Tony Martella

Tony Martella was with the Master Plumbers and Gasfitters Association and Master Painters and Decorators Association before starting in April 2005 as chief executive of the WA division of the Optometrists Association Australia, now known as Optometry Western Australia (OWA). During his 13 years at the helm of OWA, membership rose 40 per cent from about 270 to 380, and achievements surrounding therapeutic endorsement featured heavily. Highlights included regulation enabling therapeutic endorsement for optometrists in WA, and a course enabling one quarter of OWA’s members (or 100 practitioners) to become therapeutically endorsed. Half of WA’s optometrists now have scheduled medicines endorsement.