Programs for the Southern Regional Optometrical Congresses 1969 and 1971

Historical Significance: When Australian optometrists first formed professional associations beginning in 1904 there was early recognition of the need to keep informed about new developments, which had its expression with monthly meetings at which a lecture might have been given. See for example Cat No. 551. The NSW association also started a monthly journal the Optometrist of NSW in 1914, which became The Commonwealth Optometrist in 1919 after a national association was formed in 1918. There were no State or National Conferences of optometrists for specifically for the purpose of continuing education of Australian optometrists, except that a session or two was sometimes scheduled in conjunction with the national policy conferences held from 1918. The gap was filled by an optometry section in the annual conferences of the Australian Association for Advancement of Science beginning in 1939, with some hesitant earlier participation in earlier years from 1911. These meetings ended in 1984. The first congress specifically for optometrists was the Southern Regional Congress, initially jointly organised by the Victorian College of Optometry and the Victorian State Association and held every two years. The first SRC Congress was held in 1963 others followed at two year intervals. It continues today and is now annual and organised by Optometry Victoria. These two programmes are for early Southern Regional Congresses organised by and held in the Victorian College of Optometry in 1969 and 1971. Both are three days duration.