SOE - European Society of Ophthalmology

SOE is the abbreviation for Societas Ophthalmologica Europæa and is the European Society of Ophthalmology with representatives from 37 European National Ophthalmological Societies. Created in 1956 the first Council was made up of representatives from 19 different European countries. The First Congress of SOE was held in Athens in 1960 and was attended by 750 ophthalmologists. The Congress has grown year on year since and it is anticipated that there will be more than 4000 ophthalmogists at the 2011 Congress. While the original aims remain relevant, today’s Society’s mission is to become the central point of European Ophthalmology primarily through education as well as fostering closer collaboration with Sub-specialty Societies and Supranational Organisations within Europe and beyond.

SOE Activities

European Leadership Development Programme 2009–2011

The third EuLDP class of 2009/11 includes 22 participants from 13 countries. After a brief introductory session in June 2009 at the SOE 2009 Congress in Amsterdam, a three-day working module was held in March 2010 at the Management Centre Innsbruck. A further working module will be held in conjunction with the leadership development programmes of the American Academy of Ophthalmology and the Pan-American Association of Ophthalmology in San Francisco in late January 2011. Graduation of the class will be at the Joint Congress SOE/AAO 2011 in Geneva.

Educational Grants For Ophthalmologists-In-Training From Eastern European Countries

The Board of SOE offers a limited number of grants for ophthalmologists in-training
from Eastern European countries to visit Ophthalmic Centres in Western Europe. At present, the grant is fixed at Euro (€) 1,000 and it is envisaged that the successful applicants will spend a minimum of four to six weeks observing clinical work in a Western European Centre. The SOE Board has compiled a list of centres which accept observers and of the subspecialties they offer. The number of Educational Grants is limited to 80 per year and two or three applicants from each Eastern European country (Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, The Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Moldavia, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Ukraine).

Educational Teaching Grant For Eastern European Countries

SOE wishes to strengthen links among teachers across Europe and their teaching institutions. To stimulate these links, SOE is pleased to announce a new programme of ten grants and welcomes applications from teachers in active residency training roles in the institutions of Eastern Europe. The programme is intended either as two or four week visit to one of the teaching centres on the SOE list. SOE only supports educators that are actively involved with residency training either in university hospitals, county teaching hospitals or in private settings with formal residency education programmes. SOE will support the successful candidates with a stipend of Euro (€) 1,000 for a four week programme, or Euro (€) 500 for a two week programme. It is up to the applicant to make up this choice based on their availability and agreements with the centre they wish to visit.

Grant Application

Applications for 2012 grants will be open from May 2011 until September 2011. Should you wish to apply for either grant for 2012, note that only online applications will be considered. Please visit the Society website at www.soevision.org for further information.

Helmholtz Medal

Founded in 1968 this gold medal is awarded every four years to the European ophthalmologist who has done most for the Society and for ophthalmology. The Helmholtz Medal has previously been awarded to:

J. François, Belgium
J. Charamis, Greece
M. Radnot, Hungary
B. Streiff, Switzerland
F. Fankhauser, Switzerland
H. Henkes, The Netherlands
G. Scuderi, Italy
N. Ehlers, Denmark
L. Missotten, Belgium
J. Cunha-Vaz, Portugal

At the Opening Ceremony in Geneva 2011 the Helmholtz medal will be awarded to Zdenek J. Gregor, United Kingdom.

Charamis Medal

The Charamis Medal is given by the Hellenic Ophthalmological Society. It is awarded by the SOE Board every four years to a European ophthalmologist for the greatest achievement in the field of ophthalmic surgery. The Charamis Medal has previously been awarded to:
J. François, Belgium
R. Kloti, Switzerland
C.D. Binkhorst , The Netherlands
J.D. Scott, United Kingdom
G. Meyer-Schwickerath, Germany
G.O.H. Naumann, Germany
G.P. Theodossiadis, Greece
R. Zivojnovic, The Netherlands
Y. Pouliquen, France
R. Collin, United Kingdom

SOE Lectures

At the 2005 SOE Board meeting, it was agreed that each National Ophthalmic Society would select the most promising clinician/researcher under the age of 45 to give the SOE Lecture at a prominent point of their annual Congress. During 2009, 16 lectures were held and it is hoped to increase this number in 2010 and the years to come. The SOE Lecturers are awarded a diploma and voucher for the forthcoming SOE Congress.