Video of the 91st Annual Dinner of the Optometrists Association Victoria on the occasion of the award of honorary life membership to Professor Barry Cole

Historical Significance: The video was recorded with a fixed camera directed at the speakers' lectern. The speakers include Shane Debney (Master of Ceremonies), various speakers representing the commercial sponsors of the dinner and Melbourne optometrist Dr Damien Smith who at the time was the President of World Council of Optometry. He is followed by Mr Graham Hill OAM, then the President of the Victorian College of Optometry, who introduces Professor Cole with a lengthy speech recounting Professor Cole's achievements and presents the life membership certificate. Professor Cole follows with an acceptance speech. Professor Cole's speech alludes to the tensions between the Optometrists Association Victoria and both the College and the Department of Optometry of the University of Melbourne, which he headed for some 35 years. The tension arose over the College's expansion of its clinical services into Community Health Centres, the Association's dissatisfaction with its lack of voice in optometric education and the speed with which rights to prescribe medicines was being pursued. Professor Cole had been offered honorary life membership in 1999 but had declined because of the bitterness over these issues remained (see Cat No 1436 for Professor Cole's letter of refusal). See also Cat No 1828 for records about a dispute in 1995 - 1996 between the College and five of its members who sought a change in the constitution of the College so that its members had absolute control of the College, excluding the University representative on Council and staff ex-officio appointments. The five members were John Bartlett, Ian Breadon, Peter Dwyer, Helen Robbins and Damien Smith, who could be regarded as acting as unofficial proxy for the grievances of the Optometrists Association Victoria.