The Great Canadian
Cross-Country
Chicken Finger Taste-a-Thon

By Robert Dalton

2010 has ended and, as promised, I have attended an annual general meeting (AGM) in almost every province. I felt that my first responsibility as Executive Director of the Opticians Association of Canada was to meet as many opticians as possible from across the country. So eating chicken fingers and salad in just about every major airport in Canada was a small price to pay for getting in touch with the grass roots.

I had questions that required answers. What are the priorities of Canadian opticians? What strategy can we use to address those priorities? How do we focus the resources of the OAC to get the job done? I wanted to know what opticians are thinking. 

The annual general meeting is the best-attended event of the year in most provinces and is usually accompanied by continuing education seminars; in some instances, the meeting itself provides professional education credits. It was the obvious vehicle for me to get in touch with the pulse of our profession. To generate discussion I delivered a presentation/update on national affairs. In some instances we facilitated a roundtable discussion on changing legislation or Internet sales. The concept was to keep the seminar or roundtable loose enough to allow new ideas to arise. It worked, and as I left each province I was armed with new ideas to be explored.

This is where some idealists might say, “The common goal is to promote opticianry in Canada.” One approach would be to refer to our mission statement:

The object and purpose for which the Opticians Association of Canada (OAC) has been formed is to safeguard the common interest of the profession.  To that end the OAC,

1)      Promotes and increases, by all lawful means and in the public interest, the delivery by its members of the highest quality of product and services.

2)     Supports and promotes the highest standards of education and licensing for Canadian Opticians.

3)      Provides a national medium through which a legislative voice speaking on behalf of Canadian Opticians may be heard.

4)      Publishes journals, reports, pamphlets or other papers in support of its objectives.

5)     Advocates for all objectives not inconsistent with the public interest for the benefit of Canadian Opticians.

But it’s not that easy. There are many diverse opinions about how to fulfill that mission. Canadian opticians are completely dedicated to the Licensed Optician Campaign and in British Columbia a poll of opticians at the AGM showed that we need to continue with the campaign. Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan opticians are at varying stages of work with umbrella Health legislation. Ontario is concerned about unregulated dispensing and the Health Professions Regulatory Advisory Council (HPRAC) report. I just came back from the Newfoundland and Labrador AGM where I also heard a lot about concerns regarding the profession’s survival in light of unregulated competition. Internet companies and their business practices were a major concern for a number of provinces.

An effective use of assets is very important. It would be simple if there was one common goal; one project that the entire profession agreed was the top priority. Then the OAC could apply all its energy to reaching that goal.
So, how do I apply what I learned to my work with the OAC? I will take December to put that information into a report that will form the basis of the staff recommendations to the OAC board.

The people entrusted to determine priorities are your provincial representatives, who make up the OAC’s board of directors. They will meet in April 2011 in beautiful New Brunswick and bring with them information about the concerns and issues affecting OAC members in their provinces.
This underlines the importance of choosing people to send to the national forum. They must have vision and clarity of thought. They must also be in touch with the grassroots from their province. I’d like to say that I will attend the AGM of every association and regulatory body in our country annually. I am always available via e-mail or phone to hear from you but quite frankly I am a little weary of eating chicken fingers in every airport I pass through.

Instead we have to let our provincial representatives know our thoughts and ideas so they can send them along to the OAC. As I sit in Pearson (Toronto) airport writing this piece (and eating my chicken fingers and salad… again!) I find myself thinking that the next province on my agenda is Prince Edward Island. Hmmm… I wonder what the chicken fingers are like in the Charlottetown airport. I guess I’ll find out soon enough.