Mary Kane, Executive Editor
Mary helps to oversee the editorial coverage of
Vision Monday and its print publication,
VMAIL, e-newsletters,
VisionMonday.com and the
Vision Expo Dailies. She also covers general company news, industry developments and business trends, as well as professional associations news and features. She is also responsible for deadline queries and operational questions for
Vision Monday print editions and
VMAIL. Contact Mary at
mkane@jobson.com.
By Mary Kane
Friday, August 2, 2024 8:30 AM
NEWARK, N.J.—The 22nd edition of
Vision Monday’s Most Influential Women in Optical feature brings a class of leaders, changemakers and trailblazers who are as impressive and exciting as it gets. This past week,
Vision Monday announced its
2024 roster of 40 women of accomplishment who were selected by
VM’s editors from several hundred submissions. For this year’s Annual Report,
VM considered women who are making a difference in the following five categories: Executive Suite, Rising Stars, Mentors, Innovators and Above & Beyond.
By Mary Kane
Friday, July 12, 2024 8:30 AM
It's official—summer has arrived. This past week, a large region of the United States was engulfed by a stubborn heat wave that just won’t seem to quit. The Western part of the country has been especially hard hit as the region suffered through triple-digit temperatures as high as 115 degrees in Las Vegas. As people head to pools, lakes and beaches to escape the scorching temperatures, the heat is not the only danger out there. According to the
New England College of Optometry (NECO), swimming can expose your eyes to various potential hazards, including chlorine irritation, eye infections and UV rays.
By Mary Kane
Sunday, June 16, 2024 2:59 AM
It seems that artificial intelligence (AI) is touching many parts of our lives these days, especially in the workplace. Companies are trying to integrate AI into their workflows to save time and make workers more productive, allowing employees to take on new projects and responsibilities. As with any new and developing technology, workers are understandably skittish about adopting something they don’t fully understand. Let’s be honest, the power and reliability of AI can be daunting.
By Mary Kane
Friday, June 14, 2024 8:30 AM
This June 27 will mark 11 years for National Sunglasses Day (NSD), an initiative that began in 2014 with the goal of raising awareness among consumers about the dangers of UV rays to the eyes.
VMAIL Weekend sat down with Ashley Mills, CEO of The Vision Council, to talk about how the initiative started, where it’s going this year, and how the effort to promote healthy vision has grown in popularity these past 11 years.
By Mary Kane
Friday, April 19, 2024 8:30 AM
Just how valuable are a pair of reading glasses? According to a recent study, having access to a pair of readers can make all the difference, especially if you are presbyopic and live in a part of the world with limited access to eyecare and eyewear products. This past week,
VisionSpring, a nonprofit provider of affordable eyeglasses to people in need,
BRAC, an international development organization that works with marginalized communities, and
Queen’s University Belfast released the findings of their collaborative THRIVE study, which found that a pair of reading glasses increases the earnings of people in low-income communities by 33 percent. Ella Gudwin, CEO of VisionSpring, summed it up best when she said, “THRIVE strengthens the case that it’s not about the eyeglasses—it’s about everything that comes after.”
By Mary Kane, Executive Editor
Sunday, April 14, 2024 1:57 AM
NEW YORK—John Whyte, MD, MPH,
WebMD’s chief medical officer and one of the most influential voices in the health sector, discussed how patients are learning to trust chatbots, how doctors are integrating generative AI into their practices, the need for transparency and other practical aspects of AI implementation. During a session titled, “How AI Is Reshaping the Future of Health Care,” Dr. Whyte said, “AI is a work in progress, and we have just started to scratch the surface of how we can use AI to improve health care and vision care outcomes.”
By Mary Kane, Executive Editor
Sunday, April 14, 2024 1:52 AM
NEW YORK—Six optometry students, each representing a different school of optometry, were recipients of this year’s Student Innovator of the Year Award. Named after Rick Bay, former publisher and president of Jobson’s Review of Optometry and Review of Ophthalmology, the Foundation’s Student Innovator of the Year award aims to support optometry’s next generation.
By Daniel Breeman, Mary Kane
Friday, March 22, 2024 8:30 AM
NEW YORK—After nearly four decades of showcasing some of the best eyewear products, eyecare technologies and countless hours of continuing education at Vision Expo in New York City, attendees at this year’s Show soaked in every moment and celebrated Expo East held for the final time at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. More than 450 leading eyewear and eyecare companies showcased their latest products and technologies, and attendees were again treated to VisionEd, the accredited educational program of Vision Expo featuring nearly 200 sessions, new product launches, special events and company anniversary celebrations. Read on for a review of special events and photo highlights from the Show.
By Mary Kane
Thursday, February 8, 2024 8:30 AM
The Transplantation of Human Eye Allografts (THEA) program is on the cusp of making whole functional eye transplantation to restore vision for the blind and visually impaired a reality in our lifetime. Last month, the
Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) announced that the THEA program intends to transplant whole human eyes to restore vision by reestablishing visual connection to the brain. Dr. Calvin W. Roberts, president and CEO of
Lighthouse Guild, is the program manager of ARPA-H’s transplantation program.
VMAIL Weekend reached out to Dr. Roberts to get his thoughts about how the THEA program will work and what it will mean to the millions who are experiencing severe vision loss.
By mary kane
Sunday, February 4, 2024 1:29 AM
The promise of artificial intelligence (AI) and the role it can play in helping doctors to detect and diagnose diabetic retinopathy—a common complication of diabetes that can lead to blindness—has the potential to become a real game changer. A recent study by eyecare nonprofit Orbis International has found that AI can accurately detect diabetic retinopathy in children and young adults, an important breakthrough that can mean the difference between healthy sight and irreversible vision loss for youngsters with diabetes.
By Mary Kane
Friday, December 29, 2023 8:30 AM
We can’t take a look back at
Vision Monday’s most read stories of the year without considering
VM’s Latest News features, the backbone of our
VMAIL e-newsletter. Even against the backdrop of a year filled with rising inflation and fears of a recession the optical industry still got down to business despite the personal and business hurdles they faced due to an uncertain financial landscape.
VM readers were especially interested in an ongoing problem in the eyecare industry concerning unsafe eye drops—the story “Dry Eye Foundation Reports Potentially Unsafe Eye Drops to FDA” occupies the top spot for 2023. Other stories in the most read category included features about business mergers and acquisitions, company reorganizations, a new location for Vision Expo East in 2025, and a perennial
VM favorite with readers, VM’s Most Influential Women in Optical. Here’s a look at the 20 most read stories for 2023.
By Mary Kane
Friday, December 1, 2023 8:30 AM
As Diabetes Awareness month comes to a close, the promise of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the role it can play in helping doctors to detect and diagnose diabetic retinopathy—a common complication of diabetes that can lead to blindness—is front and center. A recent study by eyecare nonprofit Orbis International has found that AI can accurately detect diabetic retinopathy in children and young adults, an important breakthrough that can mean the difference between healthy sight and irreversible vision loss for youngsters with diabetes. The peer-reviewed
study, shows that Orbis’ e-learning platform
Cybersight AI can be an effective tool to support medical staff who are often overburdened with patient caseloads, especially in low-resource settings.
By Mary Kane
Friday, November 3, 2023 8:30 AM
This past week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned consumers not to purchase and to immediately stop using 26 over-the-counter eye drop products, including
products from CVS Health and Rite Aid, due to the potential risk of eye infections that could result in partial vision loss or blindness, setting off a flurry of press coverage in the medical community and news media. The eye drops are marketed by
CVS Health,
Rite Aid,
Cardinal Health, along with
Target's Up & Up brand and
Velocity Pharma, the FDA said. In response
to the recent warning,
ODs around the country are stepping up to play an active role in educating concerned patients about eye drop and eye health safety
. VMAIL Weekend reached out to several optometrists to find out how patients are reacting to the warning and how ODs are dealing with patients’ concerns.
By Mary Kane
Friday, September 1, 2023 8:30 AM
September arrived yesterday signaling the lazy days of summer are coming to an end. And with Vision Expo just around the corner, it’s time to get down to business again. In less than a month, the optical industry will be gathering in Las Vegas for Vision Expo West, and this time around, it will have a palpable post-pandemic feel, despite the fact that COVID 19 seems to be rearing its ugly head again. (Click
here to find out what some of our top docs think about the state of COVID today and what might be in store for us). This year’s Vision Expo has a lot to offer attendees including new exhibitors, new neighborhoods on the show floor, a robust curriculum of continuing education and a spate of special events so we opti folk can do what we do best—network with our colleagues.
By Mary Kane
Friday, August 4, 2023 8:30 AM
For more than 20 years,
Vision Monday has been shining a spotlight on women in the optical industry who check all the boxes. They are high achievers, difference makers and trendsetters who just plain stand out and every July we are honored to share their stories of success in our
Most Influential Women in Optical Report. This year’s “class” of honorees does not disappoint. Having finally emerged from the shadows of the pandemic, this year’s honorees are at long last looking forward to a brighter and more promising future. Their positivity and can-do attitudes are apparent as we chronicle their achievements in an ever-changing optical landscape.