BCLA announces return to Manchester

The British Contact Lens Association (BCLA) has announced that its annual conference and exhibition will return to Manchester in 2019.

The event will undergo a format change in 2019, taking place at Manchester Central across three days (30 May–1 June), with an awards dinner on the Saturday night.

Chief executive of the BCLA, Cheryl Donnelly, said: “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.”

“We will be staging a number of practical hands-on workshops showcasing the very latest techniques in the field of contact lenses and the anterior eye and the exhibition will feature innovation and up-to-the-minute technology from the world’s leading manufacturers and suppliers,” she added. 

This year’s event takes place in Birmingham at the Conference Aston on Monday (4 June) and in London at the IET Savoy (10 June).

Exhibitors include Positive Impact, who will be running a workshop focusing on dry eye diagnosis and management.

Led by director of marketing and professional services at Positive Impact, Nick Atkins, the sessions will demonstrate how to manage dry eye with punctum plugs.

“The key thing is for optometrists and contact lens opticians to see how safe, effective and simple to carry out the procedure is and then to be suitably trained to deliver it. This workshop is a first step along this road,” the former BCLA president explained.

UltraVision will be exhibiting its new monthly disposable contact lens, Avanti, which it explained provides the convenience of a monthly with the flexibility of a custom-made lens.

The contact lens company said: “A truly flexible multifocal option combines centre near and centre distance designs with the option to optimise the vision of the dominant eye, ensuring your patients can get on with what’s really important and never miss the action.”

Avizor will showcase its range of contact lens care and ocular health products, including EverClean, Alvera and GP Multi, as well as the Lacrifresh Ocu-Dry range.

Thea Pharmaceuticals will attend as the sponsor of the BCLA’s dry eye certificate, which can be achieved by any optometrist or contact lens optician who attains six credits and a final OSCE-style examination.

Head of medical affairs at Thea Pharmaceuticals, Christine Purslow, said: “Dry eye education is essential, and this qualification ensures practitioners will be best placed to offer the specialist service needed to diagnose and manage the disease.”

Cantor & Nissel will showcase its prosthetic solutions, including the Nissel custom hand paint, Cantor prosthetic and its lathe cut bespoke monthly contact lens.

Johnson & Johnson Vision said it is looking forward to welcoming attendees to its stand, where delegates can learn about how its range of products can help practitioners meet patients’ needs.

“Johnson & Johnson Vision are excited to bring its extended portfolio of products which now encompasses the Acuvue portfolio, Complete RevitaLens MPDS and Blink eye care range of products, to BCLA UK 2018,” the company shared.

Topcon will focus on its DRI OCT Triton and OCT Angiography in optometric practice, as well as its latest technology for dry eye treatment, the Eye-Light.

A CET workshop on meibography and IPL, as well as rotational workshops discussing the latest in topography systems will also be run by Topcon.

The Alcon team will be on-stand to discuss contact lenses, dry eye and its ocular health portfolio. A peer discussion workshop on the topic of presbyopes and contact lenses will also be hosted by the event sponsors.