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Previous News Items

• Optometrists give Centre for Eye Health tick of approval
• Big turnout reveals demand for professional development: optometrists
• Praise as Centre assesses more than 600 clients
• Practitioner registrations exceed expectations
• Glaucoma tops Centre’s referral list
• CFEH placements add value for UNSW optometry students
• Partnership approach needed to reduce preventable vision loss
• Inaugural SCOPE sold out but more coming
• SCOPE June 2010: Lectures and Workshops
• CFEH already adding value to eye health services
• Practitioner registrations exceed expectations
• Glaucoma testing popular at Centre for Eye Health
• Centre for Eye Health: 100 Clients and Counting!
• Centre for Eye Health up and running
• Centre for Eye Health Official Opening
• Eye health professionals attend exclusive preview at Centre for Eye Health
• Ground-breaking new initiative to target preventable blindness
• New Centre for Eye Health appoints inaugural director
• Guide Dogs Vision Centre at UNSW

Professor Michael Kalloniatis

Prominent vision researcher Professor Michael Kalloniatis has been appointed the inaugural director of Sydney's new Centre for Eye Health (CfEH). An initiative of Guide Dogs NSW/ACT and The University of New South Wales (UNSW), the centre will provide state-of-the-art eye and visual system diagnostic services to the general community at no charge.

Professor Kalloniatis was the Robert G Leitl Chair and Head of the Department of Optometry and Vision Science (DOVS) at the University of Auckland. During his seven years with the university, he saw the department double its student numbers, introduce under-graduate and post-graduate therapeutic training and establish a strong research base through the attraction of competitive research grants.

In collaboration with the Department of Ophthalmology, Professor Kalloniatis was also instrumental in setting up the New Zealand National Eye Centre, which opened during 2008. Like that facility, Centre for Eye Health will undertake research and aims to eliminate preventable blindness and reduce vision impairment.

"Centre for Eye Health is an exciting initiative that will transform the provision of ocular imaging services in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory," says Professor Kalloniatis.

"Vision impairment comes at an enormous cost to the Australian community*, yet half of vision impairment is correctable and one quarter is preventable if diagnosed and managed early. It is therefore vital that the broader community has access to advanced eye-testing equipment with the ability to identify many conditions - such as glaucoma, macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy - before they make their impact."

Announcing Professor Kalloniatis' appointment, CfEH and Guide Dogs NSW/ACT Chairman, Mr Barry Stephen said, "We are pleased to have attracted such a high-quality candidate for this new position. Michael's work in ophthalmic academia, practice and research means he has the necessary experience to direct this world-class centre, which will provide an enormous service to the community in reducing preventable blindness.

"Guide Dogs NSW/ACT chose to take this unique approach after consulting with its clients. They indicated their support for the expansion of our services into the area of prevention, as well as the mobility and orientation services we have traditionally offered."

Targeting people who already have impaired vision and those with eye conditions that could lead to vision impairment, CfEH expects to service thousands of patients annually. From July 2009, these people can be referred to the centre by their general practitioner or eye-care practitioner.

* In 2004, the total cost of vision disorder in Australia was estimated at A$9.85 billion.
Clear Insight - The Economic Impact and Cost of Vision Loss in Australia, prepared by Access Economics Pty Ltd for Eye Research Australia (2004)