LEDA scholarship recipient Oliver Munro

Eight New Zealand optometrists have won OPSM’s Luxottica Eyecare Development Award (LEDA), a scholarship valued at $5,189 each to advance their skills.

The 2021 New Zealand scholarship recipients are: Jessie Ye, OPSM Cuba Street; Jason Xu, OPSM Remuera; Olga Hammond, OPSM Papakura; Oliver Munro, OPSM Riccarton; Sagaar Patel, OPSM Porirua; Felo Gerges, OPSM Albany; Joon Lee, OPSM Bayfair; and Astha Rai, OPSM Queensgate.

James Melton, OPSM New Zealand director, said the company was proud to continue to foster the growth of its talent and their skills for the future. “We feel that developing the skillset and knowledge of our optometrists is important not only to our teams but to the industry as a whole. I’m thrilled at the number of New Zealand team members who have been recognised through the programme.”

The scholars will complete a range of self-paced learning, including university courses and advanced certificates in speciality areas covering myopia management, kids’ vision and paediatric eyecare, speciality contact lenses, collaborative care and glaucoma. Oliver Munro said he was excited to receive the scholarship, which will allow him to complete the ACO certificate in Advanced Contact Lenses. “The LEDA scholarship will solidify my knowledge in one of my chosen fields and ensure I have the required knowledge in my toolkit.”

Available annually to all permanent OPSM optometrists, the LEDA programme supports postgraduate studies in clinical optometry at accredited training providers in Australia and New Zealand. The formal selection process includes pre-determined special interest topics to ensure OPSM is growing and developing relevant capabilities for the Australasian market, said Melton. Over the past three years, LEDAs have allocated more than $250,000 to 67 optometrists across the region.