Michael Brown helping a patient in Fiji on his last trip with VOSO

Long-serving Volunteer Ophthalmic Services Overseas (VOSO) board member, optometrist Michael Brown is retiring from the board, while Drs Jesse Gale and Hussain Patel have cemented their commitment to helping those less able in the Pacific by becoming trustees.

VOSO chair Dr Andrew Riley welcomed Drs Gale and Patel and paid tribute to Brown’s three decades of service. It has been a pleasure having him on the team, he said. “Michael has been an incredibly hard-working trustee who led many VOSO teams to Labasa in Fiji. He also worked closely with the Lions Club in Labasa and Rangiora, helping with fundraising and logistics. Michael will be missed by the team, both here and in Labasa.”

Drs Gale and Patel both formed part of the VOSO trip teams in 2017. Dr Gale is a consultant ophthalmologist at Wellington Hospital and Kenepuru Community Hospital and a senior clinical lecturer at the University of Otago. Dr Patel is a glaucoma and cataract surgery specialist who practises at Greenlane Clinical Centre and in private practice in Auckland.

Kylie Dreaver, VOSO secretary, says while they will all miss Brown, everyone on the team is very excited to have two new ophthalmologists joining their ranks. 

Michael Brown reflects

Michael Brown is not just stepping down from VOSO but from his practice, Rangiora Eyecare, after being a working optometrist for more than 40 years.

He’s sold his share in Rangiora Eyecare, a four-person partnership with three optometrists and one dispenser, to Kimberley Shea, who joined the clinic three years ago after graduating.

Brown says he has loved being an optometrist, especially the relational aspect of the job: relationships with patients, often spanning over several generations, and with staff. “If I was to give any word of advice to the next generation of optometrists it would be that relationships are key. If you’re emphatic and listen to your patients, as well as being focused on solutions for their needs, they will know you care and come back.”

Brown developed an interest in eye health early in his life after his mother had a retinal detachment and later became blind in one eye. So, when it was time to decide on a career path, optometry stood out. Plus the prospect of being your own boss was a key driver, he says.

When asked about the highlight of his career, without hesitation, Brown says when the scope of practice changed for optometrists in New Zealand, giving them greater freedom to discuss and co-manage eye health care and prescribe ophthalmic medications for their patients.

“When I was a graduate, we had to ring a GP if we wanted to put dilating drops in a patient’s eyes and we weren’t allowed to say the word “cataract” to a patient because of the fear factor associated with it.” This was all very challenging, he recalls, adding it is deeply satisfactory to see how the relationship between optometry and ophthalmology has improved.

Looking to the future, Brown says he’s going to enjoy spending more time in the garden, cultivating his hobby developing plant breeds, especially roses and daffodils.

As to a leaving party, he hasn’t had an official send-off yet, but rumour has it that this may coincide with the 40^th anniversary celebration of Rangiora Eyecare on 1 August later this year.