NEG CONFERENCE
Getting with the programme This year’s NEG conference, titled ‘Tools for success’, will offer the most varied programme ever – with world-class speakers and content that will impact every NEG member across the country.
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aving not been able to meet up with members since June 2019, the conference – on Sunday 19th and Monday 20th June at the Staverton Park Hotel & Golf Club – is a fantastic opportunity to catch up with like-minded professionals to discuss the business and clinical issues of the day.
his own. He was a member of Alcon's professional affairs team in the UK, before joining mark’ennovy in 2021 as head of professional services for the UK and Ireland. He is passionate about contact lenses and enjoys supporting eyecare professionals and practices with mentoring and training.
SUNDAY 19 JUNE EMOTIONAL JOURNEY OF THE PRESBYOPE In his 10.30am CPD lecture, titled 'The emotional Jim Dickson journey of the presbyope', contact lens optician (CLO) Jim Dickson will look at the physiological changes in the ageing eye and the patient journey. As well as looking at the opportunities, Jim will show how the way we communicate and advise on these changes can help the emerging presbyope come to terms with what can be an extremely worrying and even distressing time. "Even though for some people presbyopia will be challenging, with all the options currently available there is no better time to be a presbyope," says Jim, an experienced CLO who started as a trainee dispensing optician with Dollond & Aitchison before opening two joint venture practices of
PRESERVING SIGHT THROUGH AI Next up at 11.30am is a joint presentation by artificial intelligence (AI) expert Professor Pearse Keane and Professor Pearse Keane scientist Dr Wen Hwa Lee: 'Preserving healthy eyesight through AI – for all'. As the speakers will highlight, advances in AI are not restricted to self-driving cars, production lines or e-commerce recommendations; one of its most promising applications is in healthcare – and eyecare is at the forefront of this revolution. But what can AI do, and how can these advances be deployed at community level? These questions will be addressed during this session. Pearse Keane is professor of artificial medical intelligence at the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, and a consultant ophthalmologist at Moorfields Eye Hospital, London. Originally from Ireland,
he graduated in medicine in 2002 from University College Dublin. In 2016, he initiated a formal collaboration between Moorfields Eye Hospital and Google DeepMind, to develop AI algorithms for the earlier detection and treatment of retinal disease. In August 2018, the first results of this collaboration were published in Nature Medicine – and in May 2020, he jointly led work to develop an early warning system for age-related macular degeneration (AMD). CEO and chief scientist at the charity, Action Against AMD, Dr Wen Hwa Lee trained in genetics and molecular/structural biology. He co-directed the Oxford Dr Wen Hwa Lee Martin School’s Affordable Medicines Programme, and advised government representatives from different countries and charitable institutions on policy and strategy to integrate scientific, societal and economic impact. He will share the advances and potential of AI in eyecare, and how transformation can be achieve through unique collaborations. MORE PROFIT FOR LESS EFFORT Have you ever been to a conference and come away with a head full of new ideas and then done next Andy Clark to nothing with them? In his 'Tools for 22' presentation at 1.30pm, Andy Clark will share innovative ideas for › Vision Now April 2022 17
