Meet the speaker: Assoc Prof Alex Black

The SILMO Academy by IOA will be taking place 12 April - 14 April in Singapore. Dr Alex Black will be speaking about Eyecare Professionals Role in Reducing Fall Risks in Older People.

Falls occur in about one third of older people living independently in the community every year. This can lead to significant physical, psychological and financial costs to the individual and the community. While the risk factors for falls in older people are multifactorial, visual impairment is considered to be an important contributing factor. The visual system provides one of the key sensory inputs for the control of balance and assists in the identification of obstacles and hazards to guide appropriate navigation planning and accurate stepping.

This presentation will provide eyecare professionals with a current overview of the importance of vision in preventing falls, along with recommendations regarding how to best manage their older patients to minimise the risk of falls. Participants will be given practical, evidence-based advice regarding prescribing for high-risk fallers, guidelines for prescribing large changes in refractive error, and considerations when prescribing following cataract surgery.

Dr Alex Black is an Associate Professor in the School of Optometry and Vision Science at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Brisbane, Australia. Since completing his PhD in 2010, which examined the impact of visual impairment on balance and falls in older adults with glaucoma, Dr Black has been involved in a range of applied research projects assessing the impact of on everyday function. Projects include the impact of visual impairment on mobility, falls and driving safety in older adults, assessment of low luminance visual function relevant to night-time driving, and the impact of vision problems on children’s academic performance. Dr Black has published over 60 peer reviewed papers across disciplines including optometry and ophthalmology, transportation research, gerontology and medicine, and is actively involved in the clinical training of QUT optometry students.

Find out more about SILMO Academy by IOA here.