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VISTAKON® LAUNCHES THE VISION CARE INSTITUTE™ OF
JOHNSON & JOHNSON VISION CARE, INC.
New educational facility will enhance contact
lens prescribing
confidence and communications skills
JACKSONVILLE, Fla., March 10, 2004 – To enhance the technical
training of students and practitioners and to serve as a resource
for the most current information in the field of vision care, VISTAKON®,
Division of Johnson & Johnson Vision Care Inc., is introducing
The Vision Care Institute™ of Johnson & Johnson Vision Care
Inc. In its first year, The Vision Care Institute™ will work in
tandem with optometry schools and colleges to give fourth-year students
hands-on, patient-focused experiences using the latest professional
products, with a focus on ACUVUE® Brand Contact Lenses. This
enhanced clinical training assists budding practitioners as they
make the transition from aspiring students to bona fide Eye Care
Professionals (ECPs).
“The mission of The Vision Care Institute™ is to help prepare
students for their careers as ECPs,” says Howard B. Purcell,
O.D., F.A.A.O, director of The Vision Care Institute™ of Johnson
& Johnson Vision Care Inc. “Putting participants in real
world scenarios and guiding them through the technical and communication
skills process will benefit the new ECP as well as their patients.”
VISTAKON® estimates that half of the approximately 1,100 fourth-year
optometry school graduates will attend The Vision Care Institute™
in 2004. The first class—of a total of 20 scheduled sessions
this year—was held late last month. Each class consists of
three days of intensive teaching and interactive labs, tours of
the VISTAKON® manufacturing facilities, instruction from leading
optometric educators, and an opportunity to meet with VISTAKON®
representatives. Because the training is focused on VISTAKON®’s
specialty contact lenses, all travel arrangements and accommodations
are covered by VISTAKON®.
Curriculum
The first year’s curriculum focuses on “specialty contact
lens clinical practice,” with a focus on VISTAKON®’s
specialty contact lenses, and complements the curricula at optometry
schools around the country. Classes on specialty contact lenses
offer participants training in technical skills, as well as practice
in decision-making and group problem-solving.
In addition to clinical training, The Vision Care Institute™
includes related instruction on critical communication skills that
can help new ECPs better educate patients and engage them in conversation
following an examination. Videotaped sessions allow students to
critique their communication skills in different scenarios, while
giving experts in the field a chance to offer their advice.
Classes at The Vision Care Institute™ are given by leading
optometrists from across the United States. Notable practitioners
include: Ann M. Hoscheit, O.D., founding partner and practitioner
at Summit Eye Associates in Gastonia, NC, and columnist for Review
of Optometry; Janet M. Mint, O.D., F.A.A.O., and practitioner at
Southside Eye Associates in Jacksonville, FL; and, Walter D. West,
O.D., F.A.A.O., Adjunct Professor at Southern College of Optometry
and partner and practitioner at Primary Eye Care in Brentwood, TN.
What’s more, the teacher-to-student ratio is one-to-five,
providing students with a very personalized and hands-on learning
experience.
State-of-the-Art Facility
The Vision Care Institute™ is located at VISTAKON® headquarters
in Jacksonville, Florida. Designed by award-winning Jacksonville-based
architectural firm Reynolds, Smith and Hills, Inc., the 7,000-square-foot
facility features state-of-the-art conference rooms, lecture suites,
laboratories, administrative work stations, and fully-equipped operatories.
Observations are enhanced by one-way mirrors, and cutting-edge audio-visual
technology helps optimize the interaction between faculty, students,
and patients.
Attendees have the opportunity to experience the latest equipment
from the leading companies in the industry. The facility includes
two “acuity lanes,” advanced vision testing systems
that adjust for normal variances in luminance and contrast to provide
a truer, more “real-world” vision assessment.
The Vision Care Institute™ also is home to the “Exam
Room of the Future,” a state-of-the-art exam room that offers
attendees the opportunity to experience the latest developments
in examination equipment, including automated refraction systems
and wave front analyzers. The “Exam Room of the Future”
will continuously be upgraded to incorporate the most technically
advanced equipment in the field.
In addition, through a dedicated Web site and information hotline,
The Vision Care Institute™ alumni will have the opportunity
to network with colleagues and download such valuable information
as charts, tables, formulas, and VISTAKON® product information.
Additionally, the hotline will offer information on important clinical
questions for new ECPs starting up their practices.
“The opening of The Vision Care Institute™ is just
one more example that demonstrates VISTAKON®’s commitment
to the ECP,” says Patrick Cummings, O.D., F.A.A.O., vice president,
Professional Affairs. “From the time they enter optometry
school and throughout their careers as practicing ECPs, VISTAKON®
is there for them, teaching the skills and providing the tools and
the highest-quality products needed to be successful.”
For more information, contact The Vision Care Institute™ of Johnson
& Johnson Vision Care Inc. at (800) 874-6690 or www.thevisioncareinstitute.com.
About Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Inc.
VISTAKON®, Division of Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Inc.,
pioneered the concept of disposable contact lens wear in 1987 with
the introduction of ACUVUE® Brand Contact Lenses. The ACUVUE®
Brand family of lenses is the most prescribed by Eye Care Professionals
worldwide today. VISTAKON®, headquartered in Jacksonville, Fla.,
manufactures and markets the first, second, and third best-selling
contact lenses in the world: ACUVUE® 2 Brand Contact Lenses,
1·DAY ACUVUE® Brand Daily Disposable Contact Lenses and
ACUVUE® Brand Contact Lenses.
The ACUVUE® Brand BIFOCAL Contact Lenses is the number
one prescribed bifocal contact lens in the United States. VISTAKON®
also manufactures ACUVUE® Brand TORIC Contact Lenses
for people with astigmatism. ACUVUE® 2 COLOURS™
Brand Contact Lenses allows people to change their eye color every
day or for a special occasion. With the recent introduction of ACUVUE®
ADVANCE® Brand Contact Lenses with HYDRACLEAR®, VISTAKON®
provides a family of products to meet the majority of vision care
needs.
The Vision Care Institute™, ACUVUE®, ACUVUE ADVANCE®
with HYDRACLEAR®, ACUVUE® 2, ACUVUE® 2 COLOURS,
1·DAY ACUVUE®, ACUVUE® TORIC, ACUVUE®
BIFOCAL and VISTAKON® are trademarks of Johnson &
Johnson Vision Care, Inc.
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