EyeDigest Magazine October 2021

info@optometrists.bc.ca 604.737.9907

BC Doctors of Optometry 121 –10551 Shellbridge Way, Richmond B.C, V6X 2W8

CONTENTS

Practice Management & Industry 100th Anniversary of BC Optometry ............................................................................................................. 3 Eye Vitamins - Beneficial to Most, But Harmful to 1 in 6?........................................................................5 Bright Optical Distribution ................................................................................................................................. 7 OCULUS: Myopia Master ..................................................................................................................................... 8 FBC-Funded Researcher Studies Photoreceptor Cell Metabolism in Retinitis Pigmentosa .... 9 Canada's Homegrown Goodness: The MyDryEye Team ...................................................................... 10 Canadian Dry Eye Summit ............................................................................................................................... 13 Scotiabank: The Scotia Professional Plan for Optometrists ............................................................... 14 VuePoint IDS: Earn COPE CE Credits............................................................................................................ 15 3 Reasons Why Your Small Business Needs an Employee Handbook............................................ 17 Penninsula: Award Winning HR Consulting & Health and Safety Outsourcing ......................... 20 Nikon: Your Eyes Deserve The Purest of Light.......................................................................................... 21 The Beauty of Precision Lies in the Details .............................................................................................. 22 Candorvision: Hylo-Dual .................................................................................................................................. 25 CE at Sea Tropical Destination Seminars .................................................................................................. 26 AOE: Optometry CE Anytime. Anywhere. ................................................................................................ 30 AOE: Vision Therapy Webinar ........................................................................................................................ 31 3 Things Every BC Optometrist Should Know About Disability Insurance................................... 32 CooperVision: Kids Should Grow Stronger. Their Myopia Shouldn't. ............................................. 35 Member Benefits: Optomart .......................................................................................................................... 36 EssilorLuxotica: Powering Practice. Empowering You. ........................................................................ 37

Spotlight on a Member Meet the BCDO 2020 Award Recepients .................................................................................................. 38

Programs EyeLearn 2.0: Children’s Vision Program ................................................................................................. 42 Public Education Update ................................................................................................................................. 44 Are You Interested In Locum Work? Let Us Know! .............................................................................. 46

2021 marks 100 years of optometry as a regulated health profession in BC.

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Eye Vitamins Beneficial to Most, But Harmful to 1 in 6?

By Gerry Belgraver Chief Operating Officer, ArcticDX Is it time to utilize pharmacogenetics to guide protocol for your AMD patients? We believe so, and here is why. Sometimes AREDS Vitamins can cause harm.

Thousands of Canadians with macular degeneration, or a family history of the disease, are taking an AREDS eye vitamin with zinc. These vitamins have reduced the risk of vision loss in many patients.

However, many eye doctors are unaware of recent independent research showing that these supplements are harmful to about 15% of patients, speeding up vision loss.

Since the AREDS2 study showed that the biological effect of AREDS & AREDS2 supplements is identical in reducing the risk of progression, this article will use these terms interchangeably.

These newer studies show that many people with specific macular degeneration risk genes benefit greatly from AREDS vitamins. Their risk of wet AMD is reduced not by a meagre 25% but in the range of 50-60%. However, another 15% of AMD patients have other risk genes. For these patients, taking AREDS supplements increases their risk five-fold for developing “wet AMD,” resulting in vision loss and requiring eye injections.

This effect was first validated by Harvard Medical

School ophthalmologist Demetrios Vavvas, MD and his team when analyzing the original AREDS study. They showed that some patients with specific macular degeneration risk genes benefited from AREDS supplements, but it harmed others. This observation was consistent in both a discovery and validation set of patients. Vavvas’ research convinced many that genetic testing is a valuable guide before AREDS/AREDS2 supplement use. Even so, it has remained controversial among eye care physicians, primarily due to strident opposition from one of the patent holders – the US National Eye Institute.

Recently a team of independent retina specialists led by Dr. Stephen Kaufman, MD, sought to resolve the issue using a case-only approach. They looked at patients who already had wet AMD and then retrospectively looked at the genetics of those who did and those who did not take an AREDS/ AREDS2 supplement prior to developing wet AMD. They confirmed a strong interaction between genetics and AREDS supplement use in the development of wet AMD. Their findings supported those of Vavvas and his team.

How was this done? Patients with a reliable history of at least five years of AREDS use (AREDS users) or less than one month of AREDS use (AREDS nonusers) were genotyped. Those assessing the Eye Digest Magazine | 5

AREDS use history were masked to the patient’s genotype, and those doing genetic testing were masked to AREDS use.

If AREDS use increased the risk of wet AMD among ‘zinc-sensitive’ patients, one would expect a disproportionately increased number of AREDS-F users to be ‘zinc sensitive.’ Similarly, if AREDS decreasedtheriskofwetAMDamong‘zinc-tolerant’ patients, one would expect a disproportionately smaller number of AREDS users to be ‘zinc-tolerant’ because AREDS use would have decreased their risk of wet AMD. So, what is the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) recommendation regarding its ‘Age-Related Macular Degeneration Preferred Practice Pattern’? Surprisingly, they continue to conclude that the “routine use of genetic testing for AMD patients is not supported by the existing literature and is not recommended at this time.” However, given the new, strong evidence for the utility of genetic testing to guide AREDS use and the low threshold to avoid potential harm, it appears time for the AAO to revisit this.

The Preferred Practice Pattern also asserts, “One or more prospective clinical trials will need to demonstrate the value of genetic testing in AMD” before clinicians recommend utilization. The

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Kaufman study was prospective, utilizing a caseonly approach. While a true randomized, placebo controlled study would be scientifically desirable, it might not be ethically possible.

Given the evidence for increased risk of wet AMD for ‘zinc-sensitive’ patients, institutional review boards might not approve such a study. Both investigators and patients may be challenging to recruit because ‘zinc sensitive’ patients do not benefit from AREDS/AREDS2 and may risk disease progression.

The Hippocratic Oath “primum non nocere” “first, do no harm” supports genotype-guided treatment until there is compelling evidence that AREDS is safe for all patients.

These tests are readily available in Canada and are simple cheek swabs sent to the lab via Canada Post. Although not covered by provincial health insurance and the cost ($299-$399) may at first glance seem expensive, they are a worthy healthcare investment - especially if you are the one out of the six patients harmed by zinc.

For more information, we recommend watching Dr. Kaufman’s 6-minute video at www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOLHbUL4_xE or feel free to contact him directly with questions at stkaufman@mindspring.com.

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FBC-Funded Researcher Studies Photoreceptor Cell Metabolism in Retinitis Pigmentosa

By Fighting Blindness Canada Fighting Blindness Canada (FBC) is pleased to be supporting Dr. Peter Campochiaro’s (Wilmer Eye Institute, John Hopkins University) research into retinitis pigmentosa (RP). Dr. Campochiaro is a world-renowned clinician-scientist whose research program involves developing new treatments and leading clinical trials to identify new therapies for different types of retinal eye diseases including diabetic macular edema, wet age-related macular degeneration, and RP. In this FBC-funded study, Dr. Campochiaro is studying how metabolic changes impact photoreceptor cell survival in RP. In RP and other inherited retinal diseases (IRDs), vision loss occurs when photoreceptors, the light sensing cells in the retina begin to die. Dr. Campochiaro believes that one of the reasons photoreceptor cells die is because their metabolism (i.e. how they produce energy) is dysregulated.

Cells need energy so that they can function, grow, and survive. Cells extract energy from sugars, such as glucose and there are different ways that the extraction can occur, some ways more efficient than others. Dr. Campochiaro thinks that in RP and other IRDs, the energy extraction process may be

dysregulated in photoreceptor cells, leading to less energy being produced, compromising cell function and survival.

Dr. Campochiaro will be testing which energy extraction methods are the most effective by measuring photoreceptor cell survival in an animal model of RP. He will then use different nutrition and pharmacological strategies to encourage cells to use more efficient energy extraction methods and see if this improves photoreceptor cell survival.

Dr. Campochiaro hopes that this work will identify new ways to reduce cell death and vision loss in RP. Learn about FBC’s mission to advance new treatments and cures for blinding eye diseases and FBC-funded research at fightingblindness.ca Researcher

Dr. Peter A. Campochiaro, M.D. Director, Retinal Cell and Molecular Laboratory

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Canada's Homegrown Goodness: The MyDryEye Team

By MyDryEye.ca

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MyDryEye.ca and the Canadian Dry Eye Summit are owning the dry eye space - but this didn’t happen overnight. The start of MyDryEye.ca started with a simple lunch conversation over 5 years ago between Dr. Trevor Miranda and Dr. Jeff Goodhew. The two wanted to promote dry eye awareness to patients and to create a connected network of dry eye optometrists. “Our goal was to have the public recognize dry eye as a disease and to have dry eye practitioners raise their level of expertise while creating a strong practice builder with treatments” Dr. Miranda says.

Dr. Miranda, the savvy financial wiz, had already reserved the rights to MyDryEye.ca and wanted to put it into action. Dr. Goodhew, MyDryEye tech guru, immediately created and refined the website to what it is today. Over a few years, MyDryEye. ca has been utilized to promote the current understanding of dry eye to patients, however Dr. Miranda and Dr. Goodhew wanted to extend this awareness to their optometry colleagues.

In order to expand the breadth of dry eye education to fellow optometrists, they partnered with Dr. Richard Maharaj who brought years of experience as a clinical educator and scientific writer to help create and chair the annual Canadian Dry Eye Summit (CDES) in 2018. “The collective optometric brain power in Canada is rich, and my goal was to bring forward new voices while changing traditional CE to match the pace of innovation and most importantly, keeping it fun,” Dr. Maharaj notes. Each year he brought in leading dry eye experts from North America and live dry eye technology demonstrations. With each successful CDES, there was a ripple effect of growing dry eye interest from coast to coast in Canada and in the United States. The most exciting aspect was to watch the skill level and confidence of those who attended the summits ramp up to new levels.

Behind the scenes of each successful conference was Ronni Brown, the team’s administrative and event planner. She was brought on by the team

to help organize the conferences and liaise with a growing number of industry partners.

The MyDryEye.ca team also created an online learning platform exclusively for dry eye care and practice management (Learn.MyDryEye.ca). The online platform hosts COPE approved lectures, staff training videos, how-to videos on treatments, technology reviews and an online forum to discuss clinical cases and practice management questions.

Now, eye care providers from all over the world can learn dry eye at their own pace from a trusted source.

With the dry eye subspecialty in optometry blooming, the MyDryEye team recruited Dr. Diana Nguyen as the public education lead to increase dry eye awareness through social outreach. She created MyDryEye Space, which is an educational patient-facing community for dry eye sufferers.

“MyDryEye Space creates the opportunity for dry eye sufferers to learn more about dry eye disease from a reliable source and to connect with dry eye experts”, stated by Dr. Nguyen. She curates digital infographics, writes patient-facing blogs and manages the large social media following on Instagram and Facebook.

At last, dry eye awareness for patients and the latest in dry eye education for optometrists was successfully moving the needle forward in the availability and scope of ocular surface care. Dry eye patients have a reliable source of education with patient-facing content, and are accessing the dry eye doctor locator on MyDryEye.ca to find knowledgeable dry eye optometrists across North America. The doctor locator has unique features that allows patients to find optometrists by location and treatments or procedures offered by each clinic.

COVID-19 forced a halt to all live education programs, and CDES was not immune. The team had to replan, and strategize to shift the CDES into a virtual conference. Drs. Maharaj, Goodhew and Eye Digest Magazine | 11

Nguyen decided to host the CDES live from Toronto in a small studio, with attendees able to attend from the comfort of their own home. Even with COVID-19 restrictions, Dr. Miranda couldn’t help but make a guest appearance as “Trevor on a Stick”. With approximately 325 attendees, the virtual CDES was a success and optometrists were eager for more dry eye knowledge after each lecture. Optometrists were engaged the entire time with the chat function, polling and live Q&A. In a survey of attendees post event, 97.5% said they would recommend CDES to a fellow colleague and 99% of attendees stated they would attend next year’s CDES! Fast forward to the present day and the team is ecstatic to be back live hosting the CDES on November 13th-14th, 2021 with a hybrid mix of live and virtual learning options. Optometrists will have a live trade show and hands-on workshops with vendors and the virtual version will be mirroring the live event with lectures and live demonstrations. Another addition to the CDES will be a 2 hour virtual event, the Dry Eye Innovation Summit (DEIS) on November 12th. This exciting event will focus on providing the latest in leading

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dry eye technology and new product pipelines.

Dry eye awareness has become a hot topic with the public and within the eye care industry at large.

Each CDES broke barriers for dry eye learning and many optometrists post-CDES have added dry eye clinics and aesthetic services to compliment this growing area of eye care. Patients have also found an educational and supportive community, MyDryEye Space, where they can learn about dry eye and most importantly, locate optometrists who have dry eye programs for them. The MyDryEye team will continue to help dry eye sufferers find a dry eye doctor, push the boundaries of dry eye learning and grow the profession as a whole.

Learn More: Canadian Dry Eye Summit 2021 Learn.MyDryEye.ca MyDryEye.ca Connect with the MDE Team: Richard Maharaj Diana Nguyen Trevor Miranda Jeff Goodhew MyDryEye Space Facebook Group (Patients Only)

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3 Reasons Why Your Small Business Needs an Employee Handbook

By Patrick Stepanian Legal Manager and Counsel, Peninsula Canada

There is no doubt that a well-drafted employment contract is critical to protecting the interests of your small business and your employees. An employee handbook, though often overlooked, is just as important a document.

Not creating an employee handbook is a common mistake made by employers. Although it is not required by law, a comprehensive employee handbook is a useful tool for effective HR management.

What is an employee handbook?

An employee handbook is a document that defines a company’s policies, values, vision, and expectations on employee behaviour and performance. It also lays down the disciplinary process to be followed in case of violation of company policies.

It is typically created when a company is started and given to new employees during onboarding.

An employee handbook is also referred to as an employee manual or a staff handbook.

What are the benefits of having an employee handbook?

There are several benefits to creating an employee handbook. A well-drafted employee handbook:

1. Helps with new staff onboarding An employee handbook is an excellent tool to help your new staff understand your company’s values, vision, and culture. It is a written document that details your company’s mission and values, and all your policies and procedures.

It supplements the job contract and the onboarding process by offering additional information on company policies, such as dress code, overtime, confidentiality, vacation, anti-harassment, termination.

As your new staff adjusts to a new workplace, the employee handbook serves as a roadmap they can refer to and get clear directions on what is acceptable behaviour and what isn’t.

2. Streamlines your internal operations By setting down policies and procedures, a staff manual improves communication and reduces conflict in the workplace. Managers and employees can refer to it in case of any issue or disagreement. Clear and comprehensive policies help ensure all employees are treated fairly.

A staff handbook can also answer the commonly asked questions your employees may have about company policies.

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3. Reduces risk of lawsuits An employee handbook ensures you are compliant with federal and provincial labour laws. Clear policies and their uniform implementation reduce risk of discrimination and wrongful termination claims. It can save you time and money that would be spent on litigation, not to mention the negative publicity that can come with it.

It is a good practice to ask your employees to provide a signed acknowledgment of having received and read the employee handbook. The acknowledgment (to be saved in your employee records) serves as proof that the employee was informed of and reviewed the company policies at the start of their employment. This can help protect you in case of termination claims or any disagreements over company policies.

What policies should be included in the employee handbook?

Your industry, business needs and size largely determine the policies and the amount of detail you should include in your staff manual.

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Some basic areas that your employee handbook should cover include: Company background: This includes your history, mission, values, vision.

HR policies: Some basic policies such as code of conduct, terms of employment, hours of work, lunch and rest breaks, dress code, equal employment and non-discrimination policies, occupational health and safety policy, overtime, resignation, and termination policy.

Employment benefits: For example, paid time off such as sick leave and vacation leave, dental insurance, employee assistance program, wellness programs, travel assistance, education and training reimbursement.

What are some good practices to follow when drafting an employee handbook?

There are several things you must keep in mind when developing an employee handbook for your small business.

It is important that you know the federal and provincial labour laws so as to not create any company policies or procedures that may be in violation.

You should develop policies based on the specific needs and challenges of your workplace to reduce risk of liability.

The employee handbook should be easy to read.

It should be written in a clear and simple language that leaves no room for misinterpretation. While it is good to provide details and leave no scope for loopholes, you may not want to make it so lengthy that it becomes unreadable.

Your employee handbook should be regularly reviewed and updated to reflect changing legislation. It should be accessible to all your staff, whether as a hardcopy in your workplace or as a PDF file available to download and view on your office intranet.

Are you looking to create or update your employee handbook?

If you’d like to develop an employee handbook for your business or are thinking of updating your existing one, Peninsula can help.

Our advisers can review your current handbook, work contracts, and any other HR documents, and help you identify any potential issues with your wording or policies.

About Peninsula Peninsula is a trusted HR and Health and Safety advisory, serving over 80,000 small businesses worldwide. Clients are supported with ongoing updates of their workplace documentation and policies as legislation changes. Additionally, clients benefit from 24/7 employer HR advice and are supported by legal assistance.

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The Beauty of Precision Lies in the Details

By Nikon The Nikon Difference From photography to optical lenses, Nikon has developed a long and proud expertise in high-precision optics. Combining Japanese craftsmanship and more than 100 years of innovation, Nikon’s mission is to offer uncompromising quality of vision.

the act of being accurate and exact, taking into consideration all of the fine details. Often, we picture high-tech equipment created to execute a task to perfection. Just like high-tech machinery, our eyes at times need fine-tuning and require help from corrective lenses to keep the same level of precision we were used to.

Nikon strives every day to exceed current limitations and offers the best of Protection, Precision and Aesthetics. As a pioneer of high precision optics, we will continue to pave the way by continuing to introduce technologies for achieving perfection. A commitment we carry with us everyday for the past 100 years.

Vision as Unique as Your Fingerprint Every human is different. We are all formed by a unique DNA setting us apart from other humans.

Our hair, our height, our skin color is influenced by this unique set of genes and of course our vision is distinct as well. Unique as our fingerprints, each patient has a distinct visual preference. In fact, if you think about it, there is no one size fits all pre-determined design. That is why Nikon lenses are not manufactured using the traditional way.

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Nikon Optical Design Engine To offer the most accurate optimization of lenses, the Nikon Optical Design Engine also present in other industries such as Nikon cameras, microscopes and steppers used to make semiconductors are used in the field of ophthalmic lenses.

The Nikon Optical Design engine is a computer specialized in optics used for two things : (1) Research & Development of Nikon products and

(2) the live calculation of Nikon ophthalmic lenses.

This computer keeps in memory all of the Nikon lens designs and in using frame measurements, fitting parameters and prescription, it is able to create a design optimized for each of these elements.

Unlike some other design engines, the Nikon Optical Design Engine works with an infinite loop which will keep running on iterative improvement loops until it reaches a fully optimized design. This process can take up to 5 minutes vs 3-4 days for some older engines.

Experiences Leave an Impression Providing the best customer experience is how you can gain loyal customers. After all, loyal customers promote your business through word-of-mouth and they become advocates for your products and services. Through a personalized customer experience, customers feel more connected to your practice because they receive custom-made solutions to their problems leaving them with a sense of satisfaction. This level of satisfaction is what brings them back to your practice.

So how do we tie in sophisticated designs and lens technologies to the customer experience?

By revealing the invisible and customizing the patient experience through the details.

The Perfect Lens Design Made Especially for You We already talked about the Nikon Optical Design

Engine. What about your unique experiences and preferences when it comes to vision? Did you know we can take this into account?

With SeeMax Ultimate progressive lenses, thanks to its Insights Technology, the patient’s visual needs, preferences and habits are taken into account for a perfectly adapted lens for each patient. Not only is the patient’s prescription taken into consideration but, so is their preferred vision and their previous design worn. This means eye care professionals are able to personalize the design of SeeMax Ultimate specifically for the patient. Simply put, patients no longer have to adapt to a specific lens design. With the co-creation of SeeMax Ultimate, this lens is now adapted for the patient just like a custom-tailored suit fits perfectly for one’s body.

Co-create the Solution with Your Patient You may be asking yourself how this magically works?Withanallnewsensitivitytestmeasurement, the first ever measurement to evaluate sensitivity aberrations, Nikon’s SeeMax Ultimate lenses are designed to make any remaining aberration less visible for your eyes. With this latest innovation, Nikon is able to design lenses that respond specifically to how you see and feel when wearing your lenses.

With the use of an iPad and Nikon’s interactive sensitivity test measurement available as an app, in 3 simple steps (near vision preference, far vision preference and previous design worn), one of the 428,793,750 design possibilities will be selected.

This in turn will result in minimized aberrations that will be as invisible as possible for your eyes.

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a lasting impression that will continue to reap benefits for the years to come.

To add to your patients’ unique visual habits, frames are a great accessory that will expose your unique taste and personality. The different shapes and size of your frames will play an important role in vision perception. With SeeMax Ultimate progressive lenses and SeeMax Infinite single vision lenses, taking into consideration the shape and parameters of your frames will improve the precision of your lens quality.

Your patients will be able to enjoy lenses that are more precise that have been personalized for them. They will have lived a digitized consumer journey in your practice and after wearing the lenses that were recommended by you and adapting to them seamlessly, they will be left with

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"The incredible thing about SeeMax Ultimate is that our wearers were simply amazed by the difference the moment they put it on. Our team adopted it as the go-to-solution once we realized how it works seamlessly for every wearer.”

Kotaro Kato Nikon Lenswear Experience Center, President Nikon’s SeeMax Infinite single vision lenses benefit from a personalized sensitivity measurement for far vision. SeeMax Infinite lenses are personalized to adjust according to a patient’s sensitivity to aberrations for oblique astigmatism and power error.

In conclusion, to leave a lasting impression you need to be unique, offer innovative products and solutions, and a personalized customer experience. Think about your customer journey and how every detail in the process can make a lasting impression.

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CE at Sea Tropical Destination Seminars

By Academy of Opthalmic Education

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AOE was the first to offer and organize COPEapproved CE events on cruise ships. So far we have hosted 14 cruise ship seminars. Holiday, fun, camaraderie and COPE-approved CE. Great way to make friends too. We hope to resume our cruises soon.

Largest On-Line Portal CE, 24/7, on-demand, anytime, anywhere.

AOE always felt that Optometrists did not have easy access to this invaluable source of education. In 2017, we started planning to develop a web-based distance learning or enduring distance learning format fully accredited by COPE and supported by an accredited school of optometry.

On the 25th anniversary of AOE on October 25th, 2019, we finally launched our AOE On- Demand (enduring distance learning format). This now enabled AOE to serve the optometric profession across Canada, as a matter of fact, globally.

When COVID-19 hit Canada in 2020, we quickly introduced live interactive webinars on Zoom and kept building our AOE On-Demand portal simultaneously. Many webinars were offered free of charge to help the profession suffering from lockdown induced losses. Looks like live webinars and online distance learning are here to stay.

In 2020, 50 hours were offered via live interactive webinars. The largest webinar, on refractive surgery by Dr. Baseer Khan, MD was attended by 1095 attendees.

2020 was a special year. AOE launches its first tropical island CE. This was held from January 24-28, 2020 at the Atlantis Resort in Nassau, Bahamas. The event was well attended and our attendees were looking forward to further events in exotic locations. Once global travel becomes safe and routine, we plan to resume these events - possibly in 2022. Let us keep our fingers crossed.

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Patrick Quaid, approved AOE to organize a CE course accredited by COPE for Optometrists and Vision Therapists. This two-day weekend was presented in the prestigious learning facilities of Lakeridge Health in Oshawa, Ontario. The event was chaired by Dr. Patrick Quaid and was very well received. After the great success of the first VT course CE event, AOE was again asked to organize and host the annual international meeting of COVD International in Toronto, Ontario. This was planned and offered in November 2017 at the Sheraton Hotel in Toronto, Ontario. The annual meeting of the COVD Board of Directors was also hosted. Mr. Khan was invited to the board meeting to discuss and explore a formal structured VT course with an accredited school of optometry, just as AOE had done with TPA. After getting the blessing of the COVD board, AOE started working with Salus University to develop their 100-hour course for formal training of Optometrists and Vision Therapists.

After reaching an agreement with Salus University, AOE and Salus offered the VT course across Canada with weekend didactics and workshops.

This course was also well received and was going to be offered in the well-appointed MIT, a part of UHN, in the hospital district of Toronto. Due to the COVID shutdown, this didactic course was quickly modified and offered on Salus University’s e-learning platform. The we labs and clinical workshops will be offered in Philadelphia in 2021 at Salus University’s state-of-the art teaching facilities. Due to popular demand, this course will again be offered online starting January 2022 and the workshops portion will take place in Philadelphia in October 2022.

Another much needed service of education provided to the profession, 2020 was changing the way we live and do business. One of the most important area was educational institutions, universities, colleges, etc. There was sudden and urgent need to have courses and educational materials available online for the students. AOE

decided to offer the access of the CE portal to all students of optometry in Canada and the USA. This was formally accepted by the University of Montreal and Berkley in California and students approached AOE were also given access to this resource.

AOE has been ready and willing to serve the profession under any circumstances. We try level best to keep our costs down as much as possible.

In 2020, many webinars were offered “FREE.” For us, it will always be the profession first. However, we are not a huge company with deep pockets.

We have to rely on our vendor support and sponsorship funding so that we can keep our costs to the minimum and with your support, we will continue this process.

Despite financial limitations, in 2020 and 2021 we held two webinars and the net proceeds were donated to Seneca College for student support inflicted by COVID related job losses. We raised $7,000.00 in 2020 and $6,000.00 in 2021. We will continue our efforts to support students of Opticianry and Optometry and make their load lighter with financial and resource support.

the launch of their 100-hour comprehensive course on Vision Therapy commencing in January 202. This course is open to Optometrists and their vision therapists. This is our second offering after a very successful first launch in 2020. The course didactics are online and accessible anytime until the end of the course. A wet lab and practical sessions will be held at Salus University’s state-ofthe-art facilities in Pennsylvania. The details of this course are available at aoece.com. Please check our website for information on the course and registration.

As soon as we reach a stable situation with the COVID pandemic, we will resume our famous and very much appreciated Optifair Canada Trade Shows and live events. Tropical events are being planned for 2022 in the Bahamas and Aruba and a fall event on Sorrento, Italy.

Coming soon will be modular courses for training your staff and expand the role of Optometric Assistants.

Please register on our portal at aoece.online at no cost and you will be kept current with all the exciting events that are being planned.

AOE and Salus University have also announced

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3 Things Every BC Optometrist Should Know About Disability Insurance

By Alphil Guilaran Executive Director, Financial Literacy Counsel What would you say if someone asked you, “What’s your most valuable asset?”

As an Optometrist, you may say it’s your house, your practice, investment portfolio or maybe even your car. But the reality is, your most valuable asset is your ability to earn an income. While you likely have insurance to protect your house or car, do you have adequate insurance to replace your income, if the unexpected happens?

Whether you are new to practice or an experienced Optometrist, having disability insurance is essential to protect the income you rely on. It is also an effective tool to protect the lifestyle you

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are building for you and your family.

To gain some clarity on the topic, here are the three most important things every Optometrist should know about disability insurance: #1: Disability insurance goes to work when you can’t work.

Disability insurance is a form of personal income replacement, in the event that you are unable to practice Optometry due to an accident or illness.

If you have a mortgage or rent to pay, a student loan or children relying on your income, disability insurance is specifically designed to help pay for

your personal living and lifestyle expenses.

What about business related expenses, if you own an Optometric practice? It is recommended that you have a form of disability insurance, known as Business Overhead Expense (BOE) coverage. A BOE policy will provide cashflow to your practice to keep the doors open and can cover expenses, such as payroll, leases and daily business costs. #2: Know the signs of a good policy To make sure it goes to work when you are unable to work, you need to recognize the three signs of a good policy.

First and foremost, a good policy will protect your specific occupation as an Optometrist. This is known as having “own occupation” disability coverage. You want the peace of mind of knowing that your policy will pay out if you cannot practice Optometry, but can work doing something else.

Be weary of policies that only pay out if you are totally disabled and not able to work anywhere at all.

Second, a good policy not only replaces your income, but makes sure your payout keeps pace with inflation, should you become disabled and make a claim. This is known as a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) feature. You want to make sure you do not lose any purchasing power as the price of goods and services increase over the years due to inflation.

Finally, a good policy will have a “residual” feature that will still provide a partial payout in the event that you cannot go back to work full-time. Let’s say your pre-disability working hours was 40 hours per week and after your disability you can only work 50% of the time or 20 hours. With the residual feature, your policy will still pay out 50% of the benefit. You want to make sure your policy can bridge the earnings gap and make up the difference in income loss. #3: BCDO offers disability insurance and business overhead discounts Are you concerned about paying too much for your disability insurance or BOE coverage? Would you like a second opinion on your current disability insurance and/ or BOE plans?

BCDO has negotiated a special discount with RBC insurance for the benefit of their members.

BCDO has also asked Financial Literacy Counsel (FLC) to help Optometrists understand the discount and provide comprehensive financial planning services to all BCDO members.

Take advantage of your BCDO benefits by setting up a confidential appointment with a financial planner at FLC by: Email: contact@flci.ca Phone: 604.620.6630

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In addition to helping you understand the discounts, FLC will also help you identify your disability insurance or BOE needs and help you understand how your coverage fits into your overall financial, tax and estate planning.

In closing, disability insurance protects your most valuable asset, which is your ability to earn an income. It should have key features to provide you with a greater sense of financial security and it should be part of a comprehensive financial plan that is reviewed yearlyto reflect any changes to your finances and family.

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About Financial Literacy Counsel: Founded in 1999, Financial Literacy Counsel is a boutique financial education and financial planning company committed to creating a financially literate world of stronger families and communities.

They began serving doctors in 2003 through UBC Medicine and were contracted in 2011 by VCH Employee Wellness to provide financial literacy to healthcare professionals. Their Programs are also delivered through BC Doctors of Optometry, UBC Continuing Professional Development, UBC Professional MBA, Vancouver Divisions of Family Practice, Chartered Professionals Accountants of BC (CPA-BC) and Continuing Legal Education Society of BC (CLE-BC). FLC is the winner of the 2020 IFSE Institute Financial Literacy Champion of the year award.

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President's Award The President’s Awards is BCDO’s top award for our profession and has been developed to recognize the exemplary and outstanding professional, and community contributions made by a member of the British Columbia Doctors of Optometry.

Dr. Shannon Cerniuk provides much needed services to various communities throughout the Lower Mainland to those patients who are unable to leave their residences. Her unique approach allows those in hospitals or retirement homes to receive the same level of optometric care they would otherwise receive in an office setting.

Dr. Shannon Cerniuk

Optometrist of the Year The Optometrist of the Year award honours a member who has contributed to the advancement of optometry in a meaningful way over the past year or cumulatively over many years.

Dr. Pavan Avinashi

Dr. Pavan Avinashi is a valuable entrepreneur, public speaker, and liaison for the optometric community of not only BC, but all of Canada. His passion for the profession has lead him to become a regular lecturer for CE events to his OD colleagues as well as an advocate for optometrists everywhere by regularly appearing on public-facing media including TV and news articles.

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Young Optometrist of the Year This Young Optometrist of the Year Award recognizes a member with less than 10 years in the field and has demonstrated outstanding leadership skills both within their profession and in their community.

Dr. Evelyn Lo

Dr. Evelyn Lo is passionate about her profession and is dedicated to all her patients’ vision needs as well as being an advocate for ocular health and the prevention of eye diseases.

On top of all of this, she volunteers her time to international vision programs

Optometrist Assistant of the Year This Optometrist Assistant of the Year Award honours a person who has provided exceptional service.

Ms. Natalia Jette is diligent with each patient and makes sure all their needs have been completely taken care of.

She goes the extra mile without expecting anything in return. She does it because she cares not only about the patients but she cares about her work.

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Ms. Natalia Jette

Optometry Industry Representative of the Year The Optometry Industry Representative of the Year Award honors a person who has provided exceptional services to our doctors.

Mr. Rawn Stokoe

Mr. Rawn Stokoe is passionate about building authentic partnerships with all stakeholders within the Healthcare industry. Over the past number of years, he has assuredly helped build Insight Medical's presence within our province and is consistently a delight to deal with.

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EyeLearn: Online Store & Optometrist Toolkit EyeLearn is BCDO’s newly revamped children’s eye health program, rolling out in urban and rural communities across BC. EyeLearn raises awareness of the importance of eye exams for infants and those under 19 years of age and highlights eye exams for this group are fully or partially covered by MSP. EyeLearn Online Store To accompany the EyeLearn program and to help promote children’s vision health, all featuring the mascot, Opie, we have launched the EyeLearn online store.

The following merchandise are available in the EyeLearn online store: • • • • • • •

Opie stuffed Toy Mouse Pad Stress Ball Sticker Mini Coloured Pencil Pack Brochure Posters

Take a little time to browse through our online inventory. It is super easy to get started. Click here to access our store's home page.

For more information, visit our website and if you have any questions, please email communications@optometrists.bc.ca.

Optometrist Toolkit BCDO has also created a suite of materials for EyeLearn - an Optometrist's Toolkit. Within the toolkit, there are several pieces to help promote children’s vision health: • Four social media posts and accompanying copy.

• Posters of Opie in three sizes if you wish to print it in your offices. This is also available in the EyeLearn online store.

• An email template to invite parents/guardians to book their children’s eye exams, with a banner.

To access the EyeLearn Optometrist Toolkit, please click here.

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Public Education

By BC Doctors of Optometry and Edelman Over the past quarter BCDO has concluded two high-performance, integrated creative and communication campaigns, kicked off our 2021 Public Education Campaign, and created an Eyelearn video. Together, we have reached out to British Columbians throughout the pandemic with a “solve not sell” approach and reminded them optometry services are a crucial part of maintaining their overall health.

Ongoing….

BCDO 2021 Public Education Campaign: Look after yourself “Whatever else you do, don’t ignore you”.

Building on the EyeLearn campaign, we continue to target B.C. parents with children, but this time we are appealing to parents directly. We are focusing on parents who are navigating a pandemic and busily balancing family and work to remind them to look after themselves as well – this can start by booking an optometrist appointment.

The first phase of the campaign went live in July and activated paid ads on Google and Facebook, content on BCDO’s own social channels, Google search engine optimization (SEO) and influencer partnerships reach British Columbians. We focused 44 | Eye Digest Magazine

on urban and rural areas to deliver key messages and drive people to BCDO’s Find a Doctor tool.

When you see our influencer content, organic social posts and ads online, we encourage you to share them!

Heading into October, we will continue to deliver engaging messages on digital platforms and publish the results of a survey commissioned by BCDO on how awareness and perceptions of eye health and optometry visitation have shifted over the last nine months. The most impactful parts of this information will be leveraged to develop earned media communications for Children’s Vision Month to secure media coverage. Through

this original research, we will continue to lead the conversation around the importance of eye health in British Columbia. Stay tuned!

Performance highlights:

EyeLearn Video What could be more fun than a video where some really great, smart kids give eye health advice?

BCDO worked with our partners at Edelman to produce a three-minute film featuring Dr. Harbir Sian and children of different ages from British Columbia. Through engaging Q&As, children and parents will learn about optometry services and the BCDO in an entertaining and engaging way.

Short clips from the video are available at on our Instagram page.

BCDO 2020 Telehealth Campaign Phase 2 In March, we wrapped up the second phase of the Telehealth campaign – an extension to last year’s Telehealth campaign. The campaign focused on reminding British Columbians that their eye health matters, even during a pandemic. We built upon the messaging strategy from Fall 2020 by telling our audience about the safe and available eye care options, like telehealth, and showing them what that looks like during COVID-19.

Eyelearn Campaign The EyeLearn campaign, finished in June, promoted long-term behaviour change among children of 19 years old and under with a refreshed EyeLearn program and through BCDO’s loveable mascot, Opie. We immersed our audience in the world of Opie to talk about eye health in an approachable and memorable way.

Performance highlights:

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Are you interested in Locum work?

Let us know!

BCDO has a “Locum List” of members interested in locum opportunities to assist members looking for short term work coverage.

If you are interested in locum opportunities, please provide us with your contact information: name, email, and phone number. When an opportunity becomes available, we will email our list of locum doctors with the details and those interested can connect directly with the member who posted the ad.

Please email info@optometrists.bc.ca if you would like to be added to the Locum List or if you are looking for locum coverage.

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Stay Safe & Healthy

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