Our Team

Associate Professor Khyber Alam is the Head of Department of Optometry and Vision Science and has extensive experience in academia, research, and clinical practice.

A/Prof Alam is a higher education leader with skills in organisational development. He is driven by a profound passion for teaching and a strong commitment to academic excellence. UWA’s reputation as a leading institution for research and education aligns perfectly with Khyber’s aspirations, as it provides an ideal environment for him to contribute to cutting-edge research and collaborate with other established and well-regarded academics across the world.

A/Prof Alam co-authored ‘Vision 2030’ a significant health report outlining the aspirations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander professionals for the eye health of First Nations People by 2030. The publication of the Vision 2030 report led to the formation of the First National Eye Health Alliance, which now spearheads eye care initiatives across Australia and New Zealand. He co-led the establishment of permanent eye clinics in collaboration with Aboriginal organisations across Western Australia.

 As part of his leadership responsibilities on the Learning and Teaching Committee, Academic Board, Academic Council, and Board of Studies, A/Prof Alam has demonstrated his commitment to excellence and fostering an environment where academic programs thrive and adapt to the evolving needs of the healthcare sector and society in general. Besides his leadership responsibilities at UWA, he is a research supervisor for PhD students, has received grants, and continues to teach in various units. His research interests include neurodegenerative diseases of the retina, health economics, public health, vision impairment and its impact on quality of life, and the evaluation of healthcare & educational services. In 2019, he received a Young Alumni of the Year Award from Deakin University for outstanding contribution to the community and profession.

Lisa Jansen is a Lecturer and Deputy Head of Department in the UWA Doctor of Optometry program. She has been actively involved in the optometry profession and served on the Optometry Western Australian board and Optometrists registration Board.

Lisa completed her Bachelor of Optometry with Honours at the University of New South Wales and has completed a post-graduate Certificate in Ocular Therapeutics. She holds a Graduate Certificate in Tertiary Teaching and is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.
Lisa is an optometrist with over 30 years’ experience as a clinician and practice owner with an interest in dry eye and specialty contact lens fitting for myopia management and conditions such as keratoconus.

She currently lectures at UWA and is involved in clinical skills instruction and supervision.

Wilfred is a Senior Lecturer of the UWA Doctor of Optometry course.

Since joining UWA in early 2020, he has been involved in designing, planning, implementing, and teaching in the program.

Wilfred is actively involved in the UWA initiatives to provide final year optometry students with hands-on experiences of delivering eye health services within Aboriginal Medical Services in Perth, the Mid-West and Southwest of WA. Wilfred is a therapeutically endorsed optometrist with 13 years of work experience at the eye clinic of Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, having high-level clinical exposures to managing complex eye diseases and surgeries. Prior to joining UWA, he led the optometry program in Singapore.

Wilfred graduated from The University of Melbourne in 1991, and completed his PhD from QUT in 2001. He holds a Master of Public Health degree from UWA and a post-graduate qualification in ocular therapeutics from UNSW.

Wilfred is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and a sessional member of the WA Sate Administrative Tribunal. His clinical interests include public health optometry, ageing eyes and managing chronic eye diseases.

Clare is a Senior Lecturer in the Doctor of Optometry program at the University of Western Australia (UWA) and serves as the Deputy Chair of the Eye Health Centre of Western Australia (EHCWA) Committee.

Since joining UWA in 2022, she has contributed to the design, planning, and delivery of the foundational curriculum for the Optometry program and has played a key role in the development of dispensing services within the EHCWA clinic.

A Chartered Accountant with over 30 years of experience, Clare has a wealth of knowledge in the acquisition, development, operation, and sale of optometry practices. She holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Tasmania (1981) and an MBA from the Australian Graduate School of Management (1990). In addition to her industry experience, Clare was previously the Head of the Accounting discipline at the University of Notre Dame Australia.

Pauline is a highly qualified optometrist, having earned a Bachelor of Optometry with Class I Honours from the University of New South Wales in 2007. She furthered her education by obtaining a Master of Optometry and a Graduate Certificate of Ocular Therapeutics.

With a rich background in clinical optometry, teaching at both under and post-graduate levels, and clinical research, Pauline has held significant roles such as clinical research manager at the Brien Holden Vision Institute, clinical supervisor and lecturer at the School of Optometry and Vision Science at UNSW, and lead clinician at the Centre for Eye Health.

Pauline’s expertise spans evidence-based practice, diagnostic imaging, and retina diseases, reflecting her dedication to advancing clinical optometry. Her commitment to collaborative eye care is evident in her multifaceted roles, showcasing a holistic approach to eye health.

Elisse is a clinical optometrist and lecturer at UWA, involved in teaching of clinical and dispensing skills across all levels of the Doctor of Optometry course.

Combining a strong understanding of the underlying scientific research base and over 20 years of experience in primary care optometry clinics in metro and rural locations, she takes an active patient-based approach to clinical care and teaching.
Her primary clinical interests are paediatric vision care, especially strabismus, amblyopia and myopia management, and complex binocular vision in adults.

She co-coordinates the Community of Practice of Paediatric Educators for Optometry Australia, and presents regularly on children’s vision topics to optometrists at pre- and post-registration level. Previously Lead Optometrist (Paediatric Services and Myopic Clinic) at the Australian College of Optometry, she continues her commitment to public eye care through her work at EHCWA with refugee patients in collaboration with the Lions Outreach Clinic.

Mark has a BSc from the University of Queensland and worked in industry before becoming a research assistant at QUT’s Centre for Eye Research in the 1990’s.

He was awarded a BAppSc(Optom) in 1996 and has been a practising Optometrist ever since. A Graduate Certificate in Ocular Therapuetics (QUT) was conferred in 2009 making him one of the first Optometrists in Western Australia to be able to prescribe ocular therapeutic medicines.

His extensive optometrical experience includes time in regional and remote clinics (and overseas aid work), hospital clinics, specialty contact lens practice, corporate and independent practices, formal teaching and supervision of optical dispensers and optometry students.

Maggie Hong is a clinical optometrist and supervisor at EHCWA, whose role is to guide the students in developing their clinical skills. With 20 years of experience in various private clinical settings, she has provided quality eyecare to a diverse range of patients with different needs.

After obtaining a Bachelor of Vision Science, Maggie qualified as an optometrist in 2005 with Bachelor of Optometry at the University of Auckland. She advanced her knowledge through further studies and acquired a Graduate Certificate of Ocular Therapeutics and Advanced Certificate in Children’s Vision.

Jason obtained his optometry and PhD at The University of Melbourne, followed by a post-doctoral fellowship at the Center for Hereditary Retinal Degenerations, University of Pennsylvania.

Jason is a clinician-scientist with a strong interest in retinal diseases. Specifically, he has extensive experience in innovative structrual and functional assessements of the retina, in preparation for gene therapy clinical trials.

Jeremiah obtained his Optometry, MPhil and PhD degrees at the University of Melbourne. As the inaugural recipient of the Guelma-Alexander Fellowship in Neuroscience, he undertook his postdoctoral fellowship while based at the Melbourne Brain Centre.

Jeremiah has practiced clinically since 2005 across various private and public settings both interstate and overseas. His clinical interests include glaucoma, neurological conditions and retinal conditions of vascular aetiology.

His research focuses on developing novel biomarkers for the detection of systemic and brain disease such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. He is currently an associate editor for the journal Clinical and Experimental Optometry.

Jingyi Chen is a therapeutically endorsed Optometrist, Lecturer and PhD candidate. She has obtained a Bachelor of Vision Science, Master of Optometry, and Graduate Certificate in Advanced Contact Lenses. As a clinician, she has lived and worked in regional and rural Australia and has provided outreach eye care to remote communities.

Jingyi currently works in a collaborative clinic that provides eye care services to refugees, asylum seekers, and First Nations Peoples. Her PhD projects explore how collaborative care models between optometry and ophthalmology can reduce wait times and improve access to eye care.

Han is an associate lecturer at UWA and EHCWA clinician. She obtained her BSci(Hons) and Doctor of Optometry from the University of Melbourne.

She is passionate about education, and is involved in teaching clinical skills and supervising students at EHCWA. She is also committed to providing high quality eye care to patients in the Refugee Clinic.

She is currently undertaking a PhD in inherited retinal diseases and artificial intelligence.

Eden is a Lecturer in the UWA Doctor of Optometry course and optometrist with many years of clinical experience working in Perth. Having graduated from the University of Auckland with a Bachelor of Optometry degree with Honours, he then obtained the Master of Optometry degree at the University of New South Wales.

He is currently an optometry PhD candidate with the topic investigating pupillary reactions as an outcome measure for eye disease – inherited retinal diseases (IRDs).

As an optometrist Eden has special clinical interests in myopia management, specialty contact lens practice, cornea, and anterior eye disease. He is also passionate about clinical teaching and inspiring the next generation of future optometrists.

Allison is currently appointed as the UWA/Lions Eye Institute Chair of Optometry Research. She is an AHPRA registered optometrist and has over 25 years of clinical research and teaching experience involving the evaluation of visual function and performance.

Her research interests include improving clinical assessments for eye conditions that are common in older adults such as glaucoma, diabetic eye disease and macular degeneration.

She has made significant contributions to the understanding of visual perceptual disorders in the healthy aging visual system, and in neurological conditions that affect the visual pathways such as migraine and visual snow syndrome.

Her research has developed new methods for visual field assessment, and for combining this information with ophthalmic imaging. Her research is supported by nationally competitive grant funding and industry partners.

Associate Professor Holly Chinnery is the inaugural Ian Constable Research Fellow and Head of the Cornea and Ocular Surface Immunology lab at The Lions Eye Institute and The Department of Optometry and Vision Science at the University of Western Australia. She completed her PhD at the University of Western Australia in 2009, then worked as post-doctoral fellow at the Lions Eye Institute and Monash University. In the past 15 years she has held tenured teaching and research appointments at Deakin University and The University of Melbourne.

Her research interests include ocular immunology and corneal neuroimmunology, and she is a co-inventor of Fun-IVCM, a method that enables the dynamic visualization of T cells and dendritic cells in the corneal epithelium, and novel investigation of dynamic macrophage behaviours in the cornea of living humans.