BMed BMedSc(Hons 1) MMed (Ophth Sci) MPH FRANZCO

Glaucoma Fellow, University of Alabama

Dr Alp Atik is a glaucoma sub-specialist who completed his medical training at the University of Newcastle, graduating ‘with distinction’, winning the university’s White Prize in Physiology.

He has also completed a Master of Medicine (Ophthalmic Science) through the University of Sydney and a Masters of Public Health at Harvard University.

As part of his Master of Medicine, he undertook a research fellowship at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary in Boston, USA, supported by an Australian Government Endeavour Research Scholarship.

Alp completed his ophthalmology training and Glaucoma Fellowship at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital, with an honorary appointment at the Centre for Eye Research Australia (CERA).

BOptom PhD FAAO FACO GCOT

Head – Vision Optimisation Unit, Senior Research Fellow, Department of Optometry and Vision Science, Department of Surgery (Ophthalmology) University of Melbourne

Dr Lauren Ayton is a clinician-scientist with research interests in retinal disease, low vision and vision restoration.

After completing her professional training in Optometry and a PhD at the University of Melbourne, Dr Ayton completed postdoctoral training in the area of ocular motor assessment in traumatic brain injury.

She then took a position at the Centre for Eye Research Australia, where she was the Bionic Eye Clinical Team Leader and worked on projects in age-related macular degeneration.

Currently, she is collaborating with Dr Thomas Edwards and Professor Keith Martin on exciting new gene therapy programs for inherited retinal degenerations.

With long-time collaborator, Professor Robyn Guymer (CERA), Dr Ayton is working on ways to communicate the most recent research findings in AMD to optometrists.

PhD

NHMRC Senior Research Fellow, Department of Surgery (Ophthalmology), Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, The University of Melbourne

Professor Paul N Baird is an Australian National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Senior Research Fellow and now heads the Ocular Genetics Unit at the Department of Surgery, Ophthalmology, University of Melbourne. He is an Adjunct Professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

His interests are in the study of the genetics of eye diseases, particularly age-related macular degeneration (AMD), myopia and keratoconus and how genetics can be used to improve prediction models and treatment outcomes for patients using big data and artificial intelligence in precision medicine.

He is on the executive of the International AMD Gene Consortium and the Consortium for Refractive Error and Myopia (CREAM) and initiated the Keratoconus International Consortium. He is Vice President of the Global Eye Genetics Consortium (GEGC).

MBBS MD FRCOphth FRANZCO

Retinal specialist

Dr Devinder Chauhan is a Melbourne retinal specialist who undertook his medical and ophthalmic training in London’s most prestigious institutions, including Guy’s, St Thomas’ and Moorfields Eye Hospitals, before his retinal fellowship at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital in 2001.

His MD research doctorate addressed the interpretation of optical coherence tomography (OCT) images of the macula using the first scanner in Europe. He has published highly cited papers on OCT scan interpretation and taught ophthalmologists and optometrists extensively on how to read OCT scans, which are now fundamental to the treatment of all macular disease in eye clinics and optometry stores.

Dr Chauhan founded Macuject, an ophthalmology software-as-a-service platform. It aims to help doctors prevent blindness by reaching the best clinical decisions for their patients more confidently, consistently and efficiently.

Macuject combines AI OCT scan image analysis with a configurable decision support protocol to help doctors treat wet age-related macular degeneration, the leading cause of preventable blindness in the developed world. His current research interests relate to the validation and verification of Macuject’s AI OCT analysis as well as exploring the effects of poor adherence to treatment on visual outcomes in the real world.

BBiomedSc, MPH, PhD

Senior Diabetic Retinopathy and Research Advisor, The Fred Hollows Foundation

Dr Fabrizio D’Esposito is a Vision and Hearing Impairment Consultant with the Management of Noncommunicable Diseases Team at the Regional Office for the Western Pacific of WHO (WPRO).

Dr D’Esposito is providing technical support for the roll out of Integrated People-Centred Eye Care Initiatives and WHO resources and tools across the Western Pacific, with a particular focus on reaching the unreached and integrating eye health within NCD responses. Prior to joining WHO, he led a strategic program of research and innovation focussed on diabetic retinopathy at The Fred Hollows Foundation.

Dr D’Esposito has been working closely with CERA on several projects. He is now providing technical support to the CERA WHO Collaborating Centre for the Prevention of Blindness, and in the past he col-led a collaboration between CERA and The Fred Hollows Foundation, which trialled the use of artificial intelligence for the detection of diabetic retinopathy in remote Aboriginal communities.

Dr D’Esposito has more than 10 years of experience in the non-communicable diseases sector, including eye health, and in the development and implementation of health programs and research projects in low-resource settings.

BSc (Honours), DPsych (Health)

Director of Research, The Fred Hollows Foundation

Dr Sarity Dodson is Director of Research at The Fred Hollows Foundation and oversees The Foundation’s research portfolio and staff.

The Fred Hollows Foundation undertakes and supports health services research that improves the quality, productivity and accessibility of eye care for those living in low resource settings.

Dr Dodson is a health services researcher and behavioural scientist with a particular interest in hygiene promotion and environmental improvements for trachoma elimination, and enablers of citizen participation in healthcare and health behaviour across settings and cultures.

MScOPtom, PhD FAAO, FACO

Professor Department of Anatomy and Neuroscience, University of Melbourne

Erica Fletcher is a Professor of the Department of Anatomy and Neuroscience and has over 20 years experience in ophthalmological research.

She is a clinically trained and therapeutically endorsed optometrist who holds both MSc and PhD degrees. Prof Fletcher’s expertise lies in understanding the mechanisms that lead to retinal disease.

A central focus of Prof Fletcher’s work has been the translation of her work to address clinically significant questions and to aid in the development of better treatments for retinal disease.

She is a Chief Investigator, along with Professor Robyn Guymer AM and colleagues from the University of Melbourne and Walter and Eliza Hall Institute, in a major new research collaboration investigating high-risk age-related macular degeneration.

MBBS, FRANZCO

Director, Retinology Institute

Associate Professor Wilson Heriot is a vitreoretinal surgeon and researcher conducting a translational project to bring his method of improved retinal detachment repair into routine clinical care.

This project was awarded a United States Government Congressionally Awarded Grant of $1.48 million and is being conducted in collaboration with researchers in the Department of Optometry and Vision Sciences, University of Melbourne.

Clinically, A/Prof Heriot is the director of Retinology Institute, a private practice in Glen Iris where he specialises in the treatment and management of medical and surgical retinal disorders.

MBBS(Melb) BMedSci PhD (Melb) FRANZCO

Consultant Ophthalmologist, Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital

Dr George Kong specialises in clinical glaucoma research, comprehensive glaucoma management, minimally invasive glaucoma surgery, and complex glaucoma diseases.

Dr Kong is a medical technologies innovator who developed the world’s first visual field testing software on tablet devices (Melbourne Rapid Fields).   He has received funding from Ophthalmic Research Institute of Australia, Glaucoma Australia and the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital to examine the use of the device to help monitor visual field of glaucoma patients in the home environment.

Dr Kong has a clinical honorary lecturer position at the University of Melbourne. He is actively involved in the training of glaucoma clinical fellows at Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital and supervises graduate research students.

MMed, MBBS (Hons), FRANZCO

Consultant ophthalmologist, Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital

Dr Jwu Jin Khong is an oculoplastic surgeon at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital and the Austin Health in Melbourne.

A fellow of the Australia and New Zealand Society of Ophthalmic Plastic Surgeons, and a member of the International Thyroid Eye Disease Society, she established the Australian Thyroid-associated Orbitopathy Research cohort for conducting genetic research in thyroid eye disease.

Her current research focuses on using gene expression to understand pathophysiology and advances in medical treatment for thyroid eye disease.

BSC (Optometry)

Honorary Principal Investigator, CERA Health Services Research Unit

Peter Larsen is Honorary Principal Investigator of CERA’s Health Services Research Unit and provides consulting services to various health care industry partners.

An experienced leader in allied health consolidation and operation. Instrumental in bringing Specsavers to Australia in 2007 and Managing Director through the growth phase of the business until 2012 when he crossed over to lead the professional side of the business.

In developing and implementing a systematic model for outcome lead eye care across Australian and New Zealand markets he has demonstrated a methodology to uniquely deepen relationships with Private Health Insurance, NGOs and Government. Targeted use of advanced diagnostic technology as part of the standard eye test, collaboration on and adherence to RANZCO patient referral pathways combined with individual professional benchmark reporting on customer centric clinical and commercial outcomes has significantly impacted eye disease detection, recruitment and retention of team members, a brand transformation and the commercial returns of the business.

A board member of CERA from 2012 to 2019, he has worked closely on the seeding of the industry inclusive Oculo referral platform and other key health initiatives most significantly the Keepsight initiative, a national diabetes eye screening program. In 2019 he was invited to take on the role of Group Eye Health Strategy Director across all ten Specsavers markets, based in the UK continuing in that position until October 2020 when he moved into a new consulting role.

B Med Sc, MBBS, MBA, PhD, FRANZCO, FRACS

Clinical Associate Professor of Ophthalmology

Associate Professor Heather Mack is an ophthalmologist specialising in medical retina diseases, particularly retinal degenerations.

She has a career-long interest in retinal degenerations, undertaking a PhD in molecular development of the eye at the Howard Florey Institute University of Melbourne (1990-1995), a clinical Fellowship with Eliot Berson at Harvard Medical School (1995-1997) and establishing a private clinical electrophysiology laboratory at Eye Surgery Associates in Melbourne (2010-) where she consults and performs electrodiagnostic testing on patients with retinal degenerations across Victoria, Tasmania and southern NSW.

Associate Professor Mack has been awarded an Achievement Award by the Asia Pacific Academy of Ophthalmology (2018) and American Academy of Ophthalmology (2017).

She has held senior leadership positions with the Royal Australian College of Ophthalmologists, over the past 17 years, including President from 2018 to 2020.

MBBS (Hons), LLB (Hons), BSc, FRANZCO

Head, CERA Ocular Oncology Research Unit

Dr Rod O’Day is an ocular oncology and medical retina subspecialist and leads CERA’s Ocular Oncology Research Unit.

After completing his ophthalmology training in Melbourne, Dr O’Day completed two Fellowships – one in medical retina at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital, and one in ocular oncology at Moorfields Eye Hospital, London.

Dr O’Day’s main research interests are clinical studies in the fields of adult and paediatric ocular oncology. He also works with scientists in laboratory-based studies and other medical specialists in trials of novel systemic therapies for eye cancers.

FRANZCO, PhD, BSc (Med), MPhil, MMed, MBBS (Hons 1)

Consultant Ophthalmologist, Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital

Associate Professor Simon Skalicky is a Victorian ophthalmologist specializing in glaucoma and cataract surgery.

Associate Professor Saklicky works as a glaucoma specialist at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital Glaucoma Unit and privately at Eye Surgery Associates, Melbourne.

He is a strong patient advocate at a national and international level.

He serves as President for Glaucoma Australia and Victorian representative for the Australia and New Zealand Glaucoma Society.

He serves on various committees for the World Glaucoma Association.

He remains actively involved in medical student teaching and RANZCO specialist training of ophthalmology registrars and glaucoma subspecialty fellows.

App. Sc (Optom),  MBBS (hons), FRANZCO

Acute Ophthalmology Specialist Clinical Lead, Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital

Dr Robyn Troutbeck completed her ophthalmology training at Sydney Eye Hospital and did fellowships at the RVEEH and Manchester.

She works in the Ocular Immunology Clinic and as a clinical lead in the Acute Ophthalmology service at the RVEEH, and at MMC and the RCH.  She is an involved in both retinal and uveitis clinical trials at CERA.

Robyn is also the deputy chair for the Women in Ophthalmology Group.

BA, M Social Policy, MPH

Research Manager, The Fred Hollows Foundation

Beatrice Varga is the Research Manager at The Fred Hollows Foundation.

The Fred Hollows Foundation undertakes and supports health services research that improves the quality, productivity and accessibility of eye care for those living in low resource settings.

Beatrice has over 10 years’ experience working in the eye care sector, previously at the Centre for Eye Research Australia.

A team of senior clinician and basic scientists leads our ambitious research program to understand the causes of eye disease, improve the diagnosis of treatment of disease, prevent vision loss and restore sight.

Our leadership team brings together unique expertise across medical research, clinical practice and business management to guide our mission of bringing hope to people affected by vision loss.