A message from IOPtima’s CEO

From the begining of 2020, we were very busy in supporting our partners and promoting our laser technology for glaucoma surgery around the world, with our team participating and training dozens of doctors world wide – Europe, Asia and South America – to perform CLASS (CO2 Laser Assisted Sclerectomy Surgery).

In addition, we conducted a successful pre-clinical study on one of our future products and a clinical study to be performed towards the end of the year. Other products in our pipeline were close to submission and transfer to production. The prospects were high, motivation was elevated, and we were ready to go forward and execute our plans.

COVID-19 has changed the world. Regardless if you think it’s a real threat or a mere flu, life has changed. Humanity faced one of its biggest challenges and is still struggling. Many psychology and sociology articles will be published about this time. Professors of economics will write their own take on it. Behavioral scientist will give their opinion on what worked and what may work in the future. But the bottom line is – we were all impacted by it, in a personal and professional level.

As IOPtima’s CEO, I have responsibility to my team, our partners, our shareholders, and our community. It is because of them that we were able to re-shape the company to the new reality – firstly by securing PPEs to our partners in Asia through a world-wide logistical operation, and then by supporting and keeping close connection with our partners around the world, old and new. We utilized this time to focus on our strategic planning. How are we going to adapt in light of this situation, and in general. We continued our R&D work, though in a limited manner. We conducted webinars and kept the educational process going. And above all, we did it with 6-foot distance, a big smile and motivation.

We are humans. We adapt. we care and facing uncertainty – we can reinvent ourselves.

“What is now proved was once only imagined”

Innovation is said to be coming from challenging the status quo. From going beyond and above the problem or the “current”. I have no doubt we are now seeing the first steps of a marathon of innovative ideas and products that will come out from this pandemic. Whether they will be directly related to the medical or social challenges of the time, or whether the idea for them came as a result of binge watching and extra leisure time.

Many people were and will be affected by COVID-19 and its implications. We must stand together and support one another in the process – with our family, community or company. As much as these are troubling times, these are also exciting times. It is in our power to make the best out of it. By helping others, reflecting on ourselves, and promoting innovation and care that will survive difficult times like this one

Sincerely,

Ronen Castro

CEO IOPtima