Join Optometry NSW/ACT on 8-10 August 2025 for a fun-filled weekend conference in Thredbo!
Stay locally at Thredbo or take the Snowy Mountains bus to your accommodation. Lectures are timed to work with the bus timetable.
Book your own accommodation AS SOON AS POSSIBLE IF YOU PLAN TO ATTEND as it books out early!
Click HERE to check out our handy guide to travel, accommodation and hire at the snow.
Discuss your legitimate tax deduction for travel, accommodation and conference costs with your accountant.
- Strictly OA members ONLY
- Standard Rate until 11.59pm 1/8/25 $395
Inclusions
- 8.5 hours of quality CPD at the Thredbo Alpine Hotel event centre
- Friday evening drinks and canapes during session 1
- Saturday morning breakfast during Session 2
- Saturday evening drinks and canapes during Session 3
- Sunday morning breakfast during Session 4
Exclusions
- Delegates must arrange their own accommodation
- National Park entrance fees
- Lift passes, gear hire
- Travel to and from the conference venue
- Snow chain hire if driving above snowline (unless your car is AWD)
Lecture Schedule
FRIDAY 8th August
4-5pm – Andrew McKinnon: Understanding your workplace rights CPD 1NC
5-6pm – Blanka Golebiowski: Smoke in my eyes: the ocular effects of environmental change CPD 1T
SATURDAY 9th August
8-9am – Tom Ford: The role of microbial culture in ophthalmic disease CPD 1Ti
9-10am – Blanka Golebiowski: Sex, gender, hormones – what does it all have to do with the (dry) eye? CPD 1T
4.00pm – Thao and Grant Hannaford: Interactive case discussion: Spectacle lens prescribing in monocular EDOF patients
4.50pm – Thao Hannaford: Seeing beyond the marketing: degressive versus anti-fatigue spectacle lens prescribing
5.40-6.30pm – Grant Hannaford: The role of ocular biometry in prescribing progressive lenses
CPD 2.5i (for afternoon session)
SUNDAY 10th August
8-9am – Tom Ford: Prescribing topical corticosteroids following Flarex market withdrawal CPD 1Ti
Speakers
Andrew McKinnon has been CEO of Optometry NSW/ACT for over 25 years. He graduated with a Business Degree (UTS) in 1986 and since added an MBA and Graduate Certificate in Employment Law. He is passionate about supporting optometrists throughout their careers.
Blanka Golebiowski is an optometrist, a researcher and educator. An internationally recognised research expert in dry eye and the ocular surface, she has over 80 high impact publications in the field, including major consensus reviews in dry eye and contact lenses (TFOS, CLEAR). She is adjunct Associate Professor at UNSW, where she has led a successful program to advance the understanding of mechanisms underlying dry eye and eye pain to inform the development of new treatments. A/Prof Golebiowski has proudly supervised 20 PhD students and was Director of Higher Degree Studies at the School of Optometry and Vision Science for over a decade, for which she received UNSW’s highest honour in a Vice-Chancellor’s Award. She has experience in full-scope optometric practice in a broad range of settings, including urban and rural, private practice, academic and public health.
Thomas Ford is a full-scope optometrist with George and Matilda Eyecare. Following experiences in private ophthalmology and with Myopia Profile, he developed a passion for rural and regional eye care. Tom is particularly interested in the therapeutic management of ocular disease where he frequently co-manages complex cases with ophthalmology, having completed further studies in glaucoma and paediatric eye care. In 2024, Tom was awarded the RDWA Rural Health Award for outstanding clinical excellence and patient care.
Thao Hannaford is an optometrist with an interest in sports and children’s vision as well as best clinical practice protocols. She is involved in the supervision of 4th and 5th year optometry students in their clinical placement at the practice. Thao is currently a research candidate at Aston University UK studying the impact of axial length on glaucoma diagnosis. She has been awarded as a Paul Harris fellow and is recognised by the Australian government for her aid work in Mongolia and Nepal. Thao is also the cofounder and director of the Academy of Advanced Ophthalmic Optics and co-owns a multi-award winning independent private practice in Bowral NSW.
Grant Hannaford is a qualified optical dispenser, ophthalmic physicist and researcher. Dr Hannaford completed a qualification in spectacle lens design with honours from the UK under the tutelage of Professor Mo Jalie after finishing his undergraduate studies in physics and mathematics. Grant is a Fellow of the Association of British Dispensing Opticians and ADOA. He is also a lecturer at the School of Optometry and Vision Science UNSW. Grant has been awarded as a Paul Harris fellow and is recognised by the Australian government for his aid work in Mongolia and Nepal. He is also the cofounder and director of the Academy of Advanced Ophthalmic Optics, a company specialising in education and professional development of practitioners in the ophthalmic science industry. Grant co-owns a multi-award winning independent private practice in Bowral NSW. He successfully passed his doctoral candidacy in 2025 at Aston University’s UK under the supervision of Dr Nicola Logan. He is the 2022 International Optician of the Year.