of marketing theory and practice concerned with maximising product sales - in this instance, contact lenses and spectacles - through product design, packaging, pricing and display. The role of the merchandiser is to...

Onyx was my fitting response.
August 25, 2006... - Having experienced the same problems as Simon Reed (Letters, August 18) in fitting glass bifocals for African patients, I created Onyx frames (pictured) in the early nineties.While, as an optometrist, there is satisfaction when a patient...

Temple influence.
August 25, 2006... ? Charmant's house brand Nodoka conveys the 'tranquility, calm, gentleness, serenity and peacefulness' of Japan.Inspired by the streets of Kyoto, the first collection is influenced by Japanese architecture including traditional Shinto shrine...

Optical patient fraud is lowest in the NHS.
August 25, 2006... Patient fraud was an estimated 0.7 per cent of NHS optical service claims in 2005/06 and cost ?8.2m - but was far lower than pharmacy fraud (1.6 per cent or ?47m at the last count in 2003/04) and dental fraud (3.9 per cent or ?21.1m), according...

A summer record.
August 25, 2006... There are no major changes from June to July, although progressive lenses and AR coats do show an increase. Again, more expensive dispensing is reflected in an increase in sales per eye examination, which has increased to ?140.64, exceeding...

Optometry places filled.
August 25, 2006... The UK's eight optometry schools whittled down more than 5,000 degree applications to around 610 undergraduate places following yet another record-breaking year for A-level results.Amid concerns the exams are getting easier 24.1 per cent of...

Adidas looks to its sports heritage.
August 25, 2006... ? Originals eyewear collection is part of adidas Sport heritage division.Designed and handcrafted in Austria by Silhouette International, the autumn/winter 2006 collection features four new styles.Flyboy is a modern metal version of the...

Retinal nerve fibre layer.
August 25, 2006... As the retina is the principal anatomical site for damage associated with visual loss, objective measures of retinal thickness and retinal nerve fibre layer thickness are key to the detection of pathology. Ocular disease may impact retinal...

Night out at the Ivy.
August 25, 2006... London-based chain Ronald Brown Opticians has rewarded staff at its best performing practices with a meal at London's prestigious Ivy restaurant. Staff at three of the group's 21 practices Paddington, Leyton and Palmers Green were treated to...

Spectacles overview.
August 25, 2006... The spectacles market is one that has remained relatively static in volume and value terms over the last four years. However, a short-term increase in both transactions - 8.9 million units in 2006 - and value - ?1,174m in 2006 - has occurred....

Overseas action.
August 25, 2006... - A propos of his holiday in Cyprus, Moneo asks how UK professional bodies regulate their overseas members. The short answer is that they do not. The GOC is responsible for the regulation of optometrists and dispensing opticians, not the...

Time to get web-wise.
August 25, 2006... The Optician Index only recently contained a stark warning for the industry, showing all areas in decline, from turnover to the number of eye exams handled and frames dispensed. Some of the blame can be attributed to the inexorable rise of the...