IVI organized a series of five-day workshops jointly with the Vidyasagar
College of Optometry and Vision Science in Kolkata from 4 – 8 March; and with
the Bansara Institute of Ophthalmic Sciences in Shillong from 7 - 11 March
2013. The two workshops received overwhelming response, with a request for
taking the initiative forward.
First of its kind, the workshop marked a small
step in the direction of enhancing the capacity of Optometry educators in
eastern India, focusing on a number of specialized areas including dispensing
optics; low vision; binocular vision; and teaching and learning methodology.
The workshop was attended by over 24 optometric
educators from 12 institutions in Kolkata; and 14 educators from five
institutions in Shillong.
The workshops were led by a team of national and
international experts, including Mr Aditya Goyal, Sankara College of Optometry,
Bangalore; Ms Mithali Paranjape, Bharathi Vidyapeeth, Pune; Mr Kunal Shah,
private practitioner, Hubli, and Ms Helen Dalton & Ms Jodi Martin, Brien
Holden Vision Institute, Sydney.
Funding for the IVI Capacity building
initiatives in Eastern India was kindly provided by Optometry Giving Sight in
association with Alcon Foundation.