BCLA reveals conference programme

The British Contact Lens Association (BCLA) has revealed the programme for the 2023 BCLA Clinical Conference and Exhibition.

The three-day event will be held in Manchester Central on 9–11 June, and will be the first face-to-face BCLA Clinical Conference to be held since 2019.

The conference will feature dedicated lecture tracks, workshops and peer-review sessions, and live demonstrations.

Keynote presentations will be given by Dr Gregory Sawyer on The art of contact lens comfort and More advanced understanding of the tear film and how it interfaces with a contact lens.

Professor Eric Papas will present the BCLA Medal Address, How football, luck and good people saved me from the golf course.

Dr Sònia Travé-Huarte will present the Irving Fatt Memorial Lecture, Dry eye management & treatment studies. Bringing my research to the field, and Frank Schaeffel will deliver a keynote on Visual cues for emmetropization and mechanisms of myopia.

At least 45 CPD points are expected to be available across the conference, in a range of domains.

BCLA chief executive, Luke Stevens-Burt, said: “This meeting will deliver the latest innovation and clinical insight, with world class speakers on all areas of contact lenses and ocular surface health.”

“It promises to be a weekend to remember, featuring a host of passionate speakers who can inspire eye care professionals to make a real difference to patients’ lives and ensure we are ‘always learning,’” he added.

New for 2023, the BCLA will offer micro-credential certificates at the end of the conference to attendees who have gained the necessary credits. Micro-credentials identify that an individual has focused their learning on a particular specialism.

Micro-credential certificates will be offered in four topics for 2023: Advanced Contact Lenses, Dry Eye, Myopia Control and Ocular Health.

The BCLA awards ceremony will be held on the Saturday night at Manchester’s Imperial War Museum.

Platinum sponsors of the conference include Alcon, CooperVision and Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, and gold sponsors are Bausch + Lomb and Menicon.

Booking information for the event can be found on the BCLA website.