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OCEANSIDE, Calif--Vision West Inc. (VWI), the ophthalmic buying group based here, as taken the next step in their “2008 Going Green” commitment, with a summer energy-saving program that challenges independent eyecare providers to become “Eco-Heroes” in their practices.

The “Vision West Eye-Eco Challenge” is a commitment to curtail energy usage for three months. Optometrists are encouraged to review energy usage in their practices and set goals with their staff members to reduce their energy consumption. Starting this month, each participating practice will set its own benchmarks, track its own progress and at the end of August report their energy-saving results to Vision West.

Some VWI vendor/partners, including Wiley-X and UltraPalm, are supporting the program by contributing incentive prizes for all ODs who participate. At the end of September, Vision West will award a $250 gas card to the practice that reports the best energy-saving results.

“Vision West is the ‘Going Green’ leader among optical industry buying groups and offers its members eco-friendly programs and eye-eco vendors,” noted Joseph C. Mallinger, OD, MBA, FAAO, Vision West’s president and CEO. He added, “Many of our members support the green movement that is gaining momentum across the country. We believe Vision West can be a positive influence in demonstrating that everyone in the optometric practice can make a tangible difference to the environment. We implemented this program in our own offices, with a 31 percent decrease in energy costs during the first month.”

Mallinger said, “The goal of our Eye-Eco Challenge is to help VWI members conserve energy, save money, and show that an energy-saving program can be a positive experience for the entire staff.”

The Vision West Eye-Eco Challenge is open to all independent eyecare providers. To participate and for more details, optometrists can send an email to Vision West at eye_eco@vweye.com.

VWI is officially endorsed as the preferred buying group of State Optometric Associations in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, New York, and Vermont, as well as other vision care groups in the U.S. VWI is positioned as a practice management resource to ECPs, offering full product discounts on the largest selection of vendors, continuing education programs and other practice management tools.  ■