Inaugural Herbert Wertheim Award Presented to Namesake, Dr. Wertheim
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Inaugural Herbert Wertheim Award Presented to Namesake, Dr. Wertheim
The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) awarded Dr. Herbert Wertheim ASCO’s inaugural Herbert Wertheim Award, affectionately called “The Herbie.” Dr. Wertheim received his award in October during a special recognition reception in San Diego during the American Academy of Optometry’s annual conference.
The Herbert Wertheim Award recognizes remarkable individuals or organizations that have accomplished high-impact, ground-breaking, and innovative programs or initiatives, and contributed substantially, or have the potential to sustainably address, eye and vision health and/or the social determinants of eye health and vision care, at the local, national, or global level.
“We are honored to not only recognize and praise Dr. Wertheim for his remarkable inventions and his unparalleled support of optometric education, including his remarkable donation to the University of California – Berkeley’s School of Optometry. He is such an icon and we are pleased to name this award after him,” says Dr. Melissa Trego, ASCO President. “Dr. Wertheim’s passion for optometry, it’s past, present, and future, will forever be evident as we continue his legacy through future ‘Herbie’ recipients.”
“I’m highly honored to be the recipient of this very special recognition award that is named after me for my contributions to optometry while emphasizing the need for enhanced education for the preservation of vision worldwide. This is a wonderful and needed calling that will enhance the lives of tens of thousands, if not millions, of patients who will need professional optometric vision and eye health evaluations and treatments throughout their lifetimes. This is a profession I am proud to be a part of and encourage any young person who is considering helping to make the world a better place to choose the optometric profession as a career choice,” says Dr. Wertheim a worldwide clinician, educator and researcher.
