By Mark Tosh
Friday, June 21, 2019 10:32 AM
As of about midday on June 21, we officially began the summer season of 2019. So, basically, what this means is that if you haven’t already scheduled an amazing summer adventure, then you’ve missed out on the best beach rentals, the hot summer shows and much of the off-peak visiting times for just about every national park.
By Staff
Tuesday, April 9, 2019 12:05 PM
On April 9, Alcon debuted as an independent, publicly traded company as it completed its separation from Novartis. The company’s shares begin trading yesterday on the SIX Swiss Exchange and New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the symbol “ALC.” Alcon is one of the largest eyecare device companies in the world, with complementary businesses in Surgical and Vision Care. The company has a global presence in 74 countries and serves patients in more than 140, with fast-growing businesses in emerging markets. According to a news release from the company, Alcon has a wide array of eyecare offerings in the industry with products that can treat eye disorders at each stage of life. “For more than 70 years, Alcon has been dedicated to helping people see brilliantly and now, as an independent company, we are pursuing even more opportunities to further that mission,” said David Endicott, CEO of Alcon.
Read More.
By Staff
Monday, April 8, 2019 4:01 PM
A year ago, 27-year-old Patrick Reed was relatively unknown outside the world of professional golf. But after a drama-filled Sunday—and hearty challenges from some of the biggest names in golf—Reed rolled in a 3-foot putt for par on the 18th hole at Augusta National to win The Masters by one stroke. He picked up his first major championship that Sunday in April a year ago, and all of the notoriety that comes with winning the most prestigious event in golf (if not all of individual sports). Fortunately for
Reed, however, he had the support of new contact lenses during last year’s tournament, which he credited for helping him improve his putting on the always tough Augusta greens. Just two weeks before The Masters he was fitted for his first pair of contact lenses at a Vision Source practice in Texas (he lives in San Antonio).
Read More.
By Staff
Monday, April 8, 2019 3:58 PM
Clinicians can add yet another study to their arsenal of evidence supporting the benefits of outdoor activities for patients at risk for myopia. Researchers from the Illinois College of Optometry found school-aged children who spent more hours doing outdoor activities per week had a reduced chance of developing myopia. Since myopia is on the rise globally, the study looked at a possible connection between reduced risk of myopia development, myopic shift and axial elongation and additional hours spent outdoors. The study found the risk of myopia development in one year was lower in children who spent more hours doing outdoor activities per week, but the outcome varied among several studies.
Read More.
By Staff
Monday, April 8, 2019 3:50 PM
At one large company in New Zealand, some employees no longer work on Fridays. Others don’t work Wednesdays. But everyone is paid a full-time salary. Perpetual Guardian, a statutory trust company with 240 employees, first tested a four-day workweek in early 2018, collaborating with academic researchers from two Auckland universities to study the impact on its business. After the eight-week-long trial, employees reported lower levels of stress, higher levels of job satisfaction, and a much greater sense of work-life balance. Just as significantly, despite the reduced hours, productivity didn’t decline. In November, the company decided to make the changes permanent. Andrew Barnes, the company’s founder, has thus far seen no downside. “In fact, the company is performing better than it did last year.” Click
here to read the full story from
Fast Company.
By Staff
Friday, April 5, 2019 5:30 PM
Stephanie Doherty is a London-based optometrist whose main focus is special effects contact lenses. Doherty graduated from Cardiff University Wales in the summer of 2013, and went on to complete her pre-registration year, which in the U.K., means you work under a practicing optometrist for one year before taking the Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) and registering with the college of optometrists. In addition to standard optometry, Doherty wanted to incorporate her creative side with her optometry. Her love for making costumes for themed parties sparked her interest in special effects (sfx) contact lenses. With so many unsafe and cheap online lenses available, Doherty decided to research safe alternatives. This led her to become involved in the makeup and film industry and launched her career as an sfx lenses optometrist.
Read More.
By Staff
Friday, April 5, 2019 5:27 PM
These words come in the frenzy of the upcoming Expo East with my mind anticipating the comforting calm post show. But in the right-here-and-now I’m set in deep sadness. Al Berg, a visionary deeply ingrained in this scribe’s journey and of equal impact as a friend, has died. The only way I seem capable of coping is with some personal anecdotes. I’m in the company of Al and his wife Gayle, witnesses to an ORBIS Flying Hospital mission in Kingston, Jamaica, facilitated via support from Marchon Eyewear. We are en route to the Kingston airport where the flying hospital DC-10 jet is providing much needed medical services and education to numerous patients. Driving through Kingston’s rough Trenchtown aboard a dilapidated school bus, I note a group of precious school kids in their wonderful parochial uniforms. I note they are the heart of Jamaica’s future. Al sincerely notes, “We need to get their eyes in shape so they can better see that future.”
Read More.
By Mark Tosh
Friday, April 5, 2019 2:52 PM
A year ago, 27-year-old Patrick Reed was relatively unknown outside the world of professional golf. But after a drama-filled Sunday—and hearty challenges from some of the biggest names in golf—Reed rolled in a 3-foot putt for par on the 18th hole at Augusta National to win The Masters by one stroke. He picked up his first major championship that Sunday in April a year ago, and all of the notoriety that comes with winning the most prestigious event in golf (if not all of individual sports).
By Staff
Friday, April 5, 2019 12:07 PM
As difficult as it is to believe, Golden Stare Warriors star Stephen Curry, who is arguably the best shooter on the planet, has had trouble seeing for his entire NBA career. Curry has the condition Keratoconus, which causes distorted and blurred vision. So, Curry recently got contact lenses. It's probably not an accident that following a slump after the All-Star break, he went on a nine-game streak with over five 3-pointers per game. Curry says his contacts have entirely changed the game for him. “It’s exactly that,” Curry said when asked if he feels like he has new eyes. “It’s like the whole world has opened up.” That could only spell trouble for the opposing teams. Read the
story on USA Today Sports.
By Staff
Thursday, April 4, 2019 4:11 PM
NEW YORK—With Expo still fresh on everyone’s minds,
Vision Monday presents a
slideshow to recap some of the sights and excitement that helped make up Vision Expo East. From new booths on the show floor to special product launches and company-sponsored events, it was a busy few days for everyone at Vision Expo East 2019. And if you missed the Expo Party slideshow from
VM, click
here to catch up on all the nighttime festivities. To read all of the Digital Editions of the Show Dailies, go to the
Issue Archives page on
VisionMonday.com.
Read More.
By Staff
Thursday, April 4, 2019 4:08 PM
In today’s environment of privacy concerns, data breaches, and ransomware and burdensome HIPAA regulation, ODs need to be extra vigilant in protecting data. As a consultant with
Practice Compliance Solutions (PCS), Peter J. Cass, OD, uses several approaches to safeguard his practice, and recommends other practices do the same. There are several keys to protecting your practice’s data: analysis of the practice; proper network setup; data protection; updates; and staff training. Read more about safeguarding your practice’s data in this feature from
Review of Optometric Business.
Read More.
By Staff
Thursday, April 4, 2019 3:54 PM
The food we eat is putting 11 million of us into an early grave each year, an influential study shows.
The analysis, in the Lancet, found that our daily diet is a bigger killer than smoking and is now involved in one in five deaths around the world. Salt—whether in bread, soy sauce or processed meals—shortened the highest number of lives. Researchers say this study is not about obesity, but "poor quality" diets damaging hearts and causing cancer. The Global Burden of Disease Study is the most authoritative assessment of how people are dying in every country in the world. The latest analysis used estimates of countries' eating habits to pin down how often diet was shortening lives. The dangerous diets were those containing: too much salt, 3 million deaths; too few whole grains, 3 million deaths, too little fruit, 2 million deaths. Read the full story in the
BBC News.
By Staff
Wednesday, April 3, 2019 4:20 PM
NEW YORK—From recognizing men and women as major players in optical to celebrating company partnerships and products, New York City was a busy place to be during Vision Expo East’s nighttime festivities. Here’s a
slideshow of some of the major parties that took place around town the week of March 18. Look for more Vision Expo East photos coming soon on
VisionMonday.com. To read all of the Digital Editions of the Show Dailies, go to the
Issue Archives page on
VisionMonday.com.
Read More.
By Staff
Wednesday, April 3, 2019 4:17 PM
As an optician and member of the optical staff, there are so many elements involved in our job of serving our patients. It's a fine line to walk as we provide advice and guidance like a consultant but also hold the responsibility of a salesperson. That balancing act can be tricky: we
do care for our patients, so we don't want come across too pushy or make the encounter uncomfortable. It's so important to remember that our experiences with patients help create a relationship between them and the practice. Find out more about building loyalty in this feature by Carissa Dunphy of
OpticianNow.com in
Women In Optometry.
Read More.
By Staff
Wednesday, April 3, 2019 4:08 PM
The beauty industry, which increasingly aims to cater to every creed and color, has largely ignored visually impaired people like Ha. This is bizarre when you consider that 36 million people worldwide are totally blind, and 217 million have moderate to severe visual impairment. “People think just because blind women can’t see, they don’t care about what they look like,” says Sam Latif, who was diagnosed with low vision at five years old due to a condition called retinitis pigmentosa, eventually losing her sight completely in early adulthood. “They think that the visually impaired don’t spend money on beauty products or can’t apply makeup so they’re not relevant to this industry. Fortunately, that notion is being challenged from the inside by people like Latif — she is Procter & Gamble’s special consultant on inclusive design, a new role that helps ensure products are designed, packaged, and advertised to be inclusive for the 1.3 billion people worldwide who have a disability. Change is also coming thanks to the success of blind and visually impaired beauty bloggers, like YouTuber
Molly Burke, who has 1.7 million subscribers, and
Lucy Edwards, CoverGirl’s first blind beauty ambassador. Click
here to read more.