Christchurch Eye Surgery hosted its annual optometrists’ seminar on 17 March – in recognition of the date, organisers Rachel Price and Anna Stephenson created an evening with a green-themed nod to St Patrick.
This verdant theme featured in Dr Logan Robinson’s lecture on iris colour and the prevalence of ocular melanoma. He discussed the MOLES (mushroom shape, orange pigment, large size, enlarging tumour and subretinal fluid) scoring system and how it can help optoms improve monitoring and referral of fundus naevi.
Dr Malcom McKellar shared his experiences in creating and sustaining three environmentally responsible businesses. No matter how carefully we live, our life has a negative impact on the environment, so the concept of a fully ‘sustainable business’ is not possible, he said. Dr McKellar showed what can be done, however, to improve patient outcomes while reducing environmental damage and promoting staff wellbeing. Far from being negative about the state of the world, Dr McKellar’s talk offered practical steps, including recommending Yvon Chouinard’s The Responsible Company as essential reading for those seeking meaning in their work beyond profit.
Dr Sean Every put forward a compelling argument for same-day bilateral cataract surgery being more environmentally friendly than performing each eye on a different day. Outlining Dr Jesse Gale’s study in Wellington, he shared the carbon footprint of cataract surgery, with his own investigation finding 1.7kg of waste was produced by a single cataract extraction.
