JANE FITZSIMMONS RECOGNITION PRIZE

From Joe Smith, Graduate Representative for BIOS.

At the end of 2019, a very kind donation was left to BIOS by an Orthoptist named Jane Fitzsimmons who sadly passed away. Jane was very proud of her career as an Orthoptist and we decided to honour her legacy by supporting four new graduates to attend a chosen day of the 14th Congress of the International Orthoptic Association. We received a number of outstanding applications – it was a true shame that we could not support all applicants. After much deliberation, we decided to award the prizes to Aneesa Hussain, Charlotte Smith, Emma Rowett and Rebecca Flynn.

The respective applicants’ statements demonstrated a clear passion for orthoptics and a desire to improve patient care and add value to their orthoptic department.

Unfortunately, in wake of the World Health Organization’s decision to declare COVID-19 a global pandemic, the International Orthoptic Association and associates, decided to postpone the congress until 2022. However, prior to knowing this we had put out an advert in Parallel Vision and awarded the prizes – the recipients will therefore now have to use the prize money for another activity in relation to their continuing professional development.

Aneesa Hussain

Read Aneesa's piece here

Attending this year’s IOA Congress was important to me as this event only takes place once every four years and this year, we were fortunate enough for it to be held in Liverpool, the city in which I graduated in Orthoptics. It is an event that would not only allow me to broaden my orthoptic theory and clinical skills but would also allow me to build vital connections with all members of the ophthalmological community, including orthoptists, optometrists and ophthalmologists.

Communicating with other members of the ophthalmological community would allow me to engage in the sharing of new ideas. I would have liked to have shared these with my orthoptic colleagues to see if we could have implemented some of them into our clinical practice. It would have also been interesting to hear others provide an insight into their extended roles within orthoptics, as this would have been beneficial in helping me to decide what type of extended role to take on in the future. For these reasons I have chosen to use the funds provided by BIOS to attend the IOA Congress 2022.”

Charlotte Smith

Read Charlotte's piece here

I was particularly excited when the chance to attend the International Orthoptic Association Congress in Liverpool was announced. I was looking forward to learning more about the latest research within orthoptics and while it is unfortunate that this event has been postponed, I am still keen to use the funds for the opportunity to attend an alternative conference.

I plan to use the New Graduate Award to attend the BIPOSA 2021 conference in London and am still enthusiastic to network with other orthoptists and professionals within ophthalmology. Using my perspective as a new orthoptic graduate, I am keen to write about the event and share my findings to encourage others to apply for similar opportunities in the future.”

Emma Rowett

Read Emma's piece here

I was extremely honoured to have received one of the funded places to attend the International Orthoptic Congress (IOC) 2020, however, due to the Coronavirus outbreak, this event was sadly cancelled.

I felt it was important to attend the IOC as this would have been an excellent opportunity to broaden my knowledge of the current global research in Orthoptics and to celebrate the advances and diversity of the profession. As part of evidence-based practice, it is important that we continually learn from the most up-to-date Orthoptic research so we can incorporate this into our daily clinical practice. Not only does this allow us to develop as practitioners, but it also ensures we are providing our patients with an optimum level of care.

Despite the IOC being cancelled, BIOS has very kindly allowed us to keep the prize money to benefit our CPD and professional development. I am currently undergoing training for an extended role in Glaucoma and therefore I would like to use the prize money towards further Glaucoma training to enhance my learning in this area.

I would like to thank BIOS for providing this generous donation from a previous Orthoptist and I would highly encourage all new graduates to apply for these fantastic opportunities.”

Rebecca Flynn

Read Rebecca's piece here

I am very grateful to have been given funding from BIOS and I was very much looking forward to the Conference. This event would have given me the opportunity to attend my first conference and return to Liverpool where I studied. It was important for me to apply for the funding as I am particularly interested in the theme of neuro-ophthalmology; I hope to be increasingly involved in our Stroke service and extend my knowledge in areas of Ophthalmology. Therefore, I would have gained up-to-date knowledge and best practice from across the world! This would benefit my patients and allow me to share this with my department. I hope to attend the IOC when it is rescheduled in 2022! Stay safe everyone!

All applicants should be very proud of themselves, as the statements received were of a very high-standard and show great hope for the future of the orthoptic profession. BIOS hope to have many more opportunities to support new graduate and members – so please keep an eye out in future editions of PV.