News J A N U A R Y- M A R C H 2 0 1 1 E D I T I O N
Presentation
Darwinism
Only The Best Survives!
Dr. Nelson Merchán Professional Issues Manager Johnson & Johnson Vision Care South America
Global Education
The global education of our members, understood as a continuous developing process of the multiple professional, scientific, and humanist dimensions, is the cornerstone of the The Vision Care InstituteTM First Class. In accordance with this obiective, this edition of your News will cover the following topics:
New Courses Phase 3
How to Keep High Professional Profile
Dr. Enrique Humberto Tilli Esteves O.D.
Benefits In Box
Darwinism. Only the Best Survives! It is an article that reminds us how professionals nowadays must update their knowledge in clinical matters, adaptation and monitoring as well as in management, marketing, and customer service to face the new demands in the field. Currently professionals in the field focus on ways to promote themselves and the added value they offer their patients, rather than their degrees or scientific knowledge in their specific field. New Courses for 2011. They are thought in order for the contact lens professional to be recognized as a real specialist, a social actor with authority, who can generate change and promote public health. The principal topics will be: advanced contactology, the ideal cornea, clinics with acceleration stabilizing lenses, predictable and safe fittings, administration and marketing of your own business, discussions about Medical Histories, how to write an article, as well as other important topics. From Venezuela, in our section “Face to Face” Doctor Enrique Humberto Tilli Esteves will be with us. He is a specialist in high level contactology. In an nice interview, he will share his secrets on how to be updated, the tools he uses to be constantly abreast of new developments and how academia is fundamental for the foundation of a professional career, and only continuous education can result in a high level of professionalism. Finally, we invite you to play an active role and enjoy our professional forum and blogs on our web page www.tvcibogota.com. This tool is a basic way to keep updated, and to foresee and create links to achieve global education.
de
Editorial
Darwinism
Only The Best Survives! Welcome 2011. A time of changes, new challenges and globalization in the field of contactology! The world has started to homogenize its contact lenses adaptation practices, creating a collective awareness of its use. It is clear that the attributes of comfort, beauty and practicality in the daily routine of individuals make contact lenses the corrective option with the highest growth rate of users. Only a decade ago they were defined as a “special” or “exclusive” product, limited to only some users. The visual health professional finds that globalization brings better skills, clinical competence and generates better proposals of corrective solutions. These concepts are the key to generate positive decisions with potential customers. Their knowledge of the skilled professional in clinical matters, adaptation, and user monitoring, as well as the administration, marketing and customer service make the user feel safe, and generate customer confidence and loyalty.
Dr. Nelson Merchán Professional Issues Manager Johnson & Johnson Vision Care South America
Currently professionals in the field seek ways to promote themselves and the added value they offer their patients, rather than their degrees or scientific knowledge in their specific field. The contact lens user is looking for a friend of his eyes, a person who can assure practicality, comfortability and safety with his final correction selection. All in all, the user seeks someone who can offer a better life style. This is an invitation for us in the profession to create a “change of attitude” in 2011, and to see the patient or potential contact lens user as a human being who looks for timely and reliable assistance, impeccable clinical service, as well as a series of services and values that imply loyalty and professional commitment. Welcome to change; It depends on you to make it happen! I wish you professional success. Best regards,
NELSON L. MERCHÁN
New Phase 3 Courses The Vision Care InstituteTM First Class’s first year objectives (phase one) were to make the institute known. In this light, it focused on finding proactive answers that would offer a better optical option to daily patients utilizing soft lenses. In the second year (second phase), we worked on clinical and critical judgement guidelines to motivate professionals to formulate concrete tasks of commitment and proactivity in their business and personal growth. This new year, we start phase three, and we will develop a new theory- a practical agenda that aims to make the contactology professional to be recognized as a real specialist, a social actor with authority, and a professional that generates cultural changes in society by promoting public health In order to achieve these goals, we have designed an academic program. Some of the principal topics we will introduce are: Contactology nowadays: The objective is that the contact lens specialist be confident when making correction decisions and assisting the user in overcoming possible objections. The ideal cornea: In this topic the professionals will learn to identify most of the added value that they can offer the user when they are adapting the user with contact lenses, taking into account metabolic factors that must be considered in any adaptation process. Risk elimination: The purpose of this area is for the contact lens specialist to understand various adverse events and learn to prevent them with high confidence by understanding and gaining knowledge of the possible risk factors
Clinic experiences with cutting edge toric contact lenses: This subject attempts to show several special, possible and successful clinic experiences when using contact lenses. Predictable and safe fittings: Get to the point!”:It attempts to discover the “definitely” clear and key aspects of a predictable adaptation. it also presents the option of using technology to help offer a higher quality service and explore the advantages of clinical photography. Management and marketing of your own business: This is a dynamic and creative course, teaching the contact lens specialists to understand that lens adaptation is part of an administrative and specialized marketing system that they can and must manage.. Discussions about medical histories: “Professional Consultation”: This topic attempts to generate scientific dialogue, create professional links and identify action leaders and professional positions. How to write an article: Participants will write an article with the nuance, length and topic they prefer in order to discover their own writing skills and abilities to generate knowledge, opinion or discussion that can be useful for the professional community. Everything is ready for the beginning of the Third Phase, join us and be part of the on-going evolution of The Vision Care InstituteTM First Class.
What contribution should an optometrist do in order to become a high profile contactologist? Keeping updated both educationally and professionally, understanding the learning process is dynamic and changing process which requires on-going learning,. This understanding and commitment allows him to adapt and understand the changes that take place in the field. Why do you think the academia trains in basic concepts yet does not assure you to become a high specilized professional? First, I do not agree with the statement that the academia trains only in basic concepts. Maybe what we miss to propose is other levels of specialization after the basic studies, which will allow us to train a high profile professional. Besides, clinical practice is needed in order to face a variety of cases that will allow one to consolidate their knowledge and skills to solve different problems. I think that in general the education given at the academia is enough of a foundation for every professional to start and, afterwards, he needs to continue training and become a high profile professional. The opinions expressed in articles reflect solely the views of their authors. And not necessarily the stance and policie The Vision Care InstituteTM.
What are the basic necessary components to train a high profile professional? A high profile professional is achieved when he is given all the basics on the different visual defects, learns proper management of binocular vision, optical physics, and gains knowledge in handling different test equipment for diagnosis and testing. Who creates the professional criteria and what influence does it have on the patient? The professional criteria is first created by the academia and it continues with responsible and daily professional performance. The influence on the patient is for them to achieve satisfaction and efficiency in the use of contact lenses. Is a leader born or made at the academia or with continuing education? I think that a leader is made. As I mentioned before, the academia generates the basics and the continuing training consolidates him as a full professional. Of course, vocation and aptitude are fundamental in performing any activity. What characterizes patients assisted by a high profile professional in contactology? They are characterized by the proper knowledge of the type of lenses they wear, the handling and proper use of the lenses they wear; this allows them to use them with no risks or fear.
From Caracas,Venezuela with Doctor Enrique Humberto Tilli Esteves O.D.
How should the academy think in fully training a real contactologist? As a visual health professional with emphasis in understanding, diagnosing, handling and interpreting tests and techniques to adapt contact lenses that do not alter the physiology of the cornea, obtaining visual efficiency, and with humanistic knowledge and ethical values that will allow him to offer professional treatment to patients, giving them appropriate instructions and the best suggestions.
What are the current and globalized tools to train with motivation to grow and have a high profile? The best current tool is the Internet, where you can read specialized magazines and have access to the creation of a forum of exchange of ideas and presentation of cases; as well as attending conferences and distance education in continuing courses offered by the academia.
How to Keep High Professional Profile
Please describe a high professional profile “contactologist�. What differenciates him from an basic optometrist? A high profile contactologist is a person who has the ability to correct eye refraction defects without compromising the physiology of the cornea and its surrounding structures. He differs from an ordinary optometrist because of his knowledge and skills he has in all types of contact lenses, materials and designs to correct ametropics and his total knowledge of the physiology of the cornea.
in Contactolgy and from the Academia?
Face to Face
Our International Visitors
Benefits for Members de
at The Vision Care InstituteTM in Latin America 1 Course
The Vision Care InstituteTM First Class member will attend a course to experience the facilities at The Vision Care InstituteTM in Bogotá and Puerto Rico. The studiylan is a perfect balance between continuous knowledge in contact lenses and company abilities topics.
Group Argentina December 10, 2010
2 National and Local Meetings The Vision Care InstituteTM First Class member has the opportunity to go again to the local Meetings at The Vision Care InstituteTM . The answer to new contacts and businesses among members are these local meetings at The Vision Care InstituteTM First Class in each country, at no cost, as well as the rest of the activities of this program.
Group Argentina December 6, 2010
3 Three- Monthly News
The Vision Care InstituteTM First Class member will receive an exclusive News Bulletin with all the most important events and news about Contact Lenses and short and interesting comments about the latest news in the field. There will also appear Interviews with the most experienced visual health professionals on important topics.
4 Exclusive Educational Materials
Group Argentina December 3, 2010
The Vision Care InstituteTM First Class member will periodically receive the most relevant printed material for his or her practice. Scales useful for diagnostic and treatment, new tools, useful advice, anamnesis special forms, patient orientation, trading tools and more.
Revista Panamericana 5 Magazine de Lentes de Contacto The Vision Care InstituteTM First Class member will receive periodically the Magazine Revista Panamericana de Lentes de Contacto, which contains important scientific advances, exclusive information on the visual health union and specialized articles on a great variety of topics related to Contact Lenses.
6 Web/Blogs Community The Vision Care InstituteTM First Class members will have exclusive access to our webpage www.tvcibogota.com, where they will find diverse tools to complement their professional development such as a forum, blogs, news, galleries, professional profiles and online videos.
Group Argentina November 29, 2010
Revista Panamericana
In Box
de Lentes de Contacto The last edition of the Revista Panamericana de Lentes de Contacto has been published. We present some advances offered by the principal articles below. About refraction and visual acuity in soft toric contact lens users Comparative study in visual acuity in users of soft toric contact lenses and glasses has confirmed that 85% of the patients who used soft toric contact lenses reported a better visual acuity compared to correction with glasses. Comparative study in visual field: from glasses to contact lenses The differences in visual field for patients wearing glasses were compared to the alternative of wearing contact lenses. They found that contact lenses proved to give a better improvement in visual acuity quality and quantity, as well as an improvement in visual acuity because it provides more than 80% of the visual field and in some cases 100%. Variables and interaction lenses- eye in the adaptation of silicone hydrogel toric soft contact lenses The article presents an interaction of the parameters established by the toric soft contact lenses laboratories and their relation with the anterior ocular segment. Go to: www.rpalc.com, participate, and receive updates in new technologies and take advantage of the possibility of discussing actual cases. Send your comments or articles to the editorial board of the Revista Panamericana de Lentes de Contacto submision@ rpalc.com.
Luis Suárez Colegio de Opticos Provincia de Buenos Aires President. What I have experienced in Bogotá has been an experience I can not forget, where the mind inquires and wonderful things happen, you feel you are the main actor. The Vision Care InstituteTM gets to create that magic. Everyone who participated in the project “Líderes en Acción” (Leaders put into Action) was encouraged to become the best professionals, without unattending our quality of life. Today science and technology take us to change and forces us to pay attention to what is going on outside to see what we are doing here.. It is a commitment with education, accompanying teaching and learning, I think we are on the right path. Congratulations to The Vision Care InstituteTM for this initiative, and I hope that we can develop a training program to interact in and out the country. it is our compromise at Colegio de Ópticos de la Provincia de Buenos Aires to train in order to reach the visual field. Let’s go get more!
Claudio Leonoff, Argentina QI want to thank you for having considered me as a participant in the program at The Vision Care InstituteTM, and I congratulate you for giving us this professional and human opportunity. I take my hat off when a company considers offering training programs in which we all get a benefit. I also want to acknowledge the financial effort you are making to carry out this program, which I consider an excellent investment for J&J, for us and specially for patients, where the cycle ends and a new a bigger cycle starts. I want to finish by mentioning the human and professional staff I had this wonderful experience with. Destiny joined a group of human beings who “like” this profession, so this generated homogeneity and excellent convivence,;something so simple but sometimes hard to achieve. If it is possible, I would like to share the rest of this program with them. I would like to say good bye in the same way every presenter finished their presentation. “Thanks.”