Optician articles from May 2006

Optician archives from May 2006

Effectiveness of lubricating daily disposable lenses with different additives.(disposable soft lenses(optic))
May 5, 2006... A new generation of daily disposable contact lenses has been developed to offer improved comfort to wearers. Stefan Schwarz and Joachim Nick describe a study of the comparative clinical performance of two of these lenses, Focus Dailies with...

Allergy Part 2 Differential diagnosis.(eye diseases)
May 5, 2006... In the second in this series looking at allergic eye disease in practice, Dr Iain Phillips describes those anterior allergic conditions likely to present in practice and describes their differential diagnosis (C3963, one standard CET point) ...

BCLA back in Birmingham.
May 5, 2006... The BCLA clinical conference and exhibition returns to Birmingham this year having attracted some 1,200 participants to last year's show The biggest ever BCLA exhibition is taking place at the association's clinical conference at the...

Branch retinal vein occlusion - Management.
May 5, 2006... DESCRIPTION, SYMPTOMS, SIGNS, PREVALENCE, SIGNIFICANCE, DIFFERENTIAL DIAGNOSIS See Branch retinal vein occlusion - Assessment. MANAGEMENT Urgent Initial management relates to any underlying systemic disease or possible glaucoma. Treatment...

Accolade for outlet in ireland.(Specsavers Opticians)(Brief article)
May 5, 2006... Specsavers Opticians' Newbridge branch has become one of the few opticians in the Republic of Ireland to receive the country's national standard for human resource development. The Excellence Through People accolade was presented to practice...

Adopt new ways of selling.
May 5, 2006... Mintel believes the retail profession should concentrate on its links to fashion to stimulate sales Solid, if unspectacular growth is forecast in the latest survey on the profession. In its second in-depth report on the sector in almost as...

Artificial cornea developments The AlphaCor.
May 5, 2006... In the second of her articles on artificial corneas, Celia Hicks describes a prosthesis that is able to help when grafts fail AlphaCor is an artificial cornea for use in patients with corneal blindness where a traditional graft with donor...

Boots in dock over practice collapse.(Boots Opticians )(Brief article)
May 5, 2006... Staff at Boots Opticians could face jail after the company pleaded guilty to safety failures when part of a practice collapsed on a woman in 2003. The incident emphasises the importance of health and safety checks in the profession, and...

Bosses meet with mrs blair.
May 5, 2006... Optical bosses met with the Prime Minister's wife Cherie Blair at a Downing Street reception last week in support of a north west therapy animal centre. Kevin Horkin (right), the boss of Accrington chain Spex Opticians, and trustee of the Lords...

Coping with Macular Degeneration.
May 5, 2006... The first thing that strikes you about this book is that it appears to be only available in normal print. It would seem obvious, however, that a book aimed at AMD sufferers should be available in a number of accessible formats for all possible...

EU Diploma is given green light in Milan.
May 5, 2006... An 'historic step' towards harmonising the profession across Europe was made in Milan this week when the GOC announced that the European Diploma was now a route to UK registration. The partial route has been granted conditional approval by...

Fielmann plans further growth.(sales report of Fielmann)(Brief article)
May 5, 2006... Giant German optical retailer Fielmann increased sales by 14 per cent in the first quarter of this year to U226m and is to expand once more. The Hamburg-based business, which has 544 outlets across the continent and employs 10,500 people,...

Mido previews move to improved venue.(International Mido exhibition)(Brief article)
May 5, 2006... Milan opened its doors to one of Europe's largest events in the optical calendar today with the 36th International Mido exhibition. It will be the last time the show will be held at its current venue. The four-day event, which attracted...

Multiple suited to staff in beige.
May 5, 2006... How are you dressed? Vision Express has just won an award for its new uniform that is due to be rolled out to staff at its 200 UK stores. The company won the 'Best Careerwear Design Soft Tailored' category at the Company Clothing Industry...

NXT name is bought by US manufacturer.
May 5, 2006... A Pittsburgh company has bought one of Europe's largest optical manufacturers. PPG Industries, the US maker of optical resins, has bought Intercast Europe, the Palma-based business which claims to be the global leading manufacturer of...

Sales strong at Luxottica.
May 5, 2006... The manufacturer of the Prada and Dolce & Gabbana eyewear brands has announced first-quarter results for 2006. Luxottica reported a 40 per cent increase in operating income to U192m, slightly below expectations. Retail sales grew 18 per...

Show bookings ahead.(Optrafair event)(Brief article)
May 5, 2006... Optrafair organisers have reported that exhibitors appear to be securing their 2007 show presence early. A quarter of the exhibition is already booked, with 65 stands confirmed, and those companies who have committed to date have booked an...

Small groups offered help with CET process.(certified exercise therapist )(Brief article)
May 5, 2006... The College of Optometrists has launched a new peer review group programme aimed at helping small groups register with CETOptics to obtain CET points. The new programme will mean that any new or existing peer review group may apply to the...

Surgeon 'failed to get consent for lens trial'.
May 5, 2006... The eye surgeon who is facing charges at a General Medical Council disciplinary hearing has admitted that he carried out medical trials without getting patient consent. Dr Deepak Chitkara, whose case was featured in last week's Optician...

That Riviera touch.(Riviera Rimless Glazing Company)
May 5, 2006... Old fashioned skills and modern technology have made excellent optics a reality says Riviera Rimless in Torquay. It is putting its money where its mouth is and offering a two-year anti-breakage warranty on all its Trivex/Hoya PNX rimless work....

Optometry Tomorrow.
May 5, 2006... Outgoing president of the College of Optometrists David Cartwright describes some of the highlights of its recent conference in Bristol The College of Optometrists annual conference, Optometry Tomorrow, was held in Bristol at the...

Service before price brings patient loyalty.
May 12, 2006... Excellent service, good advice and value for money are key themes for practitioners anxious to keep their contact lens patients loyal, new research has found. CooperVision Europe commissioned an independent survey of more than 2,000...

Don't miss the picture quiz.
May 12, 2006... Delegates at next weekend's British Contact Lens Association conference can gain extra points towards their continuing education and training (CET) requirement by taking part in a Picture Quiz compiled by Optician. Approved for two CL CET...

Fears for kids' vision.
May 12, 2006... Half of the nation's parents fail to take their children for regular eye check-ups. New research on parental attitudes has warned that many chose to believe that their children's eyes are adequately tested at school. The study,...

OO warned for failing to maintain registration.
May 12, 2006... An optometrist has received an official warning after she tested hundreds of patients while unregistered. The practitioner said it was an administrative oversight on her part. At a GOC fitness to practise hearing earlier this week Cardiff...

Insight offers free staff training pack.
May 12, 2006... Independents that belong to the Independent Marketing Partnership will get a free package of staff training help from today (May 12). Each topic or 'module' is designed to be used as a self-contained training session within a practice, and...

Are you fitting comfortably?
May 12, 2006... Johnson & Johnson Vision Care has brought back its free 'Are you fitting comfortably?' road show due to 'popular demand'. The contact lens giant first held educational seminars of this type in March, and they proved so popular the company...

Lockyer makes a difference.(services of Vicky Lockyer on Vision Aid Overseas trip)(Brief article)
May 12, 2006... Optometrist Vicky Lockyer (pictured) helped save the sight of hundreds of Africans during a two week mission to Ghana. She took 4,000 discarded spectacles, some of which were collected by her employer Leeds Co-operative on the Vision Aid...

Optrafair boss views new venue for Mido.(exhibition)(Brief article)
May 12, 2006... Optrafair's boss was one of the delegates to deliver his verdict on Mido's new venue this weekend. Malcolm Polley visited the Fiera Milano complex at Rho-Pero, the massive single floor arena near Milan's Malpensa airport, which will...

Specsavers loses its High Court VAT battle.
May 12, 2006... Optical retailers are pondering the impact of optics' latest struggle with the taxman this week after Specsavers lost its appeal against Customs' decision to change the way it calculates the group's VAT bill. Mr Justice Etherton dismissed...

trigger happy pd.
May 12, 2006... Frank Norville (left) receives instruction from Austrian shooting and optics expert Rainer Krischan at Norville's recent shooting day at the National Shooting Centre in Bisley. The day was attended by 30 optical professionals from around the...

Astronaut launches 'Space' frame.
May 12, 2006... Silhouette enlisted the services of an astronaut to launch its 1.8g Titan Minimal Art Space Edition frame at a well-attended event prior to last weekend's Milan Mido exhibition. Astronaut James Wetherbee (pictured) and NASA chief...

B&L offers 2-for-1 solution exchange.
May 19, 2006... Bausch & Lomb is offering UK practitioners two bottles of Renu Multi-Purpose solution for every returned bottle of Renu MoistureLoc following its decision to permanently withdraw the MoistureLoc product worldwide. Professionals have been...

Big three back Eyecare Group.
May 19, 2006... Ciba Vision is to join CooperVision and Bausch & Lomb in helping the 900 members of the independents only National Eyecare Group improve their contact lens offer. The Vision Now own-brand - produced and supported by CooperVision - has been...

Boots' glazing shake-up.(Brief article)
May 19, 2006... Boots has started a glazing trial with Hoya which could lead to the closure of its 28 Regional Glazing Centres and the loss of up to 160 jobs. According to sources within Boots' glazing labs the trial will be conducted among 28 stores. One...

Candida Candidiasis, candidaemia.
May 19, 2006... DESCRIPTION Candida albicans is a fungus that can be described as living commensal with humans. It is commonly found on skin and other oral, gastrointestinal and genital sites. The yeast form of the pathogen is consistent with infection in...

Miller seeks new work challenge.(David Miller retires from Kentoptic)(Brief article)
May 19, 2006... David Miller is to retire as the managing director of Kentoptic after 32 years to seek an alternative outlet for his optical experience. During his time at Kentoptic Miller has taken the firm from little more than an optician's workshop to...

Free contact lens training.
May 19, 2006... Staff from independent practices can take advantage of free contact lens training seminars next month. Bausch & Lomb is to host the two meetings, and independent optometrist Sarah Morgan will deliver the course. The programme will...

Housebound offered 'low cost' eye care.
May 19, 2006... The crowded internet arena for cut-price deals has taken another twist with the launch of a 'low cost' domiciliary service. Home Vision Care is the brainchild of optometrist Chris Gould who is also offering optical professionals franchising...

A course in low vision practice Part 9 - Registration and Inter-professional working.
May 19, 2006... In this article, Barbara Ryan and Tom Margrain look at the process of registration for adults and children in the UK and outline the healthcare professionals that practitioners may need to link with when providing eye care to people with a...

Optics plans to offset shortfall of graduates.
May 19, 2006... Concerns that strikes by lecturers this summer will prevent hundreds of optometry students from graduating are growing. However, the profession has acted to try to maintain the numbers of optometry students working in optical practices. ...

Parliament hears of screening concerns.
May 19, 2006... A rally to petition MPs on the failure to meet National Service Framework (NSF) targets for retinal screening in England took place in Parliament Square this week. Campaigners from Diabetes UK and the Royal National Institute of the Blind...

Riding on the Rip Curl range.
May 19, 2006... Rob Moss reports on the latest range from Rip Curl Eyewear, and in particular its Third Eye goggle camera Imagine being able to film everything you saw. Not too interesting if all you're doing is pushing a trolley round Sainsbury's but if...

The adventures of tinting.
May 19, 2006... Where better than a sun-soaked Milan to announce a tie-up on variable tint sunglass lenses? Rory Brogan reports Oakley and Transitions used the Mido exhibition to announce a partnership programme offering variable tint sunglass lenses in...

Volunteers jump from 11,000ft.
May 19, 2006... Two Vision Aid Overseas volunteers have raised more than [pounds sterling]3,000 for the charity by making an impressive 11,000ft freefall parachute jump late last month. Optometrist Ruth Davies and dispensing optician Anne Hall opted for the...

Acropolis now.
May 19, 2006... Bill Harvey enjoys the high life at the Bausch & Lomb Global Symposium held recently in Athens In introducing this year's Bausch and Lomb Global Symposium on Vision Correction, Alan Farnsworth (senior vice-president and president of...

Marathon runners pledge [pounds sterling]20k.
May 19, 2006... Sixteen industry figures took part in the Flora London Marathon this year pledging to raise over [pounds sterling]20,000. Runners included six from Specsavers, Carl Dwyer from CIBA Vision, Andrew Webb from Bausch & Lomb UK and Neale Pugh...

rose-tinted campaign.
May 19, 2006... Specsavers' publicity team has been shortlisted for a national corporate social responsibility award after the multiple raised over [pounds sterling]30,000 for Breakthrough Breast Cancer. Specially commissioned rose-tinted spectacles were sold...

Scottish practitioners fail new GOS form test.(eye examinations)(Brief article)
May 19, 2006... The Scottish NHS has warned practitioners that there is a higher level of failed claims for eye examinations since the introduction of the new contract. A letter from the Practitioner Service (Dental & Ophthalmic) department of NHS...