Surrounded by loving family, after a valiant fight against a cruel and vindictive cancer, Austen died aged 77 on May 7 2008. A second generation optometrist, son of Albert Henry (1895-1964) and father of Nick (third generation).
After a short spell in Hamburg where he did National Service, Austen served the profession in practice in Dudley from 1956 until retiring in 1996. He saw NHS optometry emasculated through the 80s and 90s but enjoyed observing its maturing to a level of scope of practice undreamt of during his training.
That said, he taught his son to be one of the few optometrists who could ‘pin a side’ or ‘solder a bridge’ and who knew from where we once rose.
Nick Rumney
Hereford
Our press release, issued on April 24 2008, makes it clear that, if the pilot Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) held on May 1 2008 proves to be successful, we will introduce the new style Final Assessment for trainees who enter the scheme from June 1 2009. This would mean that we would hold the first OSCE in summer 2010. In addition, if piloting is successful, candidates will do a Routine Examination and Contact Lens Fitting and Aftercare in their own places of work on unknown patients. This new style two-part Final Assessment will build on improvements to the Work-based Assessment which we will introduce in autumn 2008.
The editor’s comment (Optician, May 2) that the new system will begin from ‘yesterday’ is, therefore, incorrect. The current Final Assessment will continue until April 2010.
The editor also implies that, under the current system, examiners comment, coach and cajole candidates. I would refute this. Although there are some viva voce examinations, the majority of the current Final Assessment involves examiners in observing skills. Examiners undertake rigorous training each year, designed to ensure good practice in examining and a consistency of approach in making judgments. They are acutely aware that they are assessing whether trainees have the knowledge and skills to practise independently and that they each play a part in determining whether a trainee can apply for registration with the General Optical Council.
Bryony Pawinska
Chief Executive,The College of Optometrists
I was following a bus the other day in Edinburgh, when I saw an advert on the back. It read ‘If you are reading this, your eyesight is OK. Now what about your hearing?’. This was an advert for House of Hearing (www.houseofhearing.co.uk).
Well thank goodness for that, eh? If you are able to read letters around 6/36 size from a couple of metres behind a bus, then your eyesight is OK. Why bother going to see an optician if you have concerns. Just read this ad off the back of the bus. Don’t worry about your vision for driving. It’s all fine, if you can see these letters.
This seems to me to be a considerably irresponsible and indeed stupid remark to have on an advertisement. Maybe they should have added ‘If you can hear this bus, then your hearing is fine too, so don’t bother coming along at all’. How a fellow professional can make such a claim I don’t know. However, I certainly think this should be brought to their attention.
Jonathan Jennett
Spex Opticians, Edinburgh
The purpose of your correspondent Edwin Shield (Letters May 9) is unclear to me. What appeared to be a garbled parody of elements of the first Book of Moses is unamusing, seems to have no point and borders on an unpleasant misuse of God’s word.
I should be most grateful if through your pages, or direct to myself, others with a profound recognition of the real worth of inspired Scripture would support this mild protest that such material takes up valuable space in your pages.
Robert Fletcher
Emeritus professor of Optometry & Visual Science
Mr Coe’s disingenuous letter (Optician, May 9) has really angered me.
The GOC do not send out any of the application/restoration forms by registered post. If this were true, why did they make no mention of this ‘fact’ when replying to my query as to why the only letter sent to me by a special mail service was the one advising me of erasure (and that was sent by recorded delivery, not registered post)? Indeed, the GOC clearly feels this letter is more important than the forms enabling me to remain registered because now I can no longer work as a ‘registered’ optician.
Mr Coe wonders why 3 per cent of opticians find it hard to comply with the procedure. I find it hard to understand why it is possible to buy contact lenses online, but it is seemingly impossible for the GOC to bring registration into the 21st century. I don’t see any legal issue making it impossible to positively affirm retention online and were it possible to do this via the convenience of the internet, I suspect that the GOC would see the number failing to comply reduced to a negligible percentage. In fact, ‘internet registration’ would remove the need for the GOC to spend time and money sending out forms or reminders either by ordinary, recorded or even registered post.
But I fear the GOC will probably continue to waste time and money trying to justify their archaic procedures.
David Levy
Radlett, Herts
‘What’s the catch’ (April 25) misses an important argument for the correction of visual defects in sports men and women. Rugby players may need to be able to see the ball clearly, but they also need to be able read the body language of both the opposition and their team mates.
When playing a sport only juniors and inexperienced players run to where the ball is, more experienced players learn to judge where the ball is going to be and whether they or someone else is going to be best placed to play it; to do this they have to be aware of the body language of the opposition and their own team mates.
How players move and how they stand can give skilled athletes conscious and subconscious clues as to where players intend to be and how a ball is going to be played. With elite athletes these movements will be very small subtle movements, maybe just the positioning of the feet, the flick of the eyes to check where the opposition is, the twist of the wrist to send a ball in a particular direction.
Top athletes train to hide these tell-tale signs, but an experienced athlete with perfect vision will stand more chance of picking up on these subtle movements than an uncorrected ametrope.
Sandra Neave
Wickham Bishops, Essex