Meet a Council Member: Nick Howard

Tell us about yourself? 
A career span which now exceeds 36 years, work schedules are presently concentrated in specialty clinics, including NHS Hospitals and private independent practices. Previous positions include one of the very early optical franchises, also founder of independent private practice in the 1990’s. 

Currently, there is a clear emphasis on the correction of complex ocular conditions, including keratoconus, PMD, post graft and post-surgical ectasias, whilst developing innovative and imaginative programmes for myopia management and chronic dry eye.

For over a decade, considerable time and effort has been spent providing training schedules at both undergraduate and post graduate levels. A continuing, ongoing development of the implementation of novel techniques, visiting in Hospitals, Universities and conferences across the UK, also in Europe, the Middle East and the Far East.

Optics was not the first career choice. Having conceded that both Gary Lineker and Paul Gascoigne were more talented footballers than I, my boyhood dreams of playing soccer for England were soon put to bed and I studied both Fine Art and Graphic Design at Manchester University before hanging up the paintbrushes and entering the profession. Having also considered music as a career choice, my neighbours may probably agree that my ability to knock out a tune on a Saxophone is perhaps not quite good enough to get an audition with the Halle.

My amateur soccer boots were well used for over three enjoyable decades and, having broken several bones, my flirtation with football and the local fracture clinic came to a conclusion, swapping studs for skis for the first time at the age of 50, with two, occasionally three trips to the mountain every year.

Why join the BCLA?
The BCLA is a widely and internationally recognised Association and the perfect platform for any contact lens professional wishing to develop and further both their skills and their career. With the benefit of hindsight, the BCLA has been the support mechanism and provider of high level specialty training at every single step of my career. No other organisation comes anywhere near what I needed as a developing young professional. ‘No brainer’ for me.


What encouraged/inspired you to apply to be on BCLA Council?
My fellow professionals, including several academic leaders, current and past BCLA presidents, our CEO and previous Council members all suggested that I make an application. I had gained my BCLA Fellowship in 2012 and this was the next natural, seamless step of my BCLA commitment.

Apart from the membership benefits, what else do you get from being a member of the BCLA?
The BCLA is nothing short of a great big international family. Leaving aside the obvious benefits of membership, training and career progression, the BCLA provides tremendous opportunities for interaction and discussion with like- minded, passionate professionals on a truly world-wide scale, with members from many countries and cultures, all sharing the ultimate goal of improving the lives of their patient base.

Having had the privilege of attending several international events, it has become very apparent just how highly the BCLA is valued, revered and appreciated on every continent of the globe. 

What is it like being a member of the BCLA council?
A big responsibility, a lot of personal time commitment and much hard work. Nonetheless, very rewarding – when a successful project is launched, or a written piece is published, it is a great feeling of satisfaction and completion. The BCLA Council is a colourful, imaginative and committed collection of dynamic personalities, with experts from all sectors of the profession and the industry. They make a difference. Fabulous to be part of that.

What message would you like to give to members / non-members?
To members: the continuing value of the BCLA is immense. Personal and professional development opportunities both pre- registration and post qualification are second to none. An international viewpoint on the rapidly developing world of contact lens and anterior eye.
To non-members: Are you taking drugs? Wake up. Open your eyes.

What do you think will be the biggest change in contact lenses and the anterior eye over the next  five years?
Difficult one. None of us has a crystal ball. Myopia control and myopia management is a massive, expanding global issue, encompassing Ortho-k, specialty soft contacts, pharmacology etc., also dry eye and anterior segment management.  
At risk of some controversy, I perhaps see the current renaissance of scleral and mini scleral contact lenses as a major factor in the life of a contact lens professional. Certainly in hospitals the use of larger diameter rigid lenses is playing a rapidly increasing role in the management of advanced and extreme ocular conditions – including a crucial element in providing long term dry eye therapy and relief. Perhaps seeing the way forward to the future is to take a good look at the past?

Biography

Nick qualified as a Contact Lens Optician in 1984, worked as a practice manager in a flagship store in central Manchester before becoming a regional manager for a national multiple. Taking one of the pioneering franchises in 1989 and utilising this experience, he set up own private practice from scratch in 1994.
Formerly a Practice Academy Consultant with Cibavision, Professional Affairs Consultant with Johnson and Johnson, Clinical Support manager for No7 Contact Lenses and  Professional Relations Consultant with Bausch & Lomb.
Part time, independent lecturer, trainer, and presenter with a special interest in complex contact lenses, visiting seminars, conferences, hospitals and Universities in the UK, also international events in Europe, the Middle East and the Far East. 
Winner of the prestigious Contact Lens Optician of the Year in 2012, and the same year Nick was awarded Fellowship of the BCLA and is currently a BCLA Faculty speaker. An active BCLA Council member and a key facilitator and tutor with the contact lens training team from Moorfields Eye Hospital in central London. Nick is the author of a number of articles published in Dispensing Optics, Optometry Today and Optician journals. 
Now working  in two Lancashire NHS hospitals and an award winning independent practice, particular interests include an extensive and comprehensive range of complex contact lenses, whilst developing innovative projects to deliver specialty services including dry eye management, Orthokeratology and myopia control.