What a difference a year makes! Faculty, staff, and students hit the ground running with a strategic planning exercise over the past year, which has helped to crystallize our vision for the University of Waterloo School of Optometry & Vision Science. With stakeholder feedback, we identified a number of key strengths and opportunities that we have reviewed and discussed to help guide our future over the next several years. A formal presentation of the plan will take place in the next couple of months, but I am happy to give you a preview of the highlights that we have shared during the year.
“Go big or go home” is a popular saying in Texas, and I’m pleased to announce that our big, audacious goal is the creation of an Eye Institute. Incorporating ophthalmological services in a brand new ambulatory surgical center into the School is an ambitious undertaking. Early feedback from the Local Health Integration Network (LHIN) and other stakeholders is favorable as we strive to develop new models of care to serve patients from ages 1 to 101, and from wellness through surgery. We are at the very early stages of planning and look forward to insight, guidance, and recommendations from stakeholders. Strong partnerships will enable us to further develop optometry’s role as a primary care health profession, and an essential resource in the timely access to eye, vision and health care.
The Eye Institute will reimagine the care pathway to provide an exceptional patient care experience at the School. We will also provide state of the art specialty care that accelerates the translation of research into practice in fields as diverse as sports vision, myopia control, ocular surface disease, and vision rehabilitation, to name just a few.
The opportunity for increased interprofessional education and collaborative practice at the Eye Institute is part of our strategy to increase domestic opportunities for clinical training and experience. A recent decision by the Veterans Administration has shut out our students from hospital based training at the VA Medical Centers. We have been anticipating this eventuality, and have appreciated the willingness of talented, dedicated, and engaged practitioners from across Canada to serve as clerkship sites that provide a robust, rewarding, and complex clinical experience for our 4th year students.
Research in vision science remains a core strength, and we are utilizing the theme of the “eye as a window to the brain.” The research component of the Eye Institute will showcase our expertise and research capabilities in imaging from bench to chairside. Fundus photos, OCT, and other technology may lead to early biomarkers for neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. fMRI may lead to imaging that helps to support novel treatments that enhance neural plasticity in the treatment of conditions, such as amblyopia and central vision loss. Moreover, establishing an imaging and clinical research area within the Eye Institute will facilitate collaborations with experts in engineering, computer science, and artificial intelligence to develop the next generation clinical decision support algorithms and serve as a national resource.
Engagement with the professional associations, provincial colleges, and the School have been enthusiastic, exciting, and filled with the promise of high expectations. The theme of education before legislation has resonated across the country, and we remain poised to educate and train our graduates for the contemporary practice of optometry anywhere. Investment in learning resources and technology will help us develop the next generation of leaders in optometry and vision science.
We are also working diligently towards the establishment of an Office for Continuing Professional Development. Recognizing our role and responsibility as a national resource for the public and the profession, we aspire to provide leadership and support for continuing education, advanced competency training, residency expansion, and potential regional sites for Centres of Excellence in both Western and Eastern Canada.
I have had the pleasure to travel to several provinces already to get to know folks and learn more about the dynamics of optometric practice across Canada. To those I have visited, thank you for the warm reception and hospitality. It is exciting to see the important work that you all do and the efforts made to serve the public and advance optometry. Please know that the School is here to support you and stand with you. My travels will continue this year as we seek to understand from you how the School can be a national resource for all optometrists. I look forward to sharing updates about the School, listening to your ideas and feedback, and working together to the benefit of our patients and the profession.
At the beginning of my term last year, many shared their hopes that we would begin to realize our full potential at the School. In a welcome letter, I wrote that “to be successful, we will need to operate with a spirit of fairness, openness, and mutual respect in our decision-making. I welcome lively discourse and differences of opinion, which are integral to a vibrant academic environment. While we may not always agree, I believe that we should always value the unique gifts and talents that contribute to our collective success.”
Sincerely,
Stanley Woo, OD, MS, MBA, FAAO
Director
