Last Friday, in honor of National Public Health Week, members of the Student Public Health Vision Care Association (SPHViCA) at UHCO passed out breakfast snacks to their peers. As students grabbed something to munch on they were asked to jot down their thoughts on a post-it note in response to the question, “Why is healthy vision important to you and your patients?” SPHViCA had a great turn out and managed to fill up a message board with many heartwarming and fun responses.
Yearly eye exams are important and allow for a good quality of life as they can help prevent and detect many systemic and ocular diseases.
Nimesh Patel, OD, PhD, '12, was recently featured for his work enhancing the vision of NASA Astronauts.
Astronauts who spend time aboard the International Space Station return to Earth with changes to the structure of their eyes which could impact their vision. NASA has studied the phenomenon, known as space flight-associated neuro-ocular syndrome (SANS), for several years, and now with UHCO's help, Dr. Patel has quantified some of the changes using optical coherence tomography imaging.
UHCO is proud to announce Bryan Rogoff, OD, MBA, CPHM, as the 2017- 2018 Benedict Professorship in Practice Management and Administration. Dr. Rogoff has a unique background in areas of holistic eye care, business management and healthcare reform. Congratulations, Dr. Rogoff, and we look forward to having him lecture to UHCO students, faculty and alumni throughout the year.
Dear Colleagues and Friends,
I want to take this opportunity to personally let you know that last week I announced to the UHCO faculty that I will step down as UHCO’s Dean, effective the end of this academic year.
You have heard me say many times that being Dean is the best job that I’ve ever had. While that is still true, I have a few years remaining on my grant and it is time for me to step aside so that I can devote more time to my research. It’s also time for a new Dean to come in and spur greater growth for the College. Historically, with each new Dean, the College has grown and flourished, building on the foundation from the prior administration. I will continue to serve as Dean as the University completes a search and hires my successor, a process that could take up to a year. There will be continuity during this transition and the College will continue to move forward so our momentum is not lost.
UH Eye Center- Heights (formerly GNC) and UHCO are Enhancing Vision For Life one eye exam at a time for children in the Houston community! The See to Succeed Program screened a record 10,150 children this academic year. Pat Segu, OD,’92, serves as the program director for See to Succeed and is also the Regional Director of Houston Community Based External Clinics for UHCO.
Congratulations to UHCO’s own Veronica Mendez, OD, and Stephanie Marten-Ellis, OD ’17, who presented posters at the 57th Annual Heart of America Eye Care Congress. This was the first year UHCO was represented at the meeting and Dr. Marten-Ellis’s poster won First Place at the scientific poster session! The title for Dr. Mendez’s poster is Bilateral Repeat Corneal Cross Linking on a Progressive Keratoconus Patient and the title for Dr. Marten-Ellis’s poster is Fungal Corneal Ulcer Treated with Amniotic Membrane.
UHCO would like to recognize members of our faculty, residents, fellows, and students who had an incredible presence at the 2018 Global Specialty Lens Symposium in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Global Specialty Lens Symposium is a meeting with world renowned experts that focus on the successful management of ocular conditions using today's specialty contact lenses.
Read more for a full list of award winners, posters, presenters and lectuerers.
UH President, Renu Khator recently visited UHCO to celebrate her 10th year leading the university system and the incredible accomplishments of its students. As part of her tour throughout campus, President Khator spoke with UHCO students on ambition, dreams, and building a great institution at the University of Houston.
Four UHCO students were selected to join the Luxottica OneSight mission trip to Mexico this year. Congratulations to Jonathan Chen, OPT IV; Zainab Muhanna, OPT III; Nhi Nguyen, OPT III; and Ambika Singh, OPT III. This marks the 20th OneSight clinic that has taken place in the country of Mexico. Zainab notes, “I am thankful for this wonderful opportunity to help alongside optometry students and optometrist from around the world to help the citizens of Mexico see and live better.” UHCO looks forward to hearing about their amazing journey later this spring!
UHCO hosted the 4th Annual Research Poster Showcase on Friday, January 19, 2018. This event featured research conducted by our College’s graduate students, optometry students, postdocs, research assistants/associates, residents and fellows, and included collaborative projects conducted with other UH departments. We had 40 presenters whose poster presentations spaned a wide range of vision related topics, with an emphasis on both clinical and basic science research.
