Visionary Fall 2010 - NSUWorks

Nova Southeastern UniversityNSUWorks

Visionary College of Optometry

Summer 2010

Visionary Fall 2010College of Optometry

Follow this and additional works at: https://nsuworks.nova.edu/hpd_opt_visionary

Part of the Optometry Commons

This Magazine is brought to you for free and open access by the College of Optometry at NSUWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Visionary byan authorized administrator of NSUWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected].

NSUWorks CitationCollege of Optometry, "Visionary Fall 2010" (2010). Visionary. 6.https://nsuworks.nova.edu/hpd_opt_visionary/6

http://nsuworks.nova.edu/?utm_source=nsuworks.nova.edu%2Fhpd_opt_visionary%2F6&utm_medium=PDF&utm_campaign=PDFCoverPages

http://nsuworks.nova.edu/?utm_source=nsuworks.nova.edu%2Fhpd_opt_visionary%2F6&utm_medium=PDF&utm_campaign=PDFCoverPages

https://nsuworks.nova.edu?utm_source=nsuworks.nova.edu%2Fhpd_opt_visionary%2F6&utm_medium=PDF&utm_campaign=PDFCoverPages

https://nsuworks.nova.edu/hpd_opt_visionary?utm_source=nsuworks.nova.edu%2Fhpd_opt_visionary%2F6&utm_medium=PDF&utm_campaign=PDFCoverPages

https://nsuworks.nova.edu/hpd_opt?utm_source=nsuworks.nova.edu%2Fhpd_opt_visionary%2F6&utm_medium=PDF&utm_campaign=PDFCoverPages

https://nsuworks.nova.edu/hpd_opt_visionary?utm_source=nsuworks.nova.edu%2Fhpd_opt_visionary%2F6&utm_medium=PDF&utm_campaign=PDFCoverPages

http://network.bepress.com/hgg/discipline/730?utm_source=nsuworks.nova.edu%2Fhpd_opt_visionary%2F6&utm_medium=PDF&utm_campaign=PDFCoverPages

https://nsuworks.nova.edu/hpd_opt_visionary/6?utm_source=nsuworks.nova.edu%2Fhpd_opt_visionary%2F6&utm_medium=PDF&utm_campaign=PDFCoverPages

mailto:[email protected]

What Will NSU’sCollege of Optometry

Look Like in 2020?

the VISIONARY • Summer/Fall 20101

A Message from the Dean: David Loshin, O.D., Ph.D., FAAO

As dean of the College of Optometry since 1997, I have presidedover an evolutionary process that has brought us far beyond thesingular goal of the college at its inception―to train and graduatecompetent optometrists. While that goal still exists, as it should,the college has broadened its reach and influence by foraying intoserious research, creating additional and unique educational pro-grams, and expanding our outreach to the community. The EyeCare Institute continues to grow, offering an ever-widening set ofspecialty services at our clinical locations. The college’s facultymembers and students participate actively in community out-reach programs. We have also forged mutual exchange programswith institutions in other countries such as China, Spain, andSouth America. Having come this far, where will the college headover the next 10 years?

My vision is that NSU’s College of Optometry will be a leading op-tometric institution with a national and international reputationfor its clinical, postgraduate, and continuing education programs.

Following are some examples:• The college will be a leader for its optometric

education―widely renowned for its clinical trainingand innovative approach.

• We will be known for our service to underserved populations and the community.

• We will be recognized as a leader in various focused areas of clinical research and will be renowned for our ability to apply knowledge and research findings to practical clinical application.

• We will create a mutually rewarding relationship withour alumni, providing them with various benefits and benefitting in return from their support of our growthand development.

How will we accomplish these goals?First, we must recruit and retain high-caliber faculty memberswith unique backgrounds and expertise. To that end, we continueto search for and hire faculty members with research experiencewho will mentor clinical and less-experienced faculty. We will ex-pand faculty development programs to enhance skills in coursedevelopment, scholarship training, grant writing, and clinicalteaching techniques.

Second, we must expand and maintain clinical facilities and equip-ment so we may increase patient numbers from diverse and un-derserved populations. To accomplish this goal, the college plansto build its own clinical facility in the Fort Lauderdale neighbor-hood where we presently rent space from another organization.It is anticipated that this location will serve a patient base that willprovide wide-ranging diagnostic and patient care opportunitiesto our students, simultaneously improving both the health of ourpatients and enriching the educational experiences of our students.

Additionally, The Eye Care Institute has entered into an agreementwith the Kids in Distress organization to provide eye care servicesto its many clients. The recipients of these services are childrenwho comprise an underserved population that is in serious needof health care, to which they currently have very limited access.We will operate this clinic on the Kids in Distress campus, provid-ing eye care services 5 days per week and on a 24/7 emergencybasis, alongside the College of Dental Medicine, which will alsooperate a clinic at this site. Both of these new centers will increaseour patient numbers, augment the diversity already found amongour patient base, and serve those populations that currently havelimited or no access to health care, beyond the very basic.

Third, the use of technology in the delivery of education is requi-site. The overwhelming majority of students that comprise ourclasses are, by mere virtue of the generation to which they be-long, technologically savvy with a strong preference for learningthrough technology. Our faculty members are already using a va-riety of formats for both the professional and graduate programs,including online delivery of course content and instant responsesystems in the classroom. Many faculty members utilize their ownWeb sites, while others are testing the newest devices on the mar-ket in a quest to enhance instructional capabilities. We will con-tinue to move in this direction, using the most advanced devicesand programs available, which will enable us to remain connectedwith our students long after they have graduated.

The future of Nova Southeastern University College of Optometrylooks bright and exciting. I invite you to stay tuned as weprogress―and to see how NSUCO looks in 2020.


Dean’s Message. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1Chancellor’s Message. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3News Briefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4STUEY Nominations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5Faculty News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Up Close and Personal with Dr. Dave Woods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Our Tech-Savvy HPD Library . . . . . . . . . 11Judith Sands Explains Safety Culture . 13Cover Story—Haiti. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15What’s New in Continuing Education . 22Become a Visionary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23Student News. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25Featured Student Leader . . . . . . . . . . . 28Faculty Recognition forBlack History Month . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30Graduation 2010. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32Message from Alumni Chapter President . . . . . . . . . . . 38Alumni News. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39Spotlight on Residents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43Orlando VA Medical Center . . . . . . . . . . 44Calendar of Events . . . . . . . . . Back Cover

Editor-in-ChiefN. Scott Gorman, O.D., M.S., Ed.D.

Associate EditorsScott Colton, B.A.

Barbara Karpel, M.S.

Contributing WritersMichael Bacigalupi, O.D., M.S.

Smith Blanc, O.D.Ernesto Cepero, OD�3

Melanie Crandall, O.D., M.B.A.Janet Leasher, O.D., M.P.H.

Michelle Levin, OD�4Courtney Mlinar, M.L.S

Terry Moehnke, O.D., M.S.Johnny Morette, OD�3

Sherrol A. Reynolds, O.D.Jacqueline Rodena, O.D.

Judith R. Sands, R.N., M.S.L.Denise Saunders, OD-4 John M. Spalding, O.D.Josie Toussaint, M.S.

Lori Vollmer, O.D.Albert D. Woods, M.S., O.D.

Art Director/Graphic DesignerBrandee Evans

Table ofContents

“Striking at the very heart.”

HAITI - PAGE 15


A M

essa

ge fr

om t

he H

PD

Cha

ncel

lor:

Fred

eric

k Li

ppm

an, R

.Ph.

, Ed.

D.

When His Holiness, the Dalai Lama, visited the NSU campuson February 23, 2010, I had the opportunity to correlatesome of the very wise statements he presented to thenearly 4,500 audience members sitting in the Don Taft Uni-versity Center to the NSU Health Professions Division(HPD). The aspect that really struck me in regard to the en-tire HPD was his very articulate way of using the word we.He didn’t refer to you, to me, or to them. He referred tothe concept of oneness and how we are all the same;therefore, we all must use the word we.

As I relate this concept to the manner in which we carryforth the direction and mission of Dr. Morton Terry, thefounder of the NSU Health Professions Division, the wordwe is very important because no single physician or otherhealth care provider should be more important than an-other. Similarly, these professionals should all work in tan-dem with each other’s abilities and knowledge.

The paramount tenet of health care service is based uponthe fact that health providers use concepts of we ratherthan the concepts of me, I, or you. So when you really thinkabout the structure of the Health Professions Division, thebrilliance of Dr. Terry’s belief that health professionalsshould get to know each other as practitioners andproviders of care to the general population was trulyprophetic. Because, when you get right down to it, themore we know about each other, the more we become werather than me, I, or you.

The Dalai Lama’s riveting oration, which related to manyother issues such as individual responsibility, the concept ofworld community, peace, justice, and liberty, really struckme as I was sitting there and recognizing the fact that theprinciples of osteopathic medicine were really, in a sense,attested to by the words of a very kind and brilliant repre-sentative of the Buddhist teachings. The Dalai Lama is aman of exceptional intellect, and he exudes moral strengthand positivity. His message is something all individualsshould take to heart. He spoke of the negativity of angerand addressed the sense of healing and strength thatcomes from possessing the power to forgive.

He also discussed intellect and the importance of educa-tion, which is a major feature of enhancing human growth.But he also reminded us that there needs to be an innerbalance—an ability to know yourself and love yourself. Hiswords reminded me of some of the private conversationsI had with Dr. Terry, who passed away in 2004. He used totell me, “You really have to learn to like yourself before youcan ask other people to gain your trust and follow you.” It’snot about telling yourself, “Hey, I’m a great guy or a greatgal.” It’s a matter of intrinsically knowing yourself and un-derstanding that in order to like yourself, you have to dealwith some of flawed characteristics you possess—flaws youpersonally identify.

Although this is not the first time I’ve heard the Dalai Lamaspeak, I again found myself stirred by his words, eventhough many of the philosophies he expressed are notnew. However, being there amidst his spiritual aura causedme to reflect on the multiple features of being a health careprovider and brought me back to some of the cogent com-ments made by Dr. Terry. Whenever there was a meeting ofthe Committee on Admissions, Dr. Terry used to tell themembers to “think about this applicant and decidewhether you would want him or her to be your doctor.”

What was he really saying? Was he telling the committeemembers to look at the applicant and discover whetherthey thought this person was going to become the best stu-dent, the best surgeon, or the best optometrist? I don’tthink so. In my opinion, Dr. Terry was telling the committeemembers to pick the person they thought could best un-derstand him or herself and be able to freely share theirknowledge while exhibiting a true sense of compassion fora patient.

Great people motivate us. It’s what His Holiness, theDalai Lama, does—and it’s what Dr. Terry continues to dothrough the many words of wisdom he shared with thoseof us lucky enough to have known him.

Dr. Lippman Reflectson the Dalai Lama’s

Visit to NSU

A Message from the University’s ChancellorRay Ferrero, Jr., J.D. , Chancellor

On behalf of the entire university, I want tothank all of our alumni who recently partici-pated in our Academic Outcomes Survey. Theresearch initiative clearly validates thestrength of our academic offerings and thestrong learning outcomes that our graduatespossess. The strong response we receivedgives us great confidence in the survey find-

ings, and we appreciate your willingness to participate. In affirming your overall satisfaction with the institution’s aca-

demic programs, an overwhelming 90 percent of NSU graduateswould recommend their degree program to aspiring students. Thestudy also affirmed our ability to prepare graduates for profes-sional success as 88 percent of survey respondents “stronglyagreed” or “agreed” that Nova Southeastern University preparedthem for their careers.

In addition to our overall academic assessment, our survey wasdesigned to garner feedback from graduates regarding program-specific outcomes. The timely and helpful insights we receivedwill only help to ensure that we are meeting the rigorous de-mands of today’s competitive job market.

This noteworthy study will provide important benchmark datafor comparative purposes in subsequent years. We are steadfastin our commitment to providing students with innovative pro-grams and academic excellence that will prepare graduates forthe dynamic challenges of the 21st century. Thanks again for yourcontinued interest in Nova Southeastern University and providingyour feedback for this important assessment.

NSUCO Receives $200,000 Gift from FOA Charities For New Kids in Distress Clinic

FOA Charities, Inc. has provided a gift to NSUCO in the amountof $200,000 to purchase equipment for the college’s new clinicon the Kids in Distress (KID) campus in Wilton Manors, Florida. FOACharities, Inc. is a not-for-profit corporation that has been organ-ized to support, benefit, or perform the charitable, educational,and scientific purposes of the Florida Optometric Association(FOA). The charity provides an apparatus and mechanism for themembers of FOA to encourage and support the health and welfareand an improved quality of life for the residents of the state ofFlorida and individual communities within the state. This is ac-complished by funding grants, programs, and projects that pro-mote public education and awareness of the availability of visioncare and provide vision care for the indigent.

The college is working collaboratively with Kids In Distress toparticipate in an extraordinary undertaking to provide optomet-ric services to children who participate in the KID programs. KIDis a local agency in Broward County, Florida, that provides a con-tinuum of care for abused, neglected, and at-risk children as wellas families in crisis with emergency shelter, counseling, and otherneeded services. Their current services include crisis intervention,foster care and adoption, therapeutic preschool, complete be-havioral health services, parent education, domestic violenceservices, substance abuse treatment, kinship support, supervised

visitation, access to medical care, and rehabilitative therapies.As part of the KID expansion for access to health care, NSU’s Col-

lege of Optometry, along with the university’s College of DentalMedicine, will establish clinics on the KID campus. Approximately175 optometric students (third and fourth year), as well as eightoptometric residents, will provide vision care to over 5,000 chil-dren annually. The KID Vision Care Center, one of five centersunder the college’s The Eye Care Institute umbrella, will containeight examination rooms, special testing rooms, an optical dis-pensary, an optical laboratory, student conference room, and fac-ulty offices. Optometric services will be provided five days eachweek and 24/7 emergency eye services will be available. It is an-ticipated that the clinic will be scheduling its first patientsin October.

According to Tom Tomczyk, KID president and CEO, “The KID-NSU Dental and Optometry Clinic reflects our longstandingcommitment to the communities we serve. By expanding serv-ices to include dental and optometric specialties, we are fur-ther helping to meet the critical needs of a very vulnerablepopulation within our community.”

NSU College of Optometry Alumni Inducted into theAmerican Academy of Optometry

Ten NSU College of Optometry alumni were inducted into theAmerican Academy of Optometry (AAO) in November 2009 dur-ing the AAO’s annual meeting in Orlando. The inductees areMiriam H. Farag, O.D. (’05), Kenneth D. Boyle, O.D. (’94), JosephConvertino, O.D. (’04), Michael A. Dagostino, O.D. (’04), MonaKardani, O.D. (’08), Nichole Olson, O.D. (’01), Alison C. Ramsey,O.D., M.S. (’08), Christopher Lee Suhr, O.D. (’06), Anna Wong,O.D. (’99), and Celia Wong Tesinsky, O.D. (‘03).

They were among the 164 new fellows who were inducted atthe meeting’s annual banquet. Roughly 4,513 optometrists, visionscientists, residents, faculty members, and students, includingthose from NSU, attended the annual meeting at the OrlandoWorld Center Marriott. The latest and very best of new discover-ies and developments in optometry were presented in over 200education sessions and in the exhibit hall that encompassed over250 booths.

Optometry Students Take the ChallengeOn October 8, 2009, students at optometry schools across the

United States came out in force to take the World Sight Day Chal-lenge and raise more than $5,000 to help give sight to millions inneed. Denise Saunders, a class of 2011 NSUCO student, was in-troduced to Optometry Giving Sight at an industry trade show andfelt a strong passion for its mission. She recruited other studentsto help and enlisted the support of local businesses. Best Buy do-nated several prizes for a raffle, while Saunders and her teamraised $961 from both students and faculty members.

Sarah Brehm (class of 2011), was able to tap into Bank of Amer-ica’s Matching Gift Program, turning the donation to OptometryGiving Sight into $1,922. Optometry Giving Sight funds projectsthat train local eye care professionals, establish infrastructuresuch as vision centers and schools of optometry, and deliver eyeexaminations and glasses in developing communities.

BY N. SCOTT GORMAN, O.D., M.S., ED.D., FAAO, DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT AND ALUMNI RELATIONS, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, THE VISIONARY

BriefsNEWS

the VISIONARY • Summer/Fall 2010#

NSUCO Receives Five STUEY NominationsBY BARBARA KARPEL, M.S., DIRECTOR OF ADMINISTRATION, ASSOCIATE EDITOR, THE VISIONARY

The 11th Annual NSU Student Life Achievement Awards, affec-tionately known as the STUEYS, were celebrated on April 20,2010. As the Division of Student Affairs describes them, theSTUEYS are “a celebration of NSU’s best in inclusion, leadership,scholarship, service, integrity, commitment, and involvement.”Nominations of students, employees, and corporate partners aresought from every sector of the university, and a committee ischarged with selecting five finalists in each category.

The winners are selected by a second committee, comprised inpart of the president and chancellor of the university. This year,the College of Optometry had five finalists in four categories―an achievement for which these individuals deserve kudosand accolades:

Student of the YearMichelle Levin has been an active participant in the college’s Stu-dent Government Association (SGA) since her matriculation in2007. She has been an instrumental leader of the Florida Opto-metric Student Association, promoting the optometric professionamong her peers but also in Tallahassee with legislators. An excel-lent organizer and former radio station disc jockey who is a skilledmarketing professional, Michelle remains involved, committed,inclusive, and dedicated to her studies, her class, the SGA, the Col-lege of Optometry, and the optometric profession.

NSU Graduate Organization of the YearSince its establishment in 1997, the Student Volunteers in Opto-metric Service to Humanity (SVOSH) has provided eye care toindividuals who are underserved due to their remote habitats andeconomic conditions. SVOSH receives donations of used eye-glasses and distributes them during mission trips to indigenouspopulations in the Caribbean, Central America, and South Amer-ica. While the SVOSH members hold fund-raising events to pay forthese mission trips, students often have to fund a good portionof the travel expenses themselves. In 2010, this service organiza-tion and its faculty mentors volunteered their time in Ica, Peru,which had been impacted by an 8.0 magnitude earthquakein 2007.

NSU Administrator of the YearFran Franconeri, the college’s admissions counselor, was selectedas a STUEY finalist in 2010 for the second consecutive year.Although Fran works for the university’s Office of Admissions, weconsider her to be one of our own. Fran’s dedication, commit-ment, and guidance have won the hearts of many NSU hopefuls.She communicates often and well with applicants and makes theapplication process less stressful for them. With her sympatheticear, caring nature, and gentle leadership, Fran contributes to theprofessional growth of both students and peers, while ensuringthat our classes are composed of the most qualified candidates.

Barbara Karpel, M.S., has been with the College of Optometry fornearly 15 years. She fulfills many functions, ranging from manag-ing the operations and budgets of the college’s administrativeoffices and its eight support staff members, to serving as arecruiter at optometric conferences. She serves on several uni-versity committees, such as the Employee Relations Committeein the role of co-chair, multiple search committees for Enrollmentand Student Services, and the Stewardship Council, which over-sees the management of funds received as donations andcontributions to college accounts. Karpel also is the associate edi-tor of The Visionary, serving as proofreader and editor as well asa contributor, and uses her conflict resolution skills to managepersonal interactions and create a conflict-free environment.

NSU Corporate Partner of the YearVision Service Plan (VSP), an insurance organization available toeye care professionals and their patients, is focused on visioncare. A committed corporate sponsor to the college, VSP offersloans to new optometry graduates, annual sponsorships of stu-dent events, and educational speakers for the college. VSP alsohosts dinners, workshops, and a speaker series for students. Itrecently developed a website, www.optoclubls.com, designedspecifically for NSU’s Optometry Practice Management Associa-tion (NOPMA) students.

MICHELLE LEVIN AND

RAY FERRERO, JR., J.D.BARBARA KARPEL, M.S., AND

RAY FERRERO, JR., J.D.FRAN FRANCONERI AND

RAY FERRERO, JR., J.D.

Eva Duchnowski, O.D.Dr. Duchnowski earned her undergraduatedegree in 2004 from Fordham Universityand her Doctor of Optometry degree fromNSU’s College of Optometry in 2008. Fol-lowing graduation, she completed a one-year residency at NSUCO in primary carewith emphasis on cornea and contact lens,earning the Resident of the Year award.Upon completing her residency, Dr. Duch-nowski joined the NSU faculty full-time inAugust 2009 as an instructor.

Dr. Duchnowski currently serves as a clin-ical preceptor in third- and fourth-yearNSU clinics and as an equipment liaison forall the students. Her professional interestslie in ocular disease and specialty contactlens fits. She is actively involved in writingpapers, has authored posters for theAmerican Academy of Optometry, Ameri-can Optometric Association, and SECO In-ternational. Dr. Duchnowski has been alecturer for the 2008 AAO Resident’s Dayand various continuing education eventsand is a member of the American Opto-metric Association, the Florida Optomet-ric Association, and the AmericanAcademy of Optometry. She is currentlyworking towards her AAO Fellowship.

Melissa A. Misko, O.D.Dr. Misko graduated from Case WesternReserve University in 2004 with a B.S. in

Biomedical Engineering. She received herDoctor of Optometry degree from the Illi-nois College of Optometry in 2008 fol-lowed by a one-year residency in primarycare/ocular disease at the Illinois Collegeof Optometry/Illinois Eye Institute. In2009, Dr. Misko joined the NSUCO facultywith the rank of instructor.

Her teaching responsibilities include serv-ing as an attending optometric physician inthe primary care clinics at Davie, NorthMiami Beach, and Fort Lauderdale. Dr.Misko’s academic interests include primarycare, ocular disease, and geometric and vi-sual optics. She has authored and pre-sented posters on various topics at theAmerican Optometric Association andSECO meetings. Dr. Misko, who is currentlyworking towards her AAO Fellowship, is amember of the Florida Optometric Associ-ation, the American Optometric Association,and the American Academy of Optometry.

Bin Zhang, M.D., Ph.D.Dr. Zhang earned his M.D. degree from theSchool of Medicine at Nanjing Universityin 1995. He then practiced as an ophthal-mologist, specializing in cataract surgeryat Jinling General Hospital in China. In2003, he received his Ph.D. degree in Phys-iological Optics and Vision Science fromthe University of Houston College of Op-tometry and dedicated the following six

years to various scientific research proj-ects funded by the National Eye Institute.Dr. Zhang is currently a full-time facultymember at NSUCO and holds the rank ofassociate professor. In this role, Dr. Zhangteaches ocular anatomy to the profes-sional students and experiment designand methods to the graduate students.

Dr. Zhang’s research interest is centeredon the normal and abnormal developmentof the visual system. For example, he stud-ies how the response properties of neu-rons in the visual cortex develop under theguidance of normal visual experience inearly life. On the other hand, he investi-gates how abnormal visual experience,such as short sight (myopia), unequal re-fractive errors of the two eyes (ani-sometropia), and misalignment of the twoeyes (strabismus) disrupts the smooth de-veloping process of these properties andfinally leads to lazy eye (amblyopia). Thetechniques applied in his research mainlyinclude psychophysical testing, extracel-luar single unit recording, local field po-tential recording, and multifocal visualevoked potentials. His research has beenpublished in numerous high-impact jour-nals such as Nature Neuroscience, Cell,Proceedings of National Academy of Sci-ence USA, Investigative Ophthalmology,and Vision Science.

NEWSFaculty


EVA DUCHNOWSKI, O.D. MELISSA A. MISKO, O.D. BIN ZHANG, M.D., PH.D.

NSU Welcomes Trio of New Faculty Members


We came across this photo from our archives, dusted it off, andfound a “treasure” of an image. We thought it would be fun tooffer it up to alumni to see if anyone recognizes this facultymember. We also thought it would make for a great contest.For the first person to correctly identify the faculty member inthe photo, the prize will be free CE registration to the 15th

Annual Clinical Eye Care Conference and Alumni Reunion onMay 13-15, 2011. Hint: This faculty member is a NovaSoutheastern University graduate, but not a graduate of theCollege of Optometry.

Please submit your entry by email [email protected]

The winner will be announced in our winter/spring issue.Good Luck!

NEWSFaculty

Who’s This Alumnus Contest WinnerThe winner of the Who’s This Alumnus?

photo contest that appeared in the fall 2009 issueof The Visionary is Jay Patel, O.D. (’98). He was firstto identify the mystery alumnus—Arnie Patrick, O.D.

Arnie Patrick, O.D.(’94)

Assistant Professor of OptometryNSU College of Optometry

This is him now!Stacey A. Coulter, O.D., FAAO, FCOVD, was elected as a distin-guished practitioner-member of the National Academies of Practiceon March 20 in Arlington, Virginia. Only 150 distinguished membersfrom each of the professions can be elected to membership, so se-lection is indeed an honor.

Erin C. Jenewein, O.D., M.S. (’09, resident ’10) was one of tworesidents in North America awarded the Terrence N. Ingraham Pe-diatric Optometry Residency Award by the American Academy ofOptometry. The Terrence N. Ingraham Pediatric Optometry Resi-dency Award is $4,000, part of which is in the form of a $750 travelfellowship to attend the 88th Annual Meeting of the American Acad-emy of Optometry in November 2010 in San Francisco.

Jamie Althoff, O.D. (resident ’08) and her husband, John, wel-comed Lowell Bradley into the world in June, weighing in at 6pounds, 13 ounces and 20.3 inches high.

Who’sThis

FacultyMember?

JAN COOPER, O.D., CO-CHAIR, AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPTOMETRY;RACHEL A. “STACEY” COULTER, O.D., NEWLY INDUCTED MEMBER, AMERICAN

ACADEMY OF OPTOMETRY; SATYA VERMA, O.D., CHAIR,AMERICAN ACADEMY OF OPTOMETRY; AND MARY E. COSTANZA, M.D.,

PRESIDENT, NATIONAL ACADEMIES OF PRACTICE.

DR. JENEWEIN THE ALTHOFFS

Dr. Woods: The Early YearsI grew up in a variety of places since my fa-ther was an officer in the U.S. Air Force.My parents were living in France when mymom was due with me, and because it wassuspected that I would be an Rh factorblue baby, she was taken to the main hos-pital in Wiesbaden, Germany. I started lifewith multiple transfusions as a tiny in-fant―well, maybe not so tiny.

We came back to the United States whenI was three because my father was sta-tioned at Pope Air Force Base near Pine-hurst, North Carolina. This happened to bethe location where my father’s family hadlived for several generations. When I wasstarting first grade, my father was thentransferred to Kadena Air Force Base in Ok-inawa, Japan, where I had the luxury of liv-ing for about three years. My biggest thrillwhile I was there was that I found an old,but live, grenade from World War II out-side the base near the housing area. Beingthe good little Cub Scout that I was, I ran asfast as I could to the marine guard station

and took them to the location, whichearned me a nice shiny Cub Scout badge.

When we returned to the States, I had myfirst shocking―or I should stay sting-ing―“back in the USA” experience. In Ok-inawa, bumblebees, for some reason, donot sting, so these little creatures becameexcellent little pets. As you can imagine, Iwas in for a big surprise when I picked oneup at our new home in Rome, NewYork. The second shock was going from thetropics and cyclones to snow―and LOTS ofit. Unfortunately, my dad passed away sev-eral years after we arrived in New York, somy mom and I moved back to North Car-olina to an almost completed two-story logcabin that had been built by hand from theland by my parents.

We also had a house in Miami, Florida,which is where my father first met mymom while she was working at the MiamiHerald and he was attending the Univer-sity of Miami. So after only a few monthsliving out in the woods after my dad’s


Dr. Dave Woods ...In His Own WORDSIn this revealing journalistic self-portrait, Albert D. “Dave” Woods, O.D., M.S., FAAO, associate professor ofoptometry, shares the life path that led him to pursue a career at NSU’s College of Optometry.


death, we loaded up the carand moved to Miami, where anew life was to begin. This placewas more familiar to me―trop-ics and hurricanes.

My mother also purchased aplace in Key Biscayne becausethe houses were cheap on thatremote island in those days. Theplace was also so undevelopedthat you would be inundatedwith hundreds and hundreds ofhermit crabs crossing the roadas you came onto the island. Infact, I can still hear the“crunch.. .crunch.. .crunch”sounds. We resided there for afew years and then went backto North Carolina, although that was afterlearning that hurricanes can create a goodwind power source for a makeshift sail-street board, which was constructed fromone of my mother’s bed sheets, an oldbroom, and my handy skateboard.

One night, my mother sat me downand said we could try to live on our sav-ings and military benefits or risk it alland buy an oceanfront hotel in LongBeach, North Carolina (now called Oak Is-land). We decided to go for it, and for thenext three years I spent every Sundaymorning at the Laundromat doing all thelaundry for the eight units we owned. I ob-viously did not realize this was in the gameplan and surely wasn’t thinking of thatwhen I said yes. Our place was named theScotch Bonnet Hotel after the state shell.Every week, we held a big fish and clam-bake for everyone right on the beach infront of the hotel, where we had a long gignet anchored right off the beach. Thosewere simple and fun times, with my bed-room right on the ocean, and my surf-board right by the door. Life wasgrand―except for the Laundromat days.

Dr. Woods Acquiresan Interest in Optometry

Jumping forward to when I was growingup in Satellite Beach, Florida, my mom andI were managing several rental and hotelproperties that we owned. We both trav-eled back and forth from Florida in thewinter to North Carolina in the summer.

Well, it was not just my mom and I. Wealso had two dogs and an assortment ofcats to accompany us, and on an occasiona squirrel and a pelican (don’t ask).

Because of my dad’s military connections,I thought about going to the U.S. Air ForceAcademy. I earned my wings at the localair force base while I was still in highschool and had joined the United StatesArmy Junior Reserve Officers’ TrainingCorps to get my foot in the door. Thecolonel who headed up the program usedto entice us to study harder for an air nav-igational exercise/exam by dangling theoffer of a banana split to the highestscorer. Being a pilot, I easily won the firsttwo in a row, so he upped the ante to asteak dinner for the final exercise. I hadmine medium rare. But alas, my hearingwas to fail me, and I would not be able tobe an air force pilot. So I fell back on myfavorite thing next to surfing and sailing,which was biology.

When it was time for me to go to college,we sold the Scotch Bonnet and I bought aVW bus with a surfboard rack ready to go.You could basically live in there, betterthan any hotel. Then I got a map out anddecided on how far I could go with mynew vehicle and still be in the United

States. My fingers perused to the farend corner where the words Wash-ington State reached my eyes. It hadun-crowded waves, except for a feworcas, mountains everywhere, and I’dalmost still be in the USA! It lookedlike a dream from heaven.

I started out in a small communitycollege that had a dorm on theOlympic peninsula because its cata-log said, “Ski to sea in 30 minutes!”Well, I got it down to 20. The firstdrive out from Florida to the collegewas to be very educational. The col-lege phoned me (yes, we are talkingpre-Web here) about another newstudent from Chicago that was goingto attend the college and needed to

hitch a ride. So there we were cruisingalong in my somewhat bald-tired VW bus,with surfboard on top, on the road fromChicago to Washington State when we ran

into a snowstorm in MedicineBow, Wyoming.

This was my first time driving insnow, and as I was soon to learn,when a bullet-holed sign stated

“Bridges Freeze Before Road,” it wasn’tkidding. As we were coming off of a high-canyon bridge, just a wee bit sideways(okay, maybe a bit more than wee), mynew companion yelled, “Next time I’m fly-ing,” My response was, “Dude, we are fly-ing!” Two years later, when I looked at themap again, I realized that if I went to West-ern Washington University in Bellingham,Washington, I could go even further northand be right next to the Canadian border.I graduated with a degree in biology (anda minor in snowshoeing), packed up myVW, and headed back for the East Coastalong with my surfboard, a mountain bike,backcountry skis, and a kayak atop the VW.

So what do you do with a bright new shinybiology degree? You go to grad school, ofcourse. This time, I just headed across thebridge to the Florida Institute of Technol-ogy in Melbourne, Florida, and startedworking on a master’s in cellular biology.My thesis research was looking at howsynaptic morphology changed in the innerear with age, but for any classes and labprojects outside of your thesis work, youhad to work with another organ. Naturally,

“So what do you do with a brightnew shiny biology degree? Yougo to grad school, of course.”


I chose the eye since the synaptic mor-phology is very similar to the ear. Afterfalling asleep several times while workingon the electron microscope and waking uplooking like Rocky the Raccoon, much tothe entertainment of my faculty adviser, Irealized I couldn’t spend the rest of my lifeworking in a dark room.

I knew surgery would not be my forte frommy work with the inner ear, and since Iwas comfortable with the eyes, I decidedto go into optometry. Yeah, that was theticket, plus it would get me out of workingin a dark room. Having been to the north-west corner of the country, I decided tosee how it was like living in the Northeast.I cranked up the VW and headed up to thePennsylvania College of Optometry(PCO). I had pretty much decided duringmy first year that I wanted to do a resi-dency in Baltimore at the VA Medical Cen-ter that was associated with JohnsHopkins because of its renowned researchand clinical reputation. Four years later, Iwas starting a residency in Baltimore.

A Careeras an NSU Educator Beckons

I had no intention of being an educator,and because of my hearing, I planned towork with veterans because they were al-ways shouting at me due to their hearingloss, which meant I had no problem hear-ing them. I contacted an SVOSH friend ofmine from PCO, Michelle Caputo, O.D.,about staying a few nights at her home inBaltimore until I found a place to live whileI did my residency. Those few nightsturned into many months, which was whyshe always told me I never moved out.Dr. Caputo, who had also done a residency

at the VA Medical Center the year beforeme, decided that after a year with me say-ing how great it was in Florida, we neededto go live with the palm trees nestled inthe tropics and hurricanes. Since she wasthinking of going down to the BascomPalmer Eye Institute in Miami, I convertedmy sailboat trailer into a makeshift U-Hauland we loaded up the thing and headed toSouth Florida. The first thing that flew outof this makeshift U-Haul, which I didn’thave time to build a top for, was a roll oftoilet paper that whizzed by Dr. Caputo aswe crossed the border out of Mary-land. And with that we said farewellto the Northeast.

When we first came to Florida, I workedfor a staff model HMO in Palm Beachwhen someone brought to my attentionthe fact that a new optometry school wasclose by in North Miami Beach. I startedmy new job at Southeastern UniversityCollege of Optometry (the precursor toNSU’s College of Optometry) on Decem-ber 1, 1992. During my first day of work, Iwas told I would be teaching a course insystemic disease to third-year optometrystudents starting January 2, 1993. Let thefun begin!

Arnie Patrick, O.D., who was one of mynew students that first winter, alwaysribbed me about my handouts being sofresh off the copier in the morning thatthey were still radiating a nice warmth. Ijust wanted to make sure they had the lat-est up-to-date information. Because of mylearning experience in the area of neuro-eye, where during residency rounds Dr.Neil Miller at Johns Hopkins would wheelpatients in with different neuro-eye prob-

lems for us to observe and at-tempt a diagnosis, I started teach-ing the neuro-eye course atSoutheastern. Then, as we madethe big move to Davie to mergewith Nova University, I added ahands-on course on physical diag-nosis and injections.

One day, walking down the wronghall at the wrong time (just kid-ding!), I ended up teaching an on-line course in informationsearching for clinical research,which now has grown into severaladvance disease courses for ouronline master’s program. In addi-tion to our primary care clinics,several years ago I was helping one

of our Ph.D.s with the beginnings of ourelectrodiagnostic service, which I nowhead up, and draws patients from as faraway as Central Florida to our northand the Caribbean and South America toour south.

So what makes me still get up early in themorning once a week, well before dawn,to drive or catch a flight down to Daviefrom either my home in Satellite Beach orthe cabin in North Carolina? There arethree reasons:

ONE The students. Each class brings something new to the table, keeping me on my toes to provide the latest informa-tion and share my patient experiences andclinical knowledge with them.TWO The patients. The ones I see inclinic, especially at the Broward clinic,would probably never get any eye care if itweren’t for us being there.THREE My colleagues. There is not a daythat I don’t learn something new by lis-tening to them talk about their experi-ences and what they have read.

I guess in the end I’m still a student, andas long as I keep on learning each day, I’llkeep sharing this information as a teacher.And when I stop learning, there’s alwaysmy surfboard and the waves.

Cowabunga!

BY COURTNEY MLINAR, M.L.S., LIAISON FOR THE COLLEGE OF OPTOMETRY, NSU HEALTH PROFESSIONS DIVISION LIBRARY

The NSU Health Professions Division (HPD) Li-brary recently reorganized its academic supportservices and added new liaison librarians to bet-ter provide excellent services to the students andfaculty. The three liaisons are: Courtney Mlinar,M.L.S. (Colleges of Optometry, Dental Medicine,and Pharmacy); Bonnie DiGiallonardo, M.L.I.S.(College of Allied Health and Nursing); and KayeRobertson, M.L.S. (Colleges of Osteopathic Med-icine and Medical Sciences).

The HPD Library’s vision is to provide an innova-tive, user-centered, technologically sophisticatedlibrary that• facilitates easy access to authoritative health

sciences information• serves as an instructional partner in the

academic curriculum• functions as a center for cross-disciplinary

collaboration• supports experiential learning, discovery,

and scholarship

As part of our mission to provide excellence inservice, the HPD Library recently conducted an

online survey to find out where we need to im-prove and what we are doing well. We are look-ing forward to reading the results and findinginnovative ways to serve you.

As the HPD liaison for the College of Optometry,I hope to serve as a guide to new resources andencourage both students and faculty memberswho pursue optometry research. All three li-aisons are currently developing Campu LibGuidesto better organize your access to resources in theform of subject pathfinders. The new LibGuideswill feature• new pathways to find the authoritative

information needed in their subject areaa starting point for research with searching tools and tips

• contact information for all liaisons by phone, email, text, in person, or instant message for specialized assistance

• special LibGuides, which may be created for aspecific course at an instructor’s request

• information created regarding areas such as consumer health resources and mobile medical applications


NSU Health Professions DivisionLibrary: Excellence in Service


BELOW ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF LIBGUIDES CREATEDAT OTHER INSTITUTIONS:

http://researchguides.uic.edu/healthsciencesfrom the University of Illinois, Chicago

•http://subjectguides.library.unsw.edu.au/content.php?pid=11693&s

id=78448&search_terms=optometryfrom the University of New South Wales, Australia

•http://pacificu.libguides.com/content.php?pid=35994&sid=264936

from Pacific University, Oregon

In addition to providing new LibGuides for assistance in research,liaisons also work with faculty members as an instructional part-ner to provide instructional and academic support in reaching theobjectives of the curriculum. This partnership is especially criticalin the current and dynamic state of library services. We havefound that most of our users prefer to access materials online,which is why we are working to accommodate this preference.For this reason, access to the HPD Library resources are rapidlychanging. For example, resources that were previously available inprint may now be provided in different formats as we purchasemore online library subscription resources.

As your liaison, I hope to keep you informed on exciting resourcesavailable to you such as new e-books and new databases via Twit-ter: HPD Library News, accessible from the HPD Library homepageat http://www.nova.edu/hpdlibrary/index.html.

New databases and e-books added most recently include BatesPhysical Examination streaming videos, Red Book Online, Dy-naMed, Visual Dx, and Psychiatry Online. Liaison services for fac-ulty members also include:• updating syllabi to reflect the latest edition of required and

supplemental reading assignments and facilitating accessto readings that may be available through online booksand journals

• providing middleware – library instruction within your WebCT or Blackboard course via Courtney’s Corner, with assignment-specific videos, PowerPoints, or handouts to accompany research-based learning

• library instruction classes or new supplemental a la carte sessions to review using Endnote or PubMed, in personor online

• personalized faculty research assistance to find literature related to your topic

• library orientation for new faculty as well as currentfaculty members who want information on using newer library resources

• assignment-specific educational technology support• course-specific resource support

Another project in progress by your HPD Library liaison is creatinga vehicle for different disciplines to share their research. We hopeto create a searchable HPD database to share scholarly commu-nication across the HPD colleges, accessible from the HPD Libraryhomepage. The possibilities for collaboration in research are veryexciting, and we hope to have a role in bringing people togetherto share their work with their colleagues.

With effective instructional partnering and communication, yourHPD Library liaison hopes to serve as an extension to your class-room as well as your personal assistant to your success. Feel freeto drop by anytime; my door is always open. All my contact infor-mation is available on the HPD Library Ask a Librarian Web page.I look forward to helping you.

COURTNEY MLINAR, BILL ANDREWS, DEEPA SONPAR, ANN WOOD,AND STAR ANDREWS ASSEMBLED THE “CURTAIN OF SLIDES”

USING SLIDES THEY EXTRACTED FROM THE COLLECTION.

NEW DOOR SIGN—SELF EXPLANATORY.

MLINAR STANDING AT THE GREETING DESK.


The Institute of Medicine’s 1999 landmark report To Err is Humanprovided critical insight as to the numbers of patients that die inhospitals as the result of medical errors. Hospitals are not the onlysetting where patients may encounter a treatment-related injury,and the report does not address those patients that are injured inthe course of treatment.

Consequently, the rhetorical question becomes: Has patient safetyimproved in the last 10 years? That issue is debated in a numberof forums. It is critical to personalize the issue and consider whateach of us does in our course of care to promote the practice ofpatient safety. A component of improving safe patient care in-cludes actively reviewing the office and clinical practice site forpotential sources of injury.

There are a number of national patient safety initiatives that canbe adopted to make the office setting safer for patients. The firstis the adoption of the Universal Protocol―a template to ensurethat the provider has a pre-procedure verification process (pa-tient identity and procedure to be performed), marking of the pro-cedure site (right V. left in the case of optical care), and a “timeout” immediately prior to beginning the procedure. This is thefinal verification that the correct patient will have the correct pro-cedure to the correct site.

Documentation is often the least-favorite aspect of patient care,yet is the one that if not done timely and fully will have significantrepercussion on the practice. Legally speaking, the documenta-tion should reflect the reason for care, services performed and

offered, and the plan for future care. It is appropriate to includepatient quotes and any comments the patient verbalizes aboutreluctance or dissatisfaction with a treatment plan. Evidence ofcoordination of care with other providers also should be included.

This step is critical especially if the patient has an emergent con-dition that requires specialty care. Be sure there is a mechanismto ensure closure so the patient does not “fall through” theproverbial cracks. Financially speaking, the billing charges mustbe supported with appropriate and complete documentation re-flecting the necessity of care and services provided. Do not forgetto have patient calls and messages entered into the permanentclinical record. This patient feedback is important and may impactfuture care.

Critically review your practice setting to minimize your particularset of risk exposures. Proparacaine should not be left unattendedin the exam room; patients know or learn through the course oftreatment that this medication relieves ocular pain. Patients havebeen known to take this medication from the exam room and self-prescribe. Often these patients suffer corneal damage and com-plicate the course of treatment, and they are reluctant to discloseits use when they return with complications.

Patient satisfaction surveys are a gift because they serve as amechanism to solicit valuable information from the patient’s per-spective. Patients gladly share what is working well along withthose areas that represent an opportunity for improvement forthe practice. Taking this feedback seriously and responding to the

BY JUDITH R. SANDS, R.N., M.S.L.RISK MANAGEMENT SPECIALIST

NSU HEALTH PROFESSIONS DIVISION

Building thePatient

Safety Culturefor You andYour Patients


information demonstrates your objective commitment to provid-ing coordinated and safe patient care.

Appropriate storage of patient-care items will ensure the integrityof the packaging and product content. Do not store supplieswhere they could become wet (floor or under sinks) or in areaswith ceiling-mounted fire sprinklers and be sure that items arestored at least 18 inches below the ceiling. Always check for prod-uct expiration dates and implement an inventory rotation system.

Minimize trips and slips by keeping floors clean, dry, and free ofsupplies. Take note of the office lighting; consider shadows andglare that could impact the patient’s ability to navigate throughthe office. Monitor the patient’s response to care and treatment,provide assistance to patients getting out of the exam chair, andensure they are steady on their feet prior to having them leavethe exam room.

Typically, a lot of trust is placed with the office manager and thefront office staff. Take time to listen to how members of your of-fice staff respond to patient phone calls, questions, and concerns.Pay particular attention to see if the information provided iswithin the scope of their job description. Review the documenta-tion of office staff relating to cancellations and missed appoint-ments because this may provide you with insight for a number ofimprovement initiatives.

Finally, when patients voice concerns relating to care and service,pay attention and determine what is the true root cause of theirissues. Demonstrate your commitment to your patients by listen-ing to them respectfully and validating with the patient what youheard. It is often helpful to do this in a private area away fromother patients. Patients who feel respected and have a good re-lationship with their provider are less likely to seek a legal remedy.

There are resources to assist you with concerns relating to officemanagement and clinical practice, including professional associa-tions and risk-management resources of your liability carrier.These individuals are very happy to help you in addressing issuesand mitigating your risk exposure. Often, this consultative serv-ice is available at no additional charge. In the event of a Notice ofIntent to Initiate Legal Litigation (the advanced legal warning let-ter in Florida) that you are the subject of litigation, do not ignorethis and notify your liability carrier immediately. Failure to takethis notice seriously may impact your legal standing.

To keep your practice thriving, consider how you like to be treatedby your fellow practitioners and go one step above that with yourpatients. Consistently document your charts concurrently with allrelevant information from visits and calls. Ensure that your staffmembers’ roles are clear and that they view themselves as valuedmembers of the care team. These people really know the pulse ofthe office and can help you shine. In addition, make the time toincorporate patient safety strategies into your practice because itis much easier, cheaper, and less time consuming than litigation.

NSU Collegeof OptometryResponds To

Crisis-Wracked

HAITI

WRITTEN BY:JANET LEASHER, O.D., M.P.H., FAAO, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF OPTOMETRY

SMITH BLANC, O.D. (’09, RESIDENT ‘10)JOSIE TOUSSAINT, M.S., LOW VISION ASSISTANT, THE EYE CARE INSTITUTE

Catastrophic DisasterOn January 12, 2010, shortly before 5:00 p.m., an earthquakemeasuring 7.3 on the Richter scale rattled Haiti for 35 seconds. Itwas the most powerful earthquake to hit the country in 200 yearsand struck the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area, as well as thetowns of Léogâne, Jacmel, and Petit-Goâve. The country’s capitalof Port-au-Prince suffered catastrophic damage, and 80 percent ofthe town of Léogâne was destroyed.

The earthquake created a tragic situation of extreme vulnerabil-ity for the Haitian people. Haiti is considered to be the least de-veloped country in the Western Hemisphere, and the disasterstruck the country’s most populated area as well as its economicand administrative center. According to the Ministry of Health, itis a tremendous setback because for the last three years, Haiti hasexperienced stability in terms of society, politics, security, eco-nomic growth, and a remarkable improvement in living condi-tions. Nonetheless, it is the resilience and tenacity of the Haitianpeople that will bring recovery and reconstruction with interna-tional support.

Striking at the Very HeartThe human impact is immense. Roughly 1.5 million people (15percent of the national population) were directly affected. Ac-cording to the national authorities, more than 300,000 died andas many were injured. About 1.3 million people are living in tem-porary shelters in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area, and over600,000 people have left the affected areas to seek shelter else-where in the country. In addition, existing problems in providingaccess to food and basic services have been exacerbated. By strik-ing at the very heart of the Haitian economy and administration,the earthquake has had a severe affect on human and institutionalcapacities, both the public and the private sectors, as well as someinternational nongovernmental organizations (NGOs).

Colossal DestructionThe destruction of infrastructure is colossal. The country’s mainport cannot be used. The Presidential Palace, Parliament, lawcourts, and most ministerial and public administration buildingshave been destroyed. About 105,000 homes were totally deci-mated and over 208,000 were damaged. More than 1,300 edu-cational institutions and more than 50 hospitals and healthcenters have collapsed or are unusable. This includes the St. Vin-cent School for the Blind and the building that houses the HaitianSociety for the Blind. In addition, 19 ophthalmology clinics wereseverely damaged or destroyed.

The nation’s university hospital, HUEH, which was the trainingcenter for health care providers for the entire country, was se-verely damaged and the School of Nursing was completely de-stroyed. The ophthalmology department, which trains threeresidents per year, suffered tremendous damage. Interestingly,there is no recognition of the optometry profession in Haiti; how-ever, there are several optometrists serving as humanitarian mis-sionaries and several short-term missions occurring in Haiti,including a VOSH team from Ohio that was conducting a field eyecare clinic when the earthquake hit.

NSU Hears the CallAside from the immediate response of collecting money, food,water, and other needed items, an ad hoc task force of the NSUHealth Professions Division, led by Dr. Leonard Levy of the NSUCollege of Osteopathic Medicine Center for Bioterrorism and All-Hazards Preparedness (CBAP), mobilized a response. On January15, NSU’s College of Optometry, represented by Dr. Janet Leasher,participated with this ad hoc task force in creating an inventory oflicensed health professional personnel willing and able to respondto the earthquake crisis in Haiti as part of a call to NSU from theCouncil of Florida Medical School Deans and the Region VIIHealth/Medical Southeast Domestic Security Task Force.

NSU licensed health professions employees were asked to be-come part of emergency response teams and recovery teams ifready and able to put their personal safety and health at risk at amoment’s notice. Through the University of Miami’s Miller Schoolof Medicine’s Project Medishare program, volunteers would beworking at a 300-bed tent hospital in the United Nations com-pound at the airport and serve other needs as directed on theground. In particular, the call targeted those who speak HaitianCreole and/or French.

The very night before the earthquake struck Haiti, Dr. Ryan Price,an optometric Christian missionary (http://www.christianville-haiti.org) spoke to the optometry student club, Fellowship forChristian Optometrists (FCO), about the situation there. Little didhe know that as he flew back to Haiti with his immediate family,a massive earthquake interrupted what he was working to im-prove. Many FCO members rallied to support his efforts. Therewas discussion of a student-led humanitarian mission, but therisks were felt to be too great for students without disaster expe-rience to travel—especially with the state department advisingagainst it―so the mission has been postponed indefinitely.

The National Optometry Student Association, which representsunderrepresented minorities in the profession of optometryand whose mission is to serve those populations that are un-derserved in our community, leapt to action, assisting in thecollection and sorting of donations for Haiti relief for the HealthProfessions Division.

South Florida’s Rich Haitian-American HeritageSouth Florida has a strong Haitian-American community (as Miamiis believed to have the highest percentage of Haitian immigrantsin the country), many of whom are patients, students, and/or em-ployees at NSU. Haiti is roughly 800 miles south of Fort Lauderdalewhere NSU’s main campus is centered. The university has re-sponded to our neighbors in this time of need through a varietyof outreach, donations, and personal support.

College of Optometry AnswersTwo remarkable individuals answered the emergency call to vol-unteer their professional services in Haiti from the NSU Collegeof Optometry: Smith Blanc, O.D., and Josie Toussaint, M.S.

Dr. Blanc, a 2009 graduate of NSUCO and currently in the primarycare/contact lens residency program at NSU, is Florida-born of


Haitian heritage. He had participated in a previous humanitarianmission to Haiti and three to Jamaica through the National Opto-metric Student Association, where he served as student presidentand student team coordinator. Dr. Blanc also has assisted theAOA/FOA HEHP Glaucoma Awareness Campaign for Caribbean-Americans in South Florida and is active in community outreach.

Toussaint, who was born and raised in Haiti, works for The EyeCare Institute at NSU as a low vision assistant and has a master’sdegree in psychology. Sadly, she lost family members in the earth-quake due to horrific circumstances. Fluent in English, French, andCreole, and intimately familiar with Port-au-Prince, her serv-ice would prove to be invaluable.

Broward Optometrists Contribute toa Monumental TaskWith such incredibly short notice and with a three-day college-wide donation drive, gathering enough pharmaceuticals, supplies,and equipment for Dr. Blanc to provide quality urgent care was amonumental task. Unfortunately, ready-made spectacles could

not be obtained in time, although refractive services and materi-als were an identified need.

A call to the local Broward County Optometric Society membersyielded donations of topical antibiotics, anti-inflammatories, oc-ular lubricants, and supplies augmenting that which was suppliedby NSU’s The Eye Care Institute clinic inventory and monetarydonations from students, as well as staff and faculty members.The response from the NSU and Broward optometric physicianswas absolutely inspirational.

Providing on-the-Spot Care to the FullestDr. Blanc and Toussaint were deployed to Haiti on February 22and returned safely on March 1. They joined a larger health carerelief team through the University of Miami Project Medishareprogram, which traveled on a chartered flight through Vision Air-lines. According to Dr. Blanc and Toussaint, even though the flightto Haiti is just two hours away, the day of the deployment to Haitiwas a long one. Shortly before reaching Haiti, an aftershock shookthe grounds of the Port-au-Prince airport and a power outage cut

“The human impactis immense.”


the airport lights. Furthermore, this inevitably forced the planecarrying the team to be rerouted to the Santo Domingo airport inthe Dominican Republic (where team members slept for thenight). After successfully arriving in Haiti the next day, the medicalteam received an orientation to the University of Miami’s ProjectMedishare base and began to work.

Dr. Blanc served in the triage area, where he was able to better ad-dress the various ocular complaints of the patients that lined upfrom all over the city. He estimates seeing almost 100 patientsper day and served as the sole provider of eye care during thetime he was there. Dr. Blanc treated and managed conditions suchas dry eye, foreign body complaints, ocular trauma, and bacterialinfections. He also provided consultation and baseline ocular test-ing for those patients on tuberculosis treatment. Drug resistantTB is one of the most prevalent infectious conditions in Haiti, andwithout access to medica-tions as a result of the earth-quake, many were concernedabout spreading infection.

One of the most memorablepatients seen by Dr. Blancpresented with suspectedrhabdomyosarcoma (a soft-tissue tumor of the eye). Dr.Blanc worked to medically transport this patient to the UnitedStates for better treatment. Dr. Blanc witnessed the systemic andphysical consequences of the disaster firsthand, including casesof gangrene of injured limbs and amputations. The rising rates ofinfectious disease and trauma were astronomical.

As was previously mentioned, Toussaint works as the coordinatorof low vision services in the United States, but in this mission sheserved in many aspects that tested her skills outside the Collegeof Optometry. As a fluent speaker of Haitian Creole, French, andEnglish, she provided invaluable interpretation on the base (rep-resenting both Haitians and non-Haitians alike). Bridging the com-munication barrier between those foreign doctors and the Haitianpatients was a godsend. She also served as an on-the-spot nurse,where at any given time she took care of about 20 patients. Whilenot on the base, she acted as a social worker and transported pa-tients to their homes and to other facilities. Her knowledge of herhometown city of Port-au-Prince proved to be a precious gift tothe foreign agencies conducting disaster relief. (Please see the ac-companying sidebar to read Toussaint’s personal account.)

Sustainable Recovery of Eye CareIn addition to providing direct care to patients during the emer-gency phase post-disaster, part of the College of Optometry Haitiassistance plan was to connect with the eye care leaders in Haitito assist in the needs assessment for long-term recovery and de-velopment planning. NSUCO is also home to the North AmericanCenter of the UNESCO Chair in Visual Health and Development,

who has been communicating with other VISION 2020 USA andIAPB agencies in the eye care response, recovery, and sustainabledevelopment agenda for Haiti.

NSU optometry and public health faculty member Dr. JanetLeasher, the coordinator of the North American Center of the UN-ESCO Chair in Visual Health and Development, participated in theeye care reconstruction planning workshop on May 17-18 in SantoDomingo, which was hosted by the Ministry of Health of Haiti andthe Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO). In attendancewere PAHO’s collaborating nongovernmental organizations suchas Sightsavers International, Lions Clubs International Foundation,Christofel Blinden Mission, World Blind Union, Caribbean Councilfor the Blind, Orbis International, International Centre for EyecareEducation, Deseret International, IRIS Foundation, Pan-AmericanOphthalmology Association, the American Academy of Ophthal-

mology, and the UNESCO Chairat NSU. Representatives par-ticipated from the Haitian So-ciety of Ophthalmology (SHO),the National Committee forthe Prevention of Blindness(CNPC), the University Hospital(HUEH), and the Haitian Soci-ety for the Blind (SHAA).

PAHO carried out an evaluation report of the damage to the eyecare system and the results were reported.

Prior to the earthquake, the Ministry of Health in Haiti had an es-tablished eye health program, which included community healtheducation, vitamin A distribution, surgical interventions forcataracts (with the Cuban partner, Operación Milagro), nominalsalary support for some ophthalmologists in the public sector, andpartial support of the ophthalmology residency training programat the University Hospital.

Most of the ophthalmology clinics in the affected region sustaineddamage. One ophthalmologist died, clinics were destroyed, equip-ment damaged, and services stopped. Those who were providingservices were asked to provide care for free by the Ministry ofHealth. Unfortunately, eye care providers also sustained personalloss, and this lack of income has stressed the eye care system evenfurther. The immediate need is to recover those ophthalmologistswho suffered loss of their practices, families, and homes.

The Committee for the Prevention of Blindness in Haiti had beenworking on getting approval for a national blindness preventionplan (VISION 2020: The Right to Sight) with the Ministry of Healthbefore the earthquake. Now, infrastructure and administrativesupport is much needed to continue and broaden those efforts.An attempt to register and coordinate the aid that is arriving wasdecided to be the responsibility of this body. Anyone interested ineye care reconstruction should contact the CNPC.

“The rising rates of infectious disease and

trauma were astronomical.”


The Haitian Society of Ophthalmology expressedconcerns about the lack of regulation, control, or co-ordination of the 10,000-plus NGOs working in Haitipost-earthquake and the usefulness of the dona-tions (out-of-date items, not in good working order,inappropriate or unneeded items). Some of theservices have been completely provided by foreign-ers and undermine the efforts of the local healthcare providers. There are currently 52 ophthalmolo-gists practicing throughout the country. Ophthalmicequipment procurement, instrument repair, oph-thalmic pharmaceuticals, and supplies are currentlyimported and principally provided by foreign NGOdonations. A registration and regulation process forthe visual health providers (local and foreign) is anidentified need. Glaucoma and eye injuries are re-portedly more concerning than cataract blindness inthe country. Refractive error services need to bestrengthened. Public awareness of the importanceof visual health as a key component in developmentalso was discussed.

As mentioned earlier in this article, the St. VincentSchool for the Blind, a boarding school for an esti-mated three-to-four percent of the over 300,000thought to be visually impaired or blind Haitians,was totally demolished and needs to be rebuilt. TheHaitian Society for the Blind, which offers supportiverehabilitation aids, and orientation/mobility train-ing, was also destroyed. Low vision aids and de-vices, teaching materials for the blind, training ofteachers for the blind, and community outreachservices were identified needs. Advocating for uni-versal access for those with disabilities such as blind-ness or loss of limb is also a priority for SHAA in thereconstruction of buildings and transportation sys-tems in Haiti.

The University Hospital, which trains ophthalmologyresidents and some ophthalmic assistants, needs torebuild. The school of nursing collapsed, and manypublic eye care services were suspended to accom-modate the urgent care needs of trauma injuriespost-earthquake. A proposal to increase ophthal-mology training to three more positions, enhanceemphasis on continuing education of current eyeM.D.s, and increase subspecialty competencewere prioritized.

“Some of the services havebeen completely provided byforeigners and underminethe efforts of the local healthcare providers.”


The meeting in Santo Domingo culminatedin the development of objectives andstrategies for the short-, mid-, and long-term reconstruction of eye care in Haiti.Working groups brainstormed appropriateoptions that would improve the eye caresystem for the entire country, not only inthe regions affected by the earthquake. Allparticipants agreed that building capacity,improving infrastructure, and facilitatingquality eye care for all the citizens of Haitimeans converting the challenges of disas-ter into opportunities for development.

Interestingly, the SPHERE guidelines, con-sidered to be the directives in interna-tional disaster relief, do not have specificguidelines for eye care services and sys-tems. The International Agency for thePrevention of Blindness, under the lead-ership of Jerry Vincent, O.D., M.P.H., ofthe International Rescue Committee, is

working on those guidelines for visioncare. Input and feedback on those guide-lines will be sought from those ophthal-mologists in Haiti involved in the disasterrelief and those international entities suchas the American Academy of Ophthalmol-ogy, as well as Dr. Janet Leasher, who hasworked in disaster recovery in Honduras.

“NSU is committed to supporting the devel-opment of eye care for the Haitian commu-nity both here and abroad,” stated Dr. DavidLoshin, who serves as dean of NSU’s Collegeof Optometry. “The situation in Haiti is suchthat everyone must contribute.”

NSUCO is requesting that alumni who areinterested in collaborating to develop sus-tainable programs in Haiti or other devel-oping countries should contact Dr. JanetLeasher at (954) 262-1488 or via email [email protected].

Lorsqu'il ya de l'espoir...il

ya enHaïti.Translation:Where There’sHope...There’s Haiti.

Interventions for Reconstruction of Eye Care


February 26, 2010, was a remarkableday for me. An aftershock that morningcut out electricity on the tarmac. Afterspending hours circling the island ofHispaniola, the pilot decided to landthe plane in Santo Domingo. I spent thenight sleeping on a chair at the airport.At 7:00 a.m. the next morning, we leftSanto Domingo en route to Port-Au-Prince. Thirty minutes later, we wereflying over the city, which looked likea war zone.

An hour later, we arrived at the hospi-tal camp and broke into groups basedon discipline. The journey started forme by doing a few translations since Iwas new on the floor and didn’t havemany skills to offer; however, by late af-ternoon, I worked with a group oftrauma doctors doing translation. Bythe evening, I was pulled from left toright doing translation, picking up medications from the supplyroom, distributing toiletries to the patients, and helping thenurses that needed assistance.

By Wednesday, the new shift of volunteers came, but we werevery short-staffed so I became a nurse with no training. I had sixamputee patients and six in isolation. It was a challenging day; Iquickly had to learn everything from how to change an IV lineand tube feed a day-old baby as well as work with a few familiesdoing grief counseling. Accompanied with a chauffeur, I alsotransferred advanced-case TB patients from our camp hospital

to an infectious disease hospital. Theweek I was there, Dr. Smith Blanc, anNSUCO graduate and resident, was theonly eye care provider onsite. Saturdayevening, after Dr. Smith departed, anophthalmologist came on board.

Sadly, the tragedy is far from over. Thepopulation is facing all kinds of brutal-ity, from domestic violence and rape tocar accidents and gunshot wounds.Children and women are the most fre-quent victims. Women are victims ofrape and domestic violence whereaschildren are abandoned and often soldas sex slaves or given to more affluentfamilies to do household chores.

In order for the country to recoverfrom this dilemma, a reform govern-ment needs to be put in place, where itwould be governed by an outside

source. The corruption is so deep that the country has becomedisabled. The resources that are donated to Haiti must be con-trolled by a foreign institution. The population is greatly suffer-ing, but in order to resolve the problem, we need to reduce thecorruption, provide safety, and improve the health care.

I was delighted to be a part of the medical team and to repre-sent NSU. It was an excellent experience, and I would be glad todo it again. I have even kept in contact with some of my pa-tients, who have sent me emails from time to time to give meupdates of their conditions.

NSU Responds:My Journey Back to Haiti

BY JOSIE TOUSSAINT, M.S.LOW VISION ASSISTANT, THE EYE CARE INSTITUTE


This program is designed to bring you thelatest information on therapeutic treat-ment and management. As primary careproviders, optometrists are presentedwith a number of challenging diagnosticdilemmas. The program will help you toincrease your comfort level and updateyour knowledge base to incorporate alltreatments into your practice.

This meeting starts on Thursday eveningafter a light dinner with two hours of CEand will continue on Friday with a fullday of CE, which will include an extendedbreak around lunchtime for participantsto explore the French Quarter. We willhave a similar schedule on Saturday witha slightly shorter lunch hour. Speakers in-clude Drs. Joe Sowka, Alan Kabat, KimReed, and Mike Bacigalupi. The CE hourswill be COPE approved, and 14 of thehours will be approved by the FloridaBoard of Optometry for transcript-qual-ity credit.

The Royal Sonesta Hotel is a first-class fa-cility in the French Quarter located di-rectly on Bourbon Street. Its Web site islocated at www.sonesta.com/royal-neworleans/. Go to our CE Web page atoptometry.nova.edu/ce to reserve yourspecially priced room for the meeting.

This meeting will update attendees in allareas of primary care optometry, pedi-atrics, contact lenses, and therapeuticmanagement of commonly seen condi-tions. Set on the beach at St. Simons Is-land, Georgia, the schedule will allow forample recreational time at low tide whenthe beach is at its best. Saturday morningwill be set aside for golf and recreation.We will have a few hours of CE late Satur-day afternoon followed by a dinner. Sun-day will be a full day of CE, followed onMonday morning with a half-day session.The event will offer 16 hours of CE with10 of the hours approved by the FloridaBoard of Optometry for transcript-qualityeducation credit.

The King and Prince Resort has plenty ofamenities to keep the whole family enter-tained, while the charming and historicVillage of St. Simons offers numeroussightseeing opportunities, including aninteresting tour of a working lighthouse.The hotel’s Web site is located atwww.kingandprince.com. Book yourroom through the NSU Web site at op-tometry.nova.edu/ce to obtain the excel-lent event rate set for the meeting. Foryour information, St. Simons Island is lo-cated 60 miles north of the Jacksonvilleairport near Brunswick, Georgia.

Friday will include a full day of courses,with the morning being devoted topractice management and the after-noon to the Florida Board of Optometryrequired courses. The courses on Satur-day and Sunday will continue with inter-esting speakers both from our facultyand around the country. We will behonoring the class of 2001, and mem-bers of the class will receive compli-mentary registration and a banquetticket for Saturday night at the SeminoleHard Rock Hotel and Casino. All alumniwill be invited to the private alumnilunch meeting on Saturday.

May 13-15, 201115th Annual Clinical Eye CareConference and AlumniReunion WeekendNova SoutheasternUniversity, Davie Campus

March 10-13, 2011Royal Sonesta HotelNew Orleans, LouisianaTheraputic Optometry16 hours of CE

August 12-14, 2011The King and Prince Beachand Golf ResortSt. Simons Island, GeorgiaPrimary Care Update16 Hours of CE

An Eye on Continuing Education

BY MELANIE CRANDALL, O.D., M.B.A., FAAOASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF OPTOMETRY

DIRECTOR OF CONTINUING EDUCATION

Visionariesthe VISIONARY • Summer/Fall 2010

23

Inthe fall 2009 issue of The Visionary, I invited you tomake a contribution to the College of OptometryScholarship Fund. As I explained at that time, the fundwill be used to provide scholarships to entering stu-

dents so we can remain competitive in attracting the best andbrightest future optometrists to our program and place ourselveson a level playing field with other schools and colleges of optom-etry in our recruiting efforts. And, not surprisingly, a number ofyou came through and contributed to the fund. On behalf of theCollege of Optometry, I thank you for your generosity.

The College of Optometry Scholarship Fund is growing, but inorder to begin awarding scholarships to entering students, the en-dowment fund needs to grow to $150,000. That amount will pro-vide the capital to produce the earnings required to award a$5,000 scholarship to a deserving student, and as long as the stu-dent remains in good standing, the scholarship will be renewedeach year for three additional years – for a total of $20,000. Iwould not ask you to consider giving to this very worthwhile fundunless I was willing to step up to the plate myself: Therefore, I

have pledged $1,000 to the scholarship fund and will renew mypledge each year. The payments for my pledge are made throughpayroll deduction in the amount of $38.46 every two weeks―lessthan the cost of a latte each day. This type of payment plan can bearranged through your bank.

We are looking to you―alumni and friends of the college―tohelp us achieve our goal of raising $150,000 for the College of Op-tometry Scholarship Fund. So become a visionary by making acontribution today.

For information about how you can contribute to the success ofthe College of Optometry, please contact me on my cell phone at(954) 661-6550 or by email at [email protected].

(Please keep in mind that your gift is tax deductible.)

aBecomeVisionary

VisionariesMrs. Elena Barnabei on behalf

of the Stefano LaSala FoundationCollege of Optometry

Scholarship Fund

Dr. Gita Dangodara (’98)College of Optometry

Scholarship Fund

Dr. Barry Frauens (’96)College of Optometry

Scholarship Fund

Mr. Adam Goldberg, J.D.College of Optometry

Scholarship Fund

Dr. N. Scott Gorman* College of Optometry

Scholarship Fund

Dr. Walter Guerard (’95)Lester E. Janoff

Scholar Award Fund

Dr. Carrie Heller (’03)College of Optometry

Scholarship Fund

Dr. Cristina Llerena (’06)College of Optometry

Scholarship Fund

Dr. Mark Marciano (’98)College of Optometry

Scholarship Fund

Dr. Aaron Sako (’00)College of Optometry

Scholarship Fund

Dr. Ann-Kay Tenn (’06)College of Optometry

Scholarship Fund

Dr. Sam Villella (’01)College of Optometry

Annual Fund

Dr. Lori Vollmer (’02)Lester E. JanoffScholar Fund

Dr. David Warshaw (’06)College of Optometry

Scholarship Fund

Dr. Joni Scott-Weideman (’03)College of Optometry

Scholarship Fund

Best regards,

Dr. N. Scott GormanDirector of Developmentand Alumni Relations

* Member of the President’s Associates

Dear College of Optometry Alumni and Friends,

During my time at Nova Southeastern University’s College ofOptometry, the most important thing I learned was to be acompassionate and dedicated doctor. One way I accomplish thisis by staying involved and giving back to my community. You aremy community, and I am asking you to join me in giving back bymaking a contribution.

As a private institution, NSU depends on us—alumni, students,faculty and staff members, and friends of the college—to fundscholarships, research, and up-to-date optometric equipment andfacilities. Any help, no matter the size, makes a difference. It isimportant to leave our legacy for future students to have the sameextraordinary experiences that we had during our time at theCollege of Optometry.

Leave your legacy now, and consider making a gift by completingand returning the enclosed envelope, or make your gift online atwww.nova.edu/changingtheworld.

Thank You,

Amanda Woodie Nanasy, O.D., ’10College of OptometryNova Southeastern University

Join Us in Creatingthe Next Generation ofVisionaries




Naomi Aguilera (class of 2011) and Sharon Park (class of 2013)have been selected by Vistakon for free student membership in theAmerican Public Health Association Vision Care Section (APHA).

The APHA, which is the oldest and most diverse organization ofpublic health professionals in the world, works to protect all Amer-icans, their families, and their communities from preventable se-rious health threats and strives to assure that community-basedhealth promotion and disease prevention activities and preventivehealth services are universally accessible in the United States. Theassociation represents a broad array of health professionals, in-cluding optometrists, who care about their own health and thehealth of their communities.

The APHA also builds a collective voice for public health, works toensure access to health care, protects funding for core publichealth services, and eliminates health disparities, among a myriadof other issues. The APHA Vision Care Section has actively advo-cated for visual health and eye care for 20 years. Optometrists areencouraged to join and become actively involved by visitingwww.apha.org.

Pravina Patel, O.D. (‘10), Naomi Aguilera (class of 2011), andLeslie Rosenthal (class of 2011) were named 2010 TransitionsStudents of Vision Scholarship winners. Thirteen entries that

demonstrated this year’s Focus on Children’s Vision were selectedas the scholarship winners. Supported by the Transitions HealthySight for Life Fund, the scholarship program awarded 14 studentsfrom the United States and Canada. Projects were judged by agroup of Transitions Optical representatives, eye care profession-als, and marketing specialists. To encourage creativity and a widerange of interpretations, projects were accepted in three cate-gories: Activity/Event, Multimedia, and Other. The TransitionsHealthy Sight for Life Fund awarded six $1,000 scholarships andseven $500 scholarships.

“Switching the focus this year to children’s vision enabled thestudents to take a creative look at how they would interact withyoung patients,” said Carole Bratteig, professional developmentand education manager for Transitions. “We could not be morepleased with the entries received this year. I have faith that thenext generation of patients will be in good hands with these stu-dents of vision.”

Students were encouraged to be creative as they explored theirroles in care for patients 18 years of age and younger. Projects in-cluded research papers, presentations, videos, posters, and com-munity outreach. Winning students will also have their entries fea-tured on the Transitions Healthy Sight for Life Fund Web sitelocated at www.HealthySightforLife.org.

SiteStudent News


eye


BY OD-4 MICHELLE LEVIN, PRESIDENT, FLORIDA OPTOMETRIC STUDENT ASSOCIATION

SiteStudent News

eyeStudent Organization SpotlightFlorida OptometricStudent Association

The Florida Optometric Student Association (FOSA), whichis the student branch of the Florida Optometric Association(FOA), encourages students to participate in organized op-tometry at the state level. In addition, we provide oppor-tunities for optometry students to make connections withlocal optometrists.

Our goals could not have been met without the dedicationof our officers and over 300 members. I also have had theprivilege to work with the 2009-10 executive board mem-bers: Ernie Cepero (president elect); Charles Nunez, (vicepresident); Pravina Patel (treasurer); Niketha Ajodha (sec-retary); and class representatives Wendy Wendel (2010),Jessica Rivera (2011), Margi Patel and Anthony Vu (2012),and Stephanie Frankel and Betsy Jacob (2013). Thank youto all the FOSA officers and members that support our or-ganization every year.

Optometry as a Legislative Profession: What Does ThisMean and How Is FOSA Involved?In order for optometry to continue being the primary eyecare profession it is and to continue expanding the way wepractice, we must become active in the legislative process.This year, FOSA was very active.

On March 25, a group of 30 students headed up to Talla-hassee by bus and joined other Florida optometrists to rallytogether for Legislative Day, which was organized by theFOA. We were there for an important reason: to meet withlegislators about supporting Senate Bill 330, Optome-try/Oral and Topical Pharmaceutical Agents, and educatethem about our profession. After a long day of hard work,we headed back home on a seven-hour bus ride, whichwent by quickly as we watched movies, played games, andcelebrated the success of our meeting.

Being active in the legislative process also means support-ing optometry-friendly candidates running for office thatwill stand up for our profession. On February 19, over 50students came out to support a fundraising reception forSenate President Jeff Atwater, who is running for the chieffinancial officer post and was amazed to see such supportfrom the optometry community. Combined with op-tometrists, ophthalmologists, and optometry students,there were over 250 people in attendance.


Another candidate we support is Mark Marciano, O.D., an NSU gradu-ate, running for the Florida House of Representatives in District 83 be-cause it is important to have an optometrist in office. FOSA membershelped spread the word about Dr. Marciano by going door to door de-livering information about his campaign on April 11. These candidatesand a few others not mentioned will continue to need our help as weapproach the upcoming elections.

FOSA EventsWe kicked off the 2009-10 academic year with the FOSA Social, our an-nual pool tournament at Gatsby’s in Davie. Doctors and studentsteamed up to compete for the FOSA Cup and bragging rights for a year.Congratulations to the 2009 pool tournament winners Dr. John Davisfrom Flamingo Falls Eye Care and his student partner, OD-2 Tiffany Doan.

Another terrific event was called Meet the ODs, which is held annuallyduring our winter semester. This is a great time to meet many localODs, including recent NSU graduates who are in different modes ofpractice. Students make connections and get questions answered bythose that are in the real world of optometry. Thank you to all of ourparticipating ODs who take the time out of their busy schedules everyyear to visit with us.

FOA ConventionThe 2009 FOA Annual Convention was held at the Fontainebleau Hotelin Miami with over 40 students in attendance. Many continuing edu-cation courses were available and free to optometry students, plusother meetings and fun events.

FarewellWe will surely miss Pravina Patel and Wendy Wendel as FOSA officers,but we know they will continue to support us as new Florida ODs. Con-gratulations on graduating.

After two years as FOSA president, my term has sadly come to an end.I truly enjoyed serving in this organization, and I will continue to sup-port FOSA as past president. I have passed on the torch to Ernie Cepero,our new FOSA president for the 2010-11 academic year. Please join mein welcoming him in his new position. He is hardworking and dedicatedto Florida optometry and will continue to expand FOSA and serve as agreat leader.


FeaturedStudent Leader

BY OD-3 ERNESTO “ERNIE” CEPERO

SiteStudent News

eye

YOUNG “ERNIE” (CIRCA 1986)

My first experience working in theoptical business was 25 years agowhen my parents opened CeperoOpticians in Miami, Florida. In 2000,I graduated as a licensed opticianfrom Miami Dade College (MDC)and went on to work in the familybusiness. In 2001, Alan Sobel, O.D.,from Miami-Dade College allowedme the opportunity to shadow himonce a week for an entire year. Aftera few months with Dr. Sobel, I knewI wanted to be an optometrist.

I have been fortunate enough, priorto entering NSU, to experience thevarious aspects the field has to offer.For example, I was the optical man-ager and contact lens technician atour optical shop that was locatedwithin an M.D. practice, workedpart-time as an instructor at MDC’sOpticianry Program, served as a li-censed optician at Sears Optical, andas an ophthalmic technician at Bas-com Palmer.

In 2007, I was accepted into NSU’snew Pre-Optometry Program (POP).After finishing the POP year, I knewI wanted to become more involvedwith my class. Fortunately, as anOD-1, I was elected as class presi-dent and earned BSK honors. Asclass president, I have been able to

organize activities such as exam reviewsby the professors, lab checkout practicerelays, and student-led class reviews. Ialso became involved with the FloridaOptometric Student Association (FOSA)and will become FOSA president begin-ning this summer.

Thanks to my involvement with FOSA, Iwas able to travel to Tallahassee the pasttwo years for Legislative Day to support

Florida optometry. I was also elected SGAsecretary last semester and look forwardto attending the AOA conference as NSU’sAOSA delegate and the FOA conference inOrlando this summer.

As we enter the clinical part of our edu-cation, I look forward to continuing tolead the class of 2012 members as westrive to be the largest graduating classever at NSUCO.

My Perspective

Each year, the college’s SGA organizesa banquet called the Eyeball. In thepast, we have had approximately 300students, faculty members, and guestsattend. For this year’s Eyeball event,tickets went on sale on January 20 at12:00 p.m., and we sold out of the ini-tial 300 tickets within the first 45 min-utes, with a waiting list of over 200students. In fact, the students lined upas if they were waiting to purchaseLady Gaga concert tickets. Why? Be-cause Eyeball 2010, CaSEEno Royaletook place on the luxurious Lady Win-dridge Yacht.

Fortunately, we were able to get spon-sors to help provide an additional 200tickets, so we extend a heartfelt thankyou to NSU’s College of Optometry andVistakon. All 500 tickets sold out byJanuary 22, which is unheard of. It wasexciting to see such hype for our col-lege that even students from the otherNSU Health Professions Division col-leges wanted to attend.

The most anticipated NSUCO partytook place on March 20. Cruisingacross the Fort Lauderdale Intra-coastal, dancing under the stars, en-joying delicious dinning, and having funin our CaSEEno playing blackjack,roulette, and slot machines (all funnymoney) made for a tremendous affair.Imagine 500 students and facultymembers on a boat―now that wassome serious school spirit. It was thehottest party on the Intracoastal, andwe were so proud that our schoolhosted it.

I’m not sure what the next Eyeball willbring, but I am sure that Eyeball 2010,CaSEEno Royale was surely a memo-rable one making history as one of thebest Eyeball banquets ever at NSU.Thank you to the SGA officers ElliotSnyder, Sarah Brehm, and Carrie Car-penter, as well as Carey Jenkins andLisa Cossetto, class of 2011 president,for helping me coordinate this fab-ulous event.

Eyeball ExtravaganzaBY OD-4 MICHELLE LEVIN, PRESIDENT, FLORIDA OPTOMETRIC STUDENT ASSOCIATION


February was devoted to the recognition of AfricanAmericans of the past and present who’ve made signif-icant contributions in communities both locally andabroad. At NSU’s Health Professions Division (HPD),Black History Month was celebrated by acknowledgingthe African American faculty members who’ve madecontributions to their respective professions through ed-ucation. Their tireless efforts in and out of the classroomcontinue to leave a lasting impression on the entire stu-dent body each year.

In honor of these exemplary faculty members, the Stu-dent National Medical Association (SNMA) collaboratedwith the Student National Pharmaceutical Association(SNPhA) to host a luncheon on February 10 in the HPDChancellor’s Dining Room to commemorate AfricanAmerican HPD faculty members. The National Opto-metric Student Association (NOSA) was also invited totake part in this spectacular event to pay tribute to thesefaculty members from their respective colleges. Dr. Sher-rol Reynolds, associate professor in the College of Op-tometry and NOSA faculty adviser, was among the

honored list of 12 faculty members recognized for theircontributions to the student body. The honorees werepresented with certificates of appreciation by studentsfrom their respective disciplines. Support staff memberswere also recognized for the imperative work they dodaily behind the scenes.

With over 100 faculty members, students, and staffmembers present, the event turned out to be a greatsuccess. The luncheon was a memorable event that wasmade possible through the cooperation of SNMA,SNPhA, NOSA, and the Black Student Nurses Associa-tion. The luncheon’s success represents more than thecommitment of the aforementioned student organiza-tions. It serves as a testament to the impact made pos-sible in our communities with the collaboration of healthcare disciplines. Professors devote their lives to teach-ing and mentoring students, and many of them have atremendous impact. It’s been unfortunate that someprofessors go their entire career without hearing a sim-ple “thank you.” This event provided an opportunity tochange that.

OptometryFacultyRecognitionfor BlackHistoryMonth

BY OD-3 JOHNNY MORETTE, PRESIDENT

NATIONAL OPTOMETRIC

STUDENT ASSOCIATION (2009-10)PICTURED (LEFT TO RIGHT) ARE OD-3 STEVEN KLEIN, DR. SHERROL REYNOLDS,

OD-4 SARAH WESTCARTH, AND OD-3 JOHNNY MORETTE.


National Optometric StudentAssociation Fourth Annual Banquet

PICTURED (LEFT TO RIGHT) ARE HUMA JEELANI (OD-4), NOURAH ZETIR (OD-4),THAO HO (OD-3), ASINECH MIDA (OD-4), DEDRIX DAKA (OD-3), DENISE SAUNDERS (OD-4),

STEVEN KLEIN (OD-3), VICTORIA TRIEU (OD-2), BUPATHI DISSANAYAKE (OD-4),JOHNNY MORETTE (OD-3), WENDY WAI (OD-3), MAGDALENA SAINT-LOUIS (OD-3),

LEIGH MAST (OD-3), ANEIKA WILLIAMS (OD-2), AND SOMAYEH SEMATI (OD-3).

BY OD-4 DENISE SAUNDERS, PRESIDENT, NATIONAL OPTOMETRIC STUDENT ASSOCIATION (2009-10)

PICTURED (LEFT TO RIGHT) ARE

HULDAH SKINNER, CINDY CORK, O.D. (’98), SELWYN SKINNER,AND SHERROL REYNOLDS, O.D. (’96).

OnApril 9, the National Optometric StudentAssociation (NOSA) hosted its Fourth An-nual Banquet in the HPD Chancellor’s

Dining Room to commemorate the end of the aca-demic year. In attendance were faculty members fromthe College of Optometry, including Dr. Michael Baci-galupi (assistant dean of students), Dr. Julie Tyler(clinic module chief), and Dr. Sherrol Reynolds (NOSAfaculty adviser). Also in attendance were severalmembers from the Fort Lauderdale Lions Club, in-cluding Dr. James Brauss, District 35-D vice presidentof the Florida Lions Eye Bank.

During the banquet, awards were presented to thosewho continuously support the efforts of the organi-zation. Faculty members recognized were Dr. GregBlack, Dr. Bacigalupi, Dr. Reynolds and Dr. DavidLoshin, dean of the College of Optometry. An awardwas also presented to Huldah Skinner, Fort Laud-erdale Lions Club president, in recognition of the or-ganization’s sponsorship of NOSA for mission trips toJamaica as well as its participation and co-sponsor-ship with the American Optometric Association (AOA)Healthy Eyes Healthy People (HEHP) GlaucomaAwareness Campaigns, led by Dr. Reynolds.

The banquet guest speaker was Dr. Smith Blanc, acontact lens resident who is a graduate of NSU’s Col-lege of Optometry and a former NOSA president in2007-08. Dr. Blanc gave an inspirational presentationregarding the advantage of residency in the opto-metric profession and also shared his recent experi-ence of traveling to Haiti in the aftermath of thecatastrophic earthquake that occurred in January.

NOSA officers for the 2010-11 academic year were in-troduced at the banquet. The new NOSA ExecutiveBoard will be lead by OD-3 Johnny Morette (presi-dent) and OD-3 Steven Klein (vice president).


TIME FLIES…Graduation for the

Class of 2010

On August 7, 2006, a group of wide-eyed young people em-barked upon a long journey to become optometrists. Whenthis group walked onto the Nova Southeastern Universitycampus, Fergie’s song “London Bridge” was number one onthe radio and the price of gasoline was $2.98 per gallon(some things really haven’t changed!). Understandably, May30, 2010, seemed so far into the future that it was hard toimagine that date, but―“time flies.”

Today, these students are now our colleagues. They are pro-fessional optometrists that undertook a very rigorous cur-riculum, challenging clinic experiences, and a comprehensiveseries of board examinations to gain entrance into the familyof optometry. Let’s all welcome them and congratulate them.

These 106 (34 men and 72 women) new optometrists out-competed 673 applicants in 2006 for their seats at NSUCO.

Their accomplishments did not stop there. In 2009, this groupundertook the first administration of Part I of the NBEO examentitled Applied Basic Science and passed it with an amazing98 percent rate on its first attempt. One of these graduateseven achieved the highest score in the country on this exam.

There are 22 states and Canada represented in this out-standing group of optometrists, including nine from Califor-nia, which may be a record. Their educational backgroundsshow great diversity including B.A., B.S., B.Sc., M.P.H., M.S.,M.B.A., and even one Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. Now, allcan add the O.D. designation after their names.

NSUCOclass of 2010,

you make us proud!

BY MICHAEL BACIGALUPI, O.D., M.S., FAAOASSISTANT DEAN FOR STUDENT AFFAIRS


The College of Optometry proudly congratulates Dr. Evan Brinton for demonstra�ng outstanding academicperformance during his four years at the college. In addi�on to winning four senior awards, he ranked first in his classand graduated with highest honors as the class of 2010 valedictorian. He also dis�nguished himself for achieving thehighest score in the United States on Part I of the Na�onal Board of Examiners in Optometry examina�on―a firstfor Nova Southeastern University College of Optometry.

DEAN’S AWARDPresented for academic excellence to the student gradua�ng with the highest scholas�c achievement.

BETA SIGMA KAPPA INTERNATIONAL SILVER MEDAL AWARDPresented to the gradua�ng chapter member who has achieved the highest cumula�ve academic average.

LOMBART INSTRUMENTS OPTOMETRIC AWARDPresented to the individual with the highest overall grade in the optometric theory and methods courses.

VISTAKON AWARD OF EXCELLENCEPresented to a gradua�ng student who has demonstrated excellence in contact lens care.


DAWN HALLUMS, O.D.

Abbot Contact Lens AwardPresented to a graduating student whoattained the highest academic average

in all didactic courses related tocontact lenses.

Milroy Optical Scholarship AwardPresented to a graduating student for

excellence in ophthalmic optics materialsknowledge and dispensing.

Luxottica AwardPresented to a graduating student whohas demonstrated excellence in clinical

pediatric care and vision therapy.

Miramed Tech AcademicAchievement Award

Presented to a graduating student inrecognition of his/her outstanding

academic performance and contributions to the

eye care community.

SARAH MAKARI, O.D.

Alcon Scholarship AwardPresented to a graduating student who

has written the best case report that incorporates the use

of an Alcon product.

Marchon Practice Management Award

Presented to a graduating student forexcellence in clinical optometric

practice management.

MEAGAN STEG, O.D.

GP Clinical Excellence AwardPresented to a graduating student who has demonstrated eagerness

to learn more about rigid gas permeable lens design, materials,

and fitting techniques.

Volk Ocular DiseaseExcellence Award

Presented to a student forexcellence in ocular disease.

ADAM SWEENEY, O.D.

Chancellor’s AwardPresented to the student who best

exemplifies the characteristics of a fineoptometric physician―a combination of

scholarship, leadership, integrity,humanity, and loyalty to the profession.

Pediatric and Binocular Vision Clinical Excellence Award

Presented to a graduating student whohas demonstrated outstanding clinical

skills and patient care in The Eye Care Institute’s Pediatrics

and Binocular Vision Service.

MATTHEW WALSH, O.D.

Eschenback Award of Excellencein Low Vision


application of low vision treatment.

NICOLE ALESSI, O.D.

Humana Specialty Benefits (VCP)Primary Care ClinicalAchievement Award

Presented to a graduating studentwho has demonstrated excellence

in primary care.

BENJAMIN CROWELL, O.D.

Braverman Eye Center ClinicalExcellence Award

For demonstration of superior clinicalskills and excellence in diagnosis and

treatment of ocular disease.

JOHN BASCOME, O.D.


CATHY DAU, O.D.

College of Optometrists in VisionDevelopment Award of Excellence

Presented to a graduating studentwho has demonstrated strong

interest and clinical skills inthe area of vision therapy.

Contact Lens PracticeManagement Award

Presented to a student who hasdemonstrated excellence in

contact lens practice managementas house officer.

MICHAEL DERHODGE, O.D.

William FeinbloomLow Vision Award


application of low vision treatment.

APRIL GERHARD, O.D.

Braverman Eye CenterExtern of the Year Award

In recognition of a superior work ethic,clinical acumen, and excellence

in patient care.

FARWAH HAG, O.D.

Odessey Dry Eye AwardPresented to two graduating students

who have demonstrated stronginterest and clinical skills in the area

of dry eye management.

FARWAH HAG, O.D., AND HINA PATEL, O.D.

X-Cel Contact Lens AwardPresented to a graduating student

for excellence in fittingRGP contact lenses.

SARA HENNEY, O.D.

Heini Award of Excellencein Optics

Presented to a graduating studentwho has attained the highest

academic average in alldidactic courses related to optics.

JESSE KERSHNER, O.D. ZERA LEFKOWITZ, O.D.

Cooper Vision Excellence in Contact Lens Award

Presented to a graduating studentfor excellence in corneal and

contact lens clinical care.

Module Directors AwardPresented to that individual who has

demonstrated clinical excellencein the area of primary care, includingdisease management and diagnosis,

visual and refractive care,and patient interaction.

MICHAEL REBACHIK, O.D.

Essilor Corneal ReflectionPupilometer Award

Presented to a graduating studentwho has demonstrated excellence in

dispensing ophthalmic materials.

BRETT MCNAMARA, O.D.

The Lenny CherdackStudent Legislative Award

(Florida Optometric Association)Presented to the student who

exhibits behavior consistent with thehigh ideals and moral ethics of

organized optometry. This student has demonstrated outstanding dedication to the

profession, the Florida OptometricAssociation, and the legislative process,

including representing optometryat the Florida Capitol.

KENNETH STATSICK, O.D.

David J. Kerko Low VisionAward (Corning)

Presented to a graduating studentwho has demonstrated interest and

participation in the area of low vision.

ANN PATEL, O.D.

The Dr. Lester E. JanoffScholar Award

Presented to a student for outstanding performance in a scholarly activity;in memory of a renowned educator, researcher, and pioneer in the area

of cornea and contact lenses; a gentleman and a scholar whoexemplified lifelong learning.

AMANDA WOODIE NANASY, O.D.

Aran Eye Associates Excellencein Ocular Disease Award

Presented to a graduating studentwho has demonstrated exceptional

understanding and care ofpatients with ocular disease.

WENDY WENDEL, O.D.

Southern Council of OptometryAward for Excellence

Presented to a graduating studentwho has demonstrated outstanding

clinical performance.

NICOLE PSALTIS, O.D.

Welch Allyn Award of ExcellencePresented to a graduating student

for outstanding performance inall areas of optometry.

SUSAN TRAN, O.D.

Pioneer InstrumentsPrimary Care Award

Presented to a graduating studentfor excellence in primary

care performance.

SONIA PATEL, O.D.

On behalf of the entire NSU College of Optometry Alumni Chapter Boardof Directors, it is a pleasure to address you in the summer issue of TheVisionary. We’ve had the opportunity to interact with our graduates atthe various alumni events during the past year. Our alumni receptionsat the AAO, SECO, FOA, and AOA conventions provided an opportunityfor fun and social interaction, and they were well attended by many ofour alumni. We encourage all alumni to attend these events and recon-nect with classmates, faculty, and administration.

Our alumni have not only made an impact on the profession of optom-etry and in their communities, but they have dedicated themselves topreserving our freedom. The Alumni Chapter would like to thank our mil-itary alumni members and their families for their service to our country.The recipient of this year’s Celebration of Excellence DistinguishedAlumni Achievement Award, Major Andrew Gregory, O.D., is a prime ex-ample of dedication and service. He has served in Iraq as a medical de-tachment commander and optometry consult and was awarded theBronze Star Medal as well as numerous other honors and commenda-tions for his outstanding performance in a combat environment.

We recently held our Ninth Annual Alumni Reunion honoring the class of2000. The continuing education courses, alumni business luncheon, andreception/dinner at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Holly-wood, Florida, were successful and well-attended. Our alumni from theclass of 2000 had a wonderful time reconnecting with their classmatesafter 10 years. We are currently in the process of planning for the 10-year reunion honoring the class of 2001. The dates for next year’s alumnireunion are May 13-15, 2011, so please mark your calendars accordingly.

There are now 1,529 alumni from the College of Optometry who con-tinue to make significant and distinctive contributions to our profession.In fact, our college is an exceptional institution today because of our ded-icated alumni, so thank you for your continued support. We encourageeach of you to stay connected to Nova Southeastern University Collegeof Optometry and its Alumni Chapter.

SHERROL A. REYNOLDS, O.D., FAAOASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF OPTOMETRY

PRESIDENT, COLLEGE OF OPTOMETRY ALUMNI CHAPTER

AlumniChapterPresident’sMessage

Each year in January, theuniversity honors its out-standing alumni at the Cele-bration of Excellence event,which allows each NSU col-lege, school, and center toselect an individual whopersonifies excellence by re-maining committed and in-volved by serving his/herchosen profession as well asthe community.

In January 2010, Andrew Gregory, O.D., was the distin-guished alumni award winner for the College of Optometry.Dr. Gregory graduated in 2002 and is currently assigned toBrooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas, wherehe is on temporary duty attending to the Army’s Commandand General Staff College Course. In that role, Dr. Gregoryalso provides full scope optometric care to active duty mil-itary, retirees, and their family members.

Dr. Gregory deployed to Iraq for 28 months, serving firstwith the 101st Airborne Division and later as medical de-tachment commander and optometry consult for the en-tire Iraqi Theater of Operations. Dr. Gregory’s serviceawards include the Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Serv-ice Medal, Army Commendation Medal, and the GlobalWar on Terrorism Medal.

Dr. Gregory remains involved in scholarly activities, serv-ing as a faculty member of the New England Collegeof Optometry, University College of Optometry, and North-eastern State University College of Optometry. In addition,he has published several articles and recently began theArmy-Baylor Graduate Program in Health and Business Ad-ministration. We are proud of Dr. Gregory’s service to ourcountry, personal achievements, and involvement with op-tometry both in practice and in academics.

MajorAndrew Gregory, O.D.,ReceivesNSU Celebrationof ExcellenceRecognition


NEWSAlumni

Genia G. Beasley, O.D., FAAO, FCOVD (’94),alumna and former faculty member, appearedon HealthWise, a Charlotte WTVI-TV program,for a one-hour interview about “The CriticalLink Between Vision and Learning.” Theprogram aired on May 23 and was rebroadcaston May 29. Dr. Beasley specializes inneurodevelopmental optometry as well asvision therapy and rehabilitation at All AgesVision Care in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Jilma Ellison, O.D. (’06) and Donald Ellison,O.D. (’06) welcomed their daughter, IsabelleRosalie, into the world on August 21, 2009.Also, they are proud to announce that theyhave opened a new practice in Oviedo, Florida,called Trinity Eye Associates.

Massimo Gramanzini, O.D. (’07) celebratedhis 11th year in private practice in Plantation,Florida, and opened a second office in DaniaBeach in 2007. He lives in Plantation Acreswith his wife, Alycia, and their children Katelyn(6), Gianna (4), and Vince (2).

Kristi Johnson, O.D. (’07) and Kyle Barnes,O.D. (’07) welcomed their son, Griffin, into theworld on April 22, weighing in at 6 pounds, 12ounces. Their private practice, Barnes Vision,is located in Dandridge, Tennessee.

Andrea (Scott) Keele, O.D. (’06) and herhusband, Gabe, welcomed their daughter,Maren Gabrielle, into the world on December31, 2009. Andrea practices at Insight EyecareSpecialities in Kansas City, Missouri,specializing in pediatrics and vision therapy.

Mark Marciano, O.D. (’98) has thrown his hatinto the political arena and is a candidate forthe Florida House of Representatives inDistrict 83. His campaign is supported by hiswife, Brandee Owens Marciano, O.D., andtheir sons Adam (8) and Thomas (5).

Ryan Meffley, O.D. (’01) was appointed to theprofessional staff of the Cleveland Clinic inAshland and Mansfield, Ohio, on January 1.

Maritza Nickerson, O.D. (’05) and herhusband, Nathan, are expecting the arrival oftheir second child, a baby boy, in September.

Barton Parker, O.D. (’97) was installed aspresident of the Palm Beach CountyOptometric Association on May 1 at TheBreakers in Palm Beach, Florida.

Heather Long Riemann, O.D. (’08) and herhusband, Mike, are the proud parents ofMikayla Marie, who was born on January 21and weighed in at 6 pounds, 10 ounces.

Tina Smrkovski, O.D. (’07) and JeffreySmrkovski, O.D. (’07) purchased an opticalshop in December and combined it with Jeff’spractice (optical shop lease). The practice,Reed Optical, is located in Claremont, NewHampshire, and is doctor-owned and patient-focused. Tina and Jeff welcomed their firstdaughter, Lindsey, in mid-November.

Jennifer Tabibzadeh, O.D. (’09) appeared onthe San Diego CW television network news onMay 15. The news segment was five minutesin duration and covered the topic of “UVProtection and Eye Health.”

Marc B. Taub, O.D., M.S., FAAO, FCOVD(resident ’04) successfully defended hismaster’s thesis entitled “A Comparison ofThree Clinical Tests of Accommodation toHofstetter’s Norms to Guide Diagnosis andTreatment.” His thesis was supervised byJosephine Shallo-Hoffmann, Ph.D. Dr. Taubwas officially awarded the degree of Master ofScience in Clinical Vision Research by NovaSoutheastern University on May 29.


ELLISON KEELE

MARCIANO

RIEMANN

SMRKOVSKI



In the years following graduation from optom-etry school, most optometrists rely on continuingeducation and journal articles to stay up to datewith advances in research and technology. For 25years, Terry Moehnke, O.D., M.S., FAAO, followedthis ritual to both maintain his license and his clin-ical skills.

Advances in computer technology have greatlyincreased the diagnostic ability of the clinicalpractitioner, but it also has uncovered diseaseprocesses that were suspected but undocu-mented until instrumentation was developed toassist in the management of the patient.

Acknowledging that advancements in the prac-tice of optometry were occurring at a rapid pacethat sporadic educational sessions couldn’t pos-sibly cover, Dr. Moehnke enrolled in the Master’sin Clinical Vision Research (MSCVR) program atNSU to help stay abreast with the professions advancements.

Challenged for the first time in several years to read, analyze,and participate in structured educational sessions was a re-warding experience that resulted in a research project looking atoptic nerve changes associated with migraine patients, whichwas later published in a peer-reviewed optometric journal. In-teracting with a top-notch faculty provided a stimulating edu-cational experience that fulfilled the goal of staying current withthe advances in optometry and patient care.

The pace of the MSCVR program is designed to keep the stu-dent enthused and interested in the educational progress. The

weekly demands of reading and writing seemoverwhelming at first glance, but with propertime management, practitioners can easily workit into their schedules. During the time frame thatTerry was working on his degree, he remained inprivate practice and stayed involved in commu-nity activities.

Professionally, he became a Fellow in the Amer-ican Academy of Optometry and serves as a COPEreviewer for continuing education. He also wasthe driving force behind the creation of VeteransMemorial Park in Fort Dodge, Iowa, and has beenrecognized as the club, district, region and na-tional Sertoman of the Year 2009 for his work inthe community.

In addition, he was recently named a Hero ofthe Heartland by the Red Cross for his commu-nity impact and is currently developing a Feeding

America Backpack Program with the community school districtto supply food to children on weekends when they are awayfrom school. He also is researching juvenile macular disordersutilizing retinal tomography to detect the subtle retinal cellchanges found in these disorders.

The goal of obtaining advanced education in optometry shouldbe considered by all optometrists for their personal growth asclinicians. Dr. Moehnke feels the MSCVR program is an excel-lent method to achieve this goal and the rewards are worth thetime invested to receive it.

DR. MOEHNKE

Dr. Hannon Smith, 39, of Port Saint Joe, Florida,passed away in his sleep at his Panama City homeon June 27 of a sudden illness.

A graduate of Port Saint Joe High School, he ob-tained a Bachelor of Science degree from Florida StateUniversity, and received his Doctor of Optometry de-gree from Nova Southeastern University in 1998.

He was preceded in death by his grandparents,Jack and Thetis Smith of Guntersville, Alabama, and Frank Han-non of Port Saint Joe. He is survived by his parents, Roy and FrannSmith, his brother, Andy Smith, and his grandmother, DorothyHannon, all of Port Saint Joe, and was loved by a very special

friend, Nicky Zurback. Additionally, he is survived by numerousother loving aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, and cousins, and hisclassmate and best friend, Dr. Michael Williams (’99).

He was a member of Kappa Alpha social fraternity. His familyand friends were his treasures. A man of quick wit and quiethumor, Dr. Smith spread a feeling of warmth and caring on all he met.

The funeral was held at Saint Joseph Catholic Church in PortSaint Joe on July 1.

According to Dr. Mark Marciano (’98), “Hannon always had alove of life and was liked by everyone. His welcoming smile alwaysmade those around him happy. And his wrinkled shirts and tiesalways brought a smile. He will be missed.”

In Memoriam:Hannon Smith, O.D.

MSCVR Program Graduate Dr. Terry MoehnkeRecounts Program Highlights


The Nova Southeastern University College of Optometry Alumni Chapter ispleased to share some highlights from our recent Annual Alumni Reunion week-end and banquet honoring the class of 2000. On May 14-16, 2010, the collegepresented its annual Eye Care Conference, which this year provided 22 hours ofcontinuing education courses on topics such as practice management, nutrition,and pre/postoperative management of cataract surgery. Approximately 200 op-tometrists attended the courses over the weekend, including many that werealumni from all of the optometry classes that have graduated over the past 17years. The weekend format enabled these alumni, colleagues, and friends to re-connect, reminisce, and catch up with present accomplishments.

An alumni chapter business meeting was held on Saturday at the Terry Buildingon NSU’s main campus in Davie, with lunch provided by the college. The chapterpresident, Dr. Sherrol Reynolds, was excited to welcome the alumni back on cam-pus and discuss the benefits of being a chapter member. The main purpose ofthe annual business lunch is to vote on a slate of officers for the coming year. Theofficers voted in for the incoming year are Drs. Sherrol Reynolds ’94 (president),Jackie Rodena ’04 (vice-president), Arnie Patrick ’93 (treasurer), and Perla Naj-man ’99 (secretary).

Every year, the alumni chapter and the college celebrate the 10-year reunion ofa graduating class. This year, we celebrated the class of 2000―the eighth class tograduate from the college. At the business lunch meeting, each alumni memberthat attended from the class of 2000 received a gift from the alumni chapter anda graduation composite picture.

The major highlight of the weekend was the alumni banquet held at the Semi-nole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino on Saturday evening. This year was the first timeprofessional photos were taken as alumni entered the ballroom. Alumni tookprom-like pictures with their significant others, as well as with their fellow class-mates. In fact, it felt like the Eyeball all over again. Dr. David Loshin, NSUCO dean,greeted alumni with a warm welcome. Several faculty members that the class of2000 recognized from their days in the classroom and clinic were in attendance:Dr. Sherrol Reynolds, Dr. Greg Black, Dr. Julie Tyler, and Dr. Scott Gorman. Otherfaculty members who attended included Dr. Melanie Crandall, Dr. Barry Frauens,Dr. Annette Bade, Dr. Lori Vollmer, and Dr. Jackie Rodena, all of whom joined thecollege after the class of 2000 graduated.

Members of the class of 2000 had been asked to submit photos from their fouryears in optometry school so a slideshow could be created for everyone’s view-ing pleasure. The slideshow displayed pictures of students interacting with theirfellow classmates, preceptors, and staff during their fourth-year Broward clinicrotations, dressed to impress at the Eyeball, releasing stress after finals at localbars and restaurants, and enjoying their final gathering―a graduation trip to theFlorida Keys. It sparked conversations of fun memories, laughs, and good timeswith their classmates. One of the gifts given by the alumni chapter was a flashdrive that contained the slideshow presented at the banquet.

We are currently in the process of planning for the class of 2001 10-year reunion.The dates for next year’s Eye Care Conference and Alumni Reunion weekend areMay 13-15, 2011, so please mark your calendars. We look forward to seeing younext year.

BY JACQUELINE RODENA, O.D.ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF OPTOMETRY, VICE PRESIDENT

COLLEGE OF OPTOMETRY ALUMNI CHAPTER

AttendeesReliveFondMemoriesat AlumniReunion


Congratulations to our residents on the successful completion of the Second Annual Residents’ Day Program for the NSUCollege of Optometry, which was held on January 31, 2010. This event showcased residents throughout the state of Floridaand Atlanta, Georgia, affiliated with NSU’s College of Optometry. Nineteen residents presented lectures representing nine ofour residency sites at the Orlando VAMC, Tallahassee VAMC, Lake City VAMC, Gainesville VAMC, Bay Pines VAMC, DaytonaBeach VAMC, Aran Eye Associates, Clayton Eye Center, and NSU.

These residents presented interesting and challenging cases encountered during their residency training in the form of grandrounds to NSU faculty members, fellow residents, optometric students, and practicing optometrists. The lectures covered awide range of anterior segment, posterior segment, and neuro-ophthalmic disease in the adult and pediatric population.

The Residents’ Day Program was initiated three years ago and continues to grow each year. In addition to providing an excellentlearning opportunity for the participants as a component of their residency training, it provides COPE-approved continuingeducation to attendees as well as the opportunity for students to interact with residents from various programs and learn moreabout residency training and the opportunities it provides. We are very pleased with the success of this program and inviteyou to attend next year’s event.

BY LORI VOLLMER, O.D, FAAO, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF OPTOMETRY, DIRECTOR OF RESIDENCY PROGRAMS

Spotlight on the Residents


The Orlando VA Medical Center (VAMC) is located on the siteof what was once the Orlando Naval Training Center’s Hospi-tal, while the surrounding residential area is now known asBaldwin Park. The center, which serves an area of nearly90,000 veteran patients in East Central Florida, is one of sevenmembers of the VISN 8 Healthcare System. The Orlando VAMedical Center includes the VAMC, the Community Living Cen-ter, the Residential Rehabilitation Program, the Viera Outpa-tient Clinic, the Daytona Outpatient Clinic, and fourcommunity-based outpatient clinics located in Clermont,Kissimmee, Leesburg, and Orange City.

The East Central Florida veteran population is slated to benefitfrom a new hospital that is scheduled to be built in 2012. Thismuch-needed facility will make it easier for East CentralFlorida veterans to access the VA’s world-class medical centerand relieve the burden of traveling long distances for their in-patient care.

The Orlando VAMC Eye Clinic has four residency-trained op-tometrists on staff. The optometrists provide primary eye careas well as management of chronic ocular diseases and ocular

manifestations of systemic dis-eases. The staff optometrists arelicensed practitioners creden-tialed and privileged to performfull-scope optometry, includingthe usage of topical and someoral medications based on theirstate of licensure to treat eye dis-eases. The optometrists also par-ticipate in low-vision exams forpatients who are visually impairedand specialty contact lens examsand fitting. Optometrists are theonly ones who will be supervisingoptometry students and optome-try residents.

In addition, the Orlando VAMCEye Clinic has four ophthalmolo-gists on staff, including one retinalspecialist and one cornea special-ist. The ophthalmologists manageadvanced chronic ocular diseasesand ocular manifestations of sys-temic diseases as well as performthe following surgeries:

• Cataracts• Trabeculectomy• Strabismus• Blepharoplasty• Pterygia Removal• Eyelid-Growth Removal• Cryotherapy• Focal Laser• Panretinal Photocoagulation• YAG Capsulotomy• Laser Peripheral Iridotomy• ALT/SLT• Intravitreal Injections

With seven eye technicians on staff, including one who is dedi-cated to working in the visual field room each day, these highlytrained individuals screen patients by performing a brief his-tory, visual acuity assessment, autorefraction, and autolen-sometry. The technicians also do ancillary tests as directed bythe doctor such as corneal pachymetry/topography, IOL

BY JOHN M. SPALDING, O.D., FAAO (’97), RESIDENCY SITE DIRECTOR

NSU Affiliate Residency SpotlightORLANDO VA MEDICAL CENTER


Master, OCT testing, HRT testing, digitaloptic nerve photography, digital fundusphotography, and digital fluorescein an-giography. Additional equipment in-cludes A and B scan ultrasoundmachines, dynamic contour tonometers,hand-held slit lamp, and tonopen.

In the late 1990s, the VAMC Eye Clinicdeveloped a teaching program involvingfourth-year optometry students fromPennsylvania College of Optometry atSalus University in Philadelphia. As ofthe spring of 2009, the academic affilia-tion changed to Nova SoutheasternUniversity’s College of Optometry.There is currently one position availableeach quarter.

In March 2007, the Orlando VA MedicalCenter developed a hospital-based pri-mary care optometry residency programthat was granted funding by the VA Cen-

tral Office. At that time, NSU agreed tobecome the academic affiliate for the resi-dency program. Upon its inception, theresidency program received candidacypending status from the AccreditationCouncil on Optometric Education(ACOE). The first optometry residentstarted July 1, 2007. The ACOE conducteda site visit in May 2008, and the OrlandoVAMC residency program received fullACOE accreditation status based on thatvisit as of November 20, 2008.

The optometry resident will see approxi-mately 6-to-10 full exams per day and alsowill deal with follow-ups or walk-ins asneeded. Traditional optometric encoun-ters include routine comprehensive exam-inations as well as a high percentage ofpatients with diabetes with/withoutretinopathy, cataracts, AMD, glaucoma,and ocular manifestations of systemic dis-eases. The resident also will be seeinglow-vision patients and those needingspecialty contact lenses as well as those atexternal optometry rotations (private con-tact lens practice, private optometrist ac-tively involved in pre-/postoperativecataract/refractive surgery care).

Opportunities to observe ophthalmolo-gists performing surgical procedures areavailable, and there will be additionaltime spent doing observations of primarycare providers, dermatologists, neurolo-gists, and radiologists. External ophthal-

mology rotations include a private retinaspecialist, a private cornea specialist, anda private neuroophthalmolgist.

The optometry resident actively partici-pates in the weekly Friday afternoonOptometry Conference, which includesa journal club, a lecture by staff op-tometrists, and case reviews. The resi-dent actively supervises the optometrystudent during the fourth quarter ofhis/her residency year and conducts aweekly slide quiz. Additional activitiesinclude presenting at two different VISN8 Optometry Resident Grand Rounds aswell as at NSU’s Optometry ResidentGrand Rounds. The participating resi-dent also is required to attend onemajor educational meeting (i.e., AAO,AOA Congress, SECO) at his/her own ex-pense during the year and meetings ofthe Central Florida Society of Optomet-ric Physicians. A publishable qualitypaper or academic meeting-worthyposter also is required as part of theresidency program.

Our primary goal is to provide qualityeye care to our nation’s veterans. An-other goal we have is to provide a qual-ity learning experience for optometrystudents and residents. We hope theskills and clinical information you learnhere can be used for many years tocome in whatever mode of practice youend up choosing.

DR. SPALDING

“Our primary goal is toprovide quality eye careto our nation’s veterans.”

October 8-10, 2010Fall Symposium (CE), NSU Health Professions Division,Fort Lauderdale, Florida

October 21, 2010Keratoconus Irregular Cornea Workshop (CE), NSU Health Professions Division, Fort Lauderdale, Florida

November 19, 2010Alumni and Friends Reception, American Academy ofOptometry, San Francisco, California

January 30, 2011Residents Day, NSU Health Professions Division, Fort Lauderdale, Florida

March 4, 2011Alumni and Friends Reception, SECO International 2010,Atlanta Marriott Marquis, Atlanta, Georgia

March 10-13, 2011 Therapeutic Optometry (CE), Royal Senesta Hotel, New Orleans, Louisiana

May 13-15, 201115th Annual Clinical Eye Care Conference and Alumni Reunion,NSU Health Professions Division, Fort Lauderdale, Florida

June 17, 2011Alumni and Friends Reception, Optometry’s Meeting, Salt Lake City, Utah

June 2011Florida Board of Optometry Examination Review Course, NSU Health Professions Division, Fort Lauderdale, Florida

July 7-16, 2011Therapeutic Pharmaceutical Agents Certification Course,NSU Health Professions Division, Fort Lauderdale, Florida

August 12-14, 2011Primary Care Update (CE), The King and Prince Beachand Golf Resort, St. Simons Island, Georgia

October 14, 2011Alumni and Friends Reception, American Academyof Optometry, Boston, Massachusetts

2010-11 Calendar of Events

We are in the process of compiling information for the winter 2011 issue of The Visionaryand invite you to submit suitable news and photos to [email protected].

Also, please be sure to update your contact information regularly so we can continue to send you The Visionary as well as otherimportant college and alumni information. You may update your contact information at https://www.nova.edu/webforms/alumni/.

3200 South University DriveFort Lauderdale, FL 33328-2018

Visionary Fall 2010 - NSUWorks

Documents