Glaucoma NZ
Glaucoma New Zealand is a registered charitable
trust with a mission to eliminate blindness from
glaucoma in the New Zealand community. The Trust was established in 2002 and is
an independent unit based within the Department of Ophthalmology. (Charities Register
No. CC21421)
Glaucoma NZ takes four key approaches to preventing glaucoma blindness:
a) Research is the key to providing quality care in the short term and to finding
a solution to glaucoma in the long term. Glaucoma NZ supports research into glaucoma
in New Zealand by means of grants for independently assessed projects.
b) Glaucoma NZ initiates awareness programs to enhance understanding of glaucoma
in the community. Early detection of glaucoma and its risk factors is critical to
elimination of blindness from glaucoma.
c) Glaucoma NZ informs and educates people affected by glaucoma to avoid further
loss of eyesight through improved compliance with treatments.
d) Glaucoma NZ promotes high quality glaucoma care by all health workers. A range
of Professional Education programs are provided for health professionals.
Visit Glaucoma New Zealand
New Zealand National Eye Bank (NZNEB)
The New Zealand National
Eye Bank, established in 1989, is a charitable organisation responsible
for the supply of donated corneas and other tissues required for transplantation
within New Zealand. A Board of Trustees governs the Eye Bank, and donations and
grants are required to supplement direct revenue. It is an independent unit located
within the Department of Ophthalmology, and the staff of three operates a 24 hour,
365 day service to coordinate eye donations from hospitals and the community. This
involves screening of potential donors, discussing donation with families and obtaining
consent, processing, storage and evaluation of tissue before distribution for transplantation.
Each year, an average of 240 corneas are transplanted, restoring vision to people
of all ages with corneal disorders and diseases. In addition, sclera is used for
reconstruction after ocular trauma or glaucoma treatment, and amniotic membrane
is utilised as a ‘living bandage’ for ocular surface disorders. The
NZNEB maintains the New Zealand Corneal Transplant Registry, which tracks patient
characteristics and outcome for all transplants. Vital support for ophthalmic research
is also a core function, with the provision of corneas, lens and retinal tissues
where consent is provided.
Visit the New Zealand National
Eye Bank
Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology Editorial Office
Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology is the international clinical and
laboratory research journal of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists.
It has a wide international circulation and is particularly well represented in
Asia, Europe and North America with research papers regularly being submitted from
more than fifty countries. Many members of NZ-NEC regularly perform reviews of submitted
manuscripts, recruit scientific papers and contribute to key editorials.
Professor Charles McGhee is the Editor in Chief of the journal and a number of senior
staff in the Department of Ophthalmology are represented on the editorial board.
The journal offices are based within Ophthalmology in the NZ-NEC and run by the
Managing Editor, Ms Vicky Cartwright. The journal is increasingly cited in the scientific
literature and recently published the scientific abstracts and hosted the speakers’
reception of the World Ophthalmology Congress in Hong Kong. Worldwide more than
80,000 full research articles were downloaded from Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology
in 2007.
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