Philippine Academy of Ophthalmology - Manila, Philippines

On November 25, 1945, the Philippine Ophthalmological and Otolaryngological Society (POOS) was born, the first specialty society of its kind to be accredited by the Philippine Medical Association. Its members, led by Dr. Antonio S. Fernando, founding president, were physicians in the combined practice of ophthalmology and otolaryngology.Eleven years later, anticipating the separation of the specialties, the POOS created two other organizations: the Ophthalmological Society of the Philippines (OSP) and the Philippine Society of Otolaryngology and Broncho-Esophacology (PSOB). The year was 1956. Only weeks earlier, another independent eye society had been formed: the Philippine Ophthalmological Society (POS). With Dr. Geminiano de Ocampo as its president, the POS hosted the first Asia-Pacific Congress of Ophthalmology (APAO) in Manila.