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Centre for Eye Health up and running
November 27, 2009

The official party at the opening included Mr Barry Stephen, Guide Dogs NSW/ACT President; Governor of NSW, Prof. Marie Bashir AC CVO; Prof. Fred Hilmer AO, Vice Chancellor, The University of New South Wales; Prof. Michael Kalloniatis, CFEH Director

Centre for Eye Health (CFEH) has started seeing its first clients following the launch of the facility on Wednesday, November 4.

A joint initiative of The University of New South Wales and Guide Dogs NSW/ACT, CFEH aims reduce the incidence of blindness through early detection of eye diseases such as macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy and glaucoma.

The Centre was officially launched by Governor of NSW, Professor Marie Bashir AC CVO. Master of Ceremonies was former Australian test cricketer, Geoff Lawson OAM, who trained as an optometrist at the university.

Other speakers at the event included CFEH Director, Professor Michael Kalloniatis; Guide Dogs NSW/ACT President, Mr Barry Stephen; and the university's Vice-Chancellor, Professor Fred Hilmer AO.

Professor Kalloniatis noted in his address that for every client who is identified early and receives suitable treatment options from their health-care provider, the estimated saving to the Australian community is over $10,000 per annum.

"The impact is not only felt at the personal front, but also on the financial front," Professor Kalloniatis said.

The Centre is now operational and has seen its first clients. When it is at full capacity, CFEH will be able to service 27,000 clients per year.

The services provided by CFEH are free of charge to residents of NSW and the ACT and their referring practitioner.

All individuals seen at CFEH must be referred by their health-care practitioner, such as an optometrist, ophthalmologist or GP, using the Centre's referral system.

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