Where In the World is MC?

President’s Insights August 2023

It has been a bit of a whirlwind trip, but it was a great pleasure representing VOSH/International at FEDOPTO’s (Colegio Federación Colombiana de Optómetras Colombian College Federation of Optometrists) 19th Annual International Optometry Congress and visiting the Fundación Universitaria del Área Andina Pereira Optometry Program.

This was my first time attending a FEDOPTO Congress and after a safe and sound arrival in Medellín, Colombia, I was able to immerse myself in what the congress had to offer. I visited and talked to the many vendors present at the big exhibit hall and enjoyed some of the most informative and interesting educational lectures I have ever attended. I especially appreciated the lecture, Diagnóstico Refractivo y Ocular en la Primera Infancia (Refractive and ocular diagnosis in early childhood) by Dr. Guimar Said Malaver (Charity Vision) and Dr. Marcela Frazier (University of Alabama at Birmingham) moderated by Dr. Mónica Márquez (Fundacion Areandina Pereira). I learned many useful skills and tips that I will put into practice as soon as I make it back to Chicago.

The main purpose of my visit was to connect with the Colombian schools of optometry to update them on our work and discuss potentials of collaboration. FEDOPTO leaders generously made a meeting room available on Friday to meet with representatives of the optometry programs in Colombia. Soon to be President of the World Congress of Optometry, Dr. Sandra Block, took time out of her busy schedule to support this VOSH/International activity and I was also honored to welcome Dr. Laura Patricia Gordo Peña, President of FEDOPTO to the meeting. Dr. Marcela Frazier, a cherished, long-time VOSH member and one of our most active and vocal supporters, was instrumental in making sure that everyone felt welcomed and participated. We were able to distribute a detailed fact sheet on SVOSH membership and VOSH programs in Spanish. We are very grateful for the support provided by Dr Carol Pinzon of Fundación Areandina Pereira for the coordination and outreach to the schools before my visit.

I purposely did not prepare a presentation or a fixed program for the meeting as I truly wanted it to be a discussion with the representatives of the optometry programs. I gave a short introduction as to the current focus and work that VOSH/International is pursuing and highlighted the many benefits of membership. Marcela invited current members to speak about the many ways in which SVOSH membership has benefited the students and the community. Prospective members had the opportunity to ask questions about how to apply for, the requirements of, and the benefits of membership. Dr. Laura Gordo Peña spoke about FEDOPTO’s commitment to community service, including annual humanitarian clinics alongside the annual FEDOPTO Congress, and we discussed ways in which VOSH/International could support FEDOPTO’s work by offering educational programs, expert lecturers and skilled and devoted volunteer optometrists.

The meeting, of course, went overtime until we were kicked out of the meeting room. The feedback was very positive, and several programs expressed interest in applying for SVOSH membership or reactivate their SVOSH chapters.

The next stop of my Colombian trip was to visit Pereira, home of the Fundación Universitaria del Área Andina Pereira Optometry Program. I believed that I had followed very detailed instructions on receiving a special passport stamp from Colombian migration to be able to lecture to Colombian optometrists. Dr. Carol Pinzón, Optometry Professor and active member of our SVOSH chapter there, escorted me to the university on Monday morning to find out that the migration’s officer had neglected to provide the requested stamp. As everyone knows, international travel can be an adventure. After a tense couple of hours, Dr. Pinzón was able to smooth out the situation so that the lectures could proceed. I met with the optometry students in the last semester of their studies to present a onehour lecture on OCT of the optic nerve head in a primary eye care clinic. We started with a review of OCT and the conditions that OCT is most appropriate for. Fortunately, just about the time they were starting to lose interest, we switched to reviewing clinical cases. The students were very attentive and asked appropriate and insightful followup questions. When we finished, we had about half an hour before they had to return to class. Surprisingly, the obviously very dedicated students gave up their lunch break to listen to an abbreviated presentation on hybrid contact lenses. In the evening, we were delighted to have about 20 optometrists attend a 50-minute presentation and an hour-long hands-on lab on hybrid contact lenses. Many thanks to Synergeys who graciously donated a Duette and two UltraHealth fitting sets which were used for the lab and then donated to the Areandina Pereira SVOSH chapter. Dr. Pinzón amicably offered to be a test patient so that we could demonstrate how to successfully prescribe both Duette and UltraHealth lenses. If the follow-up questions were any indication, the presentation created a lot of interest in how hybrid lenses could benefit a wide range of patients.

Being able to work and travel internationally is a great opportunity to witness how amazing people are and the benefits of getting to know a new community and share what we know. Our work at VOSH constantly reminds us of how many dedicated and passionate optometrists there are around the world. FEDOPTO’s successful Congress and the impactful Optometry Program at Areandina Pereira are a testament to the high level of education and scope of practice of Colombian optometry and the great commitment of Colombian optometrists to offer the best eye health care to their people. I want to thank all our Colombian colleagues who made this trip such a memorable experience. VOSH/International looks forward to continuing developing a stronger collaboration with our Colombian SVOSH chapters and FEDOPTO.

Sincerely and Best Regards,

Michael Ciszek, OD, FVI, diplomate ABO VOSH/International President