Dr. Easwaramoorthi Vaithilingam, Head of the Elite School of Optometry, Medical Research Foundation, Chennai, India affiliated to the Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani, India died in his sleep on March 16, 2001 at his home in Chennai. Dr. Vaithilingam became the Head of the Elite School of Optometry on February 27, 1991. He was the chief director of clinics, contact lens consultant and Head of the Low Vision Services at the Sankara Nethralaya C.U. Shah Rural Eye Hospital, and exclusively attached to the Elite School of Optometry since 1991. Prior to his position as head of the school, he held a faculty position at the Department of Ophthalmology, Institute of Medical Science, Banares Hindu University, Varanasi, India, for 25 years. He was twice the President of the Indian Optometric Association, an Executive Council Member of the Indian Contact Lens Society, the first person from India to become a Fellow of the International Association of Contact Lens Educators in 1996, and the first person from India to become a Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry in 1998. He was an Executive Committee Member of the Indian Optometric Association and Member of the Editorial Board of the IndianContact Lens Journal. In 1992, he started Optometry Day, a yearly event aimed at increasing eye care awareness in India that continues to garner increased participation. He was an ardent researcher with over 100 publications to his credit. Dr. Vaithilingam was known for his technical expertise, innovation, and enthusiasm in the field of optometry. He was the mainstay of the Elite School and it is to his credit that the Elite School of Optometry, India, has obtained an international reputation over the past decade. He was a dynamic Head of School until his death. It is fair to say that Dr. Vaithilingam was one of the pioneers of modern optometry in India. Professor Jay Enoch, who sat in on a number of his enthusiastic lectures and participated with him at Board of Studies Meetings, and came to know him as a good friend, writes: “He tried hard, so very hard to build and to strengthen the Elite School. He was so proud of the new clinic and teaching facilities. He was also pleased with the connection with Birla, the formal degrees and the graduate program. He was a very good man, one who gave his entire efforts to the School. I am proud to have known him, and my wife and I are saddened by his untimely death. We offer our condolences to his family and you all.” Dr. Vaithilingam was highly respected by his colleagues both in India and all over the world, and deeply admired by his students, who will cherish his valuable guidance for many years. He is survived by his wife, son, and daughter. A trust fund has been established in the memory of Dr. Vaithilingam to further the development of low vision services at the Rural Eye Hospital, Chennai.
P.A. Sundaram (Fri,) studied this question.