OPAG 2006 James Edward Hamilton Award

CAPT John M. Garber serves as Indian Health Service Optometry Program Continuing Education Consultant. This award recognizes his exemplary work in conceiving, organizing and conducting professional continuing education programs at five national Indian Health Service Biennial Eye Care Meetings including 155 hours of accredited lectures. This he voluntarily did above and beyond his demanding clinical and administrative duties as Chief of Optometry at the Carl Albert Indian Hospital.

Since the advent of organized eye care in the Indian Health Service with the establishment of the Trachoma Control Program in the 1960’s, the number of optometrist and ophthalmologist staff had grown to one hundred and twenty-three in 1998. At that time, earlier, rather informal and intimate biannual staff meetings had evolved into biennial meetings with a need to provide continuing education acceptable for ever-increasing re-licensure requirements. CAPT John M. Garber brought his talents, professional connections and indomitable spirit to bear upon this challenge with great success.

The next five Indian Health Service Eye Care Biennial Meetings were dominated by continuing education programs orchestrated and conducted by CAPT Garber at essentially no cost to the Indian Health Service. He astutely selected topics particularly related to clinical conditions commonly seen at Indian Health Service eye clinics such as diabetes, iritis, trauma, glaucoma, etc. and selected speakers with nationally recognized topical expertise. CAPT Garber’s obvious love and enthusiasm for his work fostered remarkable rapport with these national figures and extended a positive image of the Indian Health Service and its eye care services.

In addition to his success securing exceptional educational speakers, CAPT Garber cultivated amicable relations with corporate partners and several schools of optometry that provided invaluable support. The Southern California College of Optometry provided its superb meeting facilities, logistical support and accreditation of all continuing education as well as several outstanding lecturers for each meeting. All of this was without cost to the Indian Health Service! The Pacific University College of Optometry also provided lecturers from its faculty without charge.

CAPT Garber saw to every detail, from selecting and contacting desired lecturers to providing gifts of appreciation at the close of each of their presentations. With the majority of Indian Health Service eye care providers attending these meetings, unique camaraderie and invaluable inter-staff relationships were engendered contributing significantly to staff confidence, morale, career satisfaction and retention.

Therefore, CAPT John M. Garber is hereby recognized for his exemplary initiative, leadership and contributions to Indian Health Service eye care staff competence and career development, and likewise the quality of care they provide, by his conceiving, organizing and conducting high quality continuing education programs of nationally accredited lectures at the 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004 and 2006 Indian Health Service Biennial Eye Care Meetings.