ESCRS Launches New Awards Program to Foster Digital Transformation

The European Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgeons (ESCRS) announced the launch of the 2022 ESCRS Digital Research Awards (DRA), an initiative sponsored by the society to support and encourage innovative research that leads to digital transformation in the fields of cataract, refractive and corneal surgery.

The competition is open to all clinicians and researchers with the selected project(s) eligible to receive funding of up to €500,000 over a maximum of 3 years. The DRA deepens the ESCRS commitment to funding research and will now sit alongside the Clinical Research Award, Pioneer Award, and the recently created Systemic Research Award.

“Research is one of the three pillars that the ESCRS was established on when it was founded in 1991 and it’s a commitment that the Executive Committee and Council will continue to prioritise in the years ahead,” said Prof. Oliver Findl, ESCRS President.

The purpose of the Digital Research Award is:  

• To support, encourage and fund individuals or teams that actively conduct research leading to the collection of high-quality health care data in routine clinical practice in the field of cataract, refractive and corneal surgery.

• To support the development of open access datasets for clinical research in the field of cataract, refractive and corneal surgery – either from prospective data collection or the transfer of existing anonymised datasets to the public domain.

Interdisciplinary research projects incorporating combined clinical fellowship and digital health care research training leading to a higher degree are particularly encouraged, as are partnerships with academic or commercial data science expertise.

“We are hoping to super-charge digital research in the anterior segment field so that all ophthalmologists can benefit from improved databases and digital resources to care for their patients,” said Bruce Allan, who leads the ESCRS Digital Special Interest Group.

Targeted research or development projects covering any stage of the journey from structured data collection in clinic to the creation of high-quality, interoperable, open access datasets for research in the field of cataract, refractive and corneal surgery may be eligible for consideration. Projects may be small or large, with clear goals and a well-designed plan for project execution.

“This is the third research award that the society has funded in the past three years,” said Univ-Prof. Burkhard Dick, chair of the ESCRS Clinical Research Committee. “Clinicians and researchers from around Europe are carrying out vital research in the areas of cataract, refractive and cornea, as a result.”

The competition is now open (from Sept 12, 2022) and any interested ophthalmologist has until 13.00 (CET) on November 14, 2022 to submit a preliminary application for the ESCRS Digital Research Awards.  Further details and the application form can be found on the ESCRS website at: https://www.escrs.org/education/grants-awards/digital-research-awards/
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