Phoenix Technology Group congratulates its ophthalmic photographers for selection to leadership roles in the OPS

PLEASANTON, Calif., Nov. 18, 2020 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Today, Phoenix Technology Group (Phoenix), a leading provider of advanced ophthalmic imaging solutions for researchers and clinicians, is pleased to congratulate Elizabeth (Libba) Affel, global ophthalmic imaging trainer, as the new President for the Ophthalmic Photographers' Society (OPS) for a two-year term. We are also pleased to congratulate Denise Armiger, global ophthalmic clinical trainer for her new post on the Board of Education at OPS, as well as her appointment to a board position with the Foundation Fighting Blindness. The OPS is the premier educational and training resource for ophthalmic imaging in the medical profession and includes photographers, physicians, optometrists, ophthalmic technical personnel, and scientists.

Affel has nearly 40 years of ophthalmic imaging and visual diagnostic experience. After her first job in animal research at Hahnemann Hospital, she joined the clinical lab at Wills Eye Hospital, followed by a role imaging in the ultrasound and electrophysiology department where she was the first woman hired. In 1990, Affel was promoted to lead the department and in 2008, she became the first ever Director of the Diagnostic Testing Center. Affel has also spent the last ten years certifying physicians and imagers for clinical trials with Annesley Eye Brain Center. She joined Phoenix in 2017 as Global Clinical trainer, working with clinicians and ophthalmic imagers around the world. Affel joined OPS in 2000 and was elected to the OPS Board of Directors in 2012. Her storied career includes awards from JCAHPO and Wills Eye Hospital. She also serves as a committee member for the Center for Academic and Global Ophthalmology, and Board positions with the Philadelphia Regional Ophthalmic Society and the Ophthalmic Medical Technology Program with Camden County College.

The Ophthalmic Photographers' Society has been the premier society for ophthalmic photographers for the past 50 years. The organization's main focus is to educate and certify ophthalmic photographers, ensuring imagers are taking routine, standardized images for ophthalmologists to successfully screen patients for various eye diseases. OPS convenes two meetings per year with various lectures, certification trainings, "crash-courses" for novices and professional development to the ophthalmic imaging community. Upon being elected president Affel notes "I have loved being a part of the OPS Board these past eight years and appreciate how it has helped make me a better imager and a better trainer for Phoenix. It is fulfilling to serve as a mentor and to help pave the way for the next generation of photographers."

Affel's fellow global clinical trainer at Phoenix, Denise Armiger, was recently elected to serve on the OPS Board of Education for a four-year term. This arm of OPS, composed of eleven members, functions specifically to set the education standards for the organization, as well as to plan and produce the curricula for the annual program, regional and mid-year programs and coordinate the increasingly crucial online education modules. Armiger's focus for her term will include creating technical summary documents for CME credits and serving as a mentor for ophthalmic imagers.

Armiger joined Phoenix last year from Leica Microsystems (formerly Bioptigen), where she managed global clinical training and product marketing and trained on the first Intraoperative OCT in the operating room. Prior to that, she was a Senior Applications Specialist with Heidelberg Engineering, where she installed equipment onsite, and trained in clinical and research imaging. Earlier in her career, Armiger held roles as the Director of Diagnostic Imaging at Columbia University and ophthalmic photography with Emory University. Her past work with OPS includes multiple lectures on OCT, Fluorescein Angiography, rare eye diseases and most recently, she built content and training programs for the Phoenix team to present and train virtually during the COVID-19 pandemic. Armiger was also recently named to the Board of Directors for the nonprofit Foundation Fighting Blindness which focuses on research and public health education programs concerning inherited blinding eye diseases.

"We are so thrilled for Libba and Denise and gratified that OPS has recognized not only their expertise but also their tireless dedication helping fight blindness," says Scott Carr, CEO of Phoenix. "For both Libba and Denise, ophthalmic imaging and training is not merely a vocation. It's a passion. They show their commitment everyday training imagers and photographers globally to use Phoenix ICON™ imaging systems while continuing to pay it forward by helping to attract more talented imagers into the profession."

About Ophthalmic Photographers' Society: (OPS) is the premier educational and training resource for ophthalmic imaging in the medical profession, including photographers, physicians, optometrists, ophthalmic technical personnel, and scientists. The OPS is the only organization providing certification in the fields of fundus photography, fluorescein angiography and OCT imaging and is open to anyone having an interest in any aspect of photography/imaging of the eye and ophthalmology. With members from 27 countries, OPS is the oldest established society in the world dedicated to ophthalmic imaging. Imaging technology continues to evolve at a rapid pace; the OPS sponsors regional, national, international and online educational programs that provide the most comprehensive and diverse training for ophthalmic technical personnel. A hallmark of the society is its emphasis on education, certification and mentoring – imagers learning skills from other imagers. Networking with other imaging professionals facilitates new insights and career development. http://www.opsweb.org

About Phoenix Technology Group: Phoenix Technology Group empowers people to see: we empower researchers to see more in their fight to prevent blindness; we empower clinicians to see more in their fight to save sight. We do that by providing clinicians and researchers around the world with stunning retinal images, coupled with timely and accurate data about the retina and the eye. Founded by Bert Massie, Ph.D., inventor of the first digital camera for pediatric retinal imaging, our company created the Phoenix MICRON™ platform for in-vivo imaging of animals in eye research. Phoenix MICRON is the standard of excellence for researchers worldwide: ten of the top twelve research institutions employ a Phoenix MICRON solution. In 2017, the company launched the Phoenix ICON™ platform which reinvented wide-field retinal imaging for human clinical applications. In 2020, Phoenix launched the Phoenix ICON GO portable imaging system, enabling clinicians and ophthalmic imagers the ability to take the camera system to the patient, while delivering the same stunning high-contrast, high-resolution images as the cart-based system. Recognizing that telemedicine is the future of ROP screening, in 2018, Phoenix acquired FocusROP and relaunched it as Phoenix CONNECT, the most widely adopted telemedicine platform for ROP screening. With this acquisition, retinal images from any wide-field retinal imaging camera can, in seconds, be delivered to physicians remotely, saving them time while providing better documentation.

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Jen King, Phoenix Technology Group, +1 408-234-3687, [email protected]

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SOURCE Phoenix Technology Group