Official Publication of the John A. Moran Eye Center, University of Utah Health, Salt Lake City, Utah 84132
A Fond Farewell
It’s hard to believe it’s been 46 years since I started practicing at the University of Utah as a one-person division in the Department of Surgery.
It seems like only yesterday that I was seeing patients in a pair of tiny rooms at the main hospital with a few colleagues who shared my dream of building an eye center. From day one, I knew we needed to swing for the fences to make progress against blinding eye diseases; and, indeed, our amazing patients and generous donor community handed us the bat.
Your support allowed the John A. Moran Eye Center to become what it is today: an internationally recognized, premier eye center lauded for excellence in specialty care, research, education, and outreach.
I have always believed my job has been to recruit the best and brightest doctors, researchers, and staff and then get out of their way. It’s worked—what they’ve accomplished is nothing short of incredible. It has been an absolute joy to see how they have been at the forefront of advances in vision research and care. They have improved cataract surgery for millions by testing intraocular lenses, created the world’s first map of the circuitry of the retina, developed potential new therapies for age-related macular degeneration, and increased access to care at home and worldwide through our landmark global outreach program.
I could not be prouder of all that we’ve achieved. They say that foundations must be built before bridges can be crossed. There are countless people I want to thank whose support was critical to creating a solid foundation: My family, the University of Utah, colleagues around the country, faculty, staff, donors, and dear friends who have believed in the dream, championed Moran’s work, and provided the resources we’ve needed to excel. I am forever grateful to all of you.
Now on the cusp of my 78th birthday, it’s time for me to pass the bat to a new leader who can capitalize on our momentum, swing for different fences, and take the eye center to new heights.
I will remain head of the department through early 2025, as University of Utah Health conducts a national search for a new chair. That person will carry forward our vision of providing hope, understanding, and treatment for anyone facing an eye disease, visual impairment, or blinding condition.
As we begin a new chapter, I want to assure everyone that the Moran Eye Center is as strong as it has ever been. We are ready to cross the bridge into a new era of growth and development. I am confident that with your continued support, the leadership we have in place, and ambitious plans for the future, Moran will not only survive, but thrive.
I am confident that with your continued support, the leadership we have in place, and ambitious plans for the future, Moran will not only survive, but thrive.
Our future is bright.
Our research program continues to expand with exceptional new faculty members taking us into exciting new research areas.
We are building new clinic spaces to meet the growing demand for our care, ranked No. 10 nationwide by U.S. News & World Report.
Our residency program had nearly 700 applications for four spots and is ranked No. 6 nationwide by Doximity.com.
Our outreach program is restoring vision for more people than ever before, especially here in Utah. My dear friend Alan Crandall, MD, would be happy to see the impact we are making in our community and globally.
It is difficult for me to say goodbye to a career and community I have loved. I am grateful to all of you for everything you have done to support me over the years. It has been the journey of a lifetime.
Yours,
Randall J Olson, MD
Distinguished Professor and Chair, Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences
The Cumming Presidential Endowed Chair CEO, John A. Moran Eye Center Director, University of Utah Vision Institute
2025 Moran Advisory Council
TONI BLOOMBERG La Jolla, California
WILLIAM “BILL” CHILD
Salt Lake City, Utah
THOMAS “TIM” DEE III
Salt Lake City, Utah
CHRISTENA HUNTSMAN DURHAM
Salt Lake City, Utah
SPENCER F. ECCLES
Salt Lake City, Utah
CHRISTINE A. FAIRCLOUGH
Salt Lake City, Utah
WAYNE A. IMBRESCIA
John A. Moran Eye Center
CLAUDIA S. LUTTRELL
Salt Lake City, Utah
RANDALL J OLSON, MD
John A. Moran Eye Center
LYNN WARD
John A. Moran Eye Center
NORM A. ZABRISKIE, MD
John A. Moran Eye Center
News & Notes
State-of-the-Art Pediatric Care
The Moran Eye Center has opened a pediatric clinic at the new Primary Children’s Hospital Miller Family Campus in Lehi. Specialists Marielle Young, MD; Griffin Jardine, MD; and Sravanthi Vegunta, MD, offer comprehensive care at this state-of-the-art
facility. They provide eye exams and treat a wide range of childhood vision issues, including amblyopia (lazy eye) and ptosis (drooping eyelids). They also offer expert care for children and adults with strabismus (crossed eyes).
•
•
• Griffin Jardine, MD, examines a young patient with her mother at the new clinic.
PATIENT CARE
New Lenses for Migraine, Photophobia
Moran neuro-ophthalmologist and scientist Bradley J. Katz, MD, PhD, is the co-inventor of a new eyewear option for managing light sensitivity.
“Whether it’s you, a friend, or a family member, we all know someone who has sought out a dark room to try to deal with the symptoms of migraine,” said Katz. “I have seen these patients in my practice over the past 29 years, and as a researcher, I have worked to understand light sensitivity to develop therapies that can help improve their quality of life.”
Research has shown light-sensitive
cells in the eye are most activated by specific wavelengths of light at the bluegreen and red-orange ends of the visible spectrum. In contrast, green wavelengths in the middle are the most comfortable.
The new Avulux Migraine & Light Sensitivity Lenses advance existing FL-41 rose-colored lens technology by blocking higher percentages of problematic wavelengths without color distortion for wearers.
The eyeglasses are available online and through select retailers, including the Moran Eye Center, with or without a prescription.
HONORS & AWARDS
• Liliana Werner, MD, PhD, recognized as a foremost authority on intraocular lenses, has been selected for membership in the University of Utah’s elite H.A. and Edna Benning Medical Society as the recipient of one of 15 endowed chairs. Werner, co-director of the nonprofit Intermountain Ocular Research Center based at Moran, also received the Life Achievement Honor Award from the American Academy of Ophthalmology for her “longstanding commitment to advancing the profession and positively impacting patients’ eye health.”
• Gregory S. Hageman, PhD, received the University of Utah’s rank of distinguished professor. Hageman, renowned for his research into age-related macular degeneration, is the John A. Moran Presidential Professor of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences and executive director of Moran’s Sharon Eccles Steele Center for Translational Medicine. The honor is reserved for individuals whose achievements exemplify the highest goals of scholarship.
• Bryan W. Jones, PhD, received a highly competitive $300,000 Stein Innovation Award from Research to Prevent Blindness (RPB) to support his lab’s innovative research into retinal circuitry/connectomics and metabolomics in neural plasticity in retinal diseases.
• Rebecca Pfeiffer, PhD, received a Knights Templar Eye Foundation Career-Starter Research Grant. The $90,000 grant will support her research on the cellular mechanisms of pediatric retinitis pigmentosa, a rare genetic disease that can eventually cause blindness. Pfeiffer also received a four-year, $350,000 RPB Career Development Award, one of the organization’s leading awards to support outstanding vision scientists as they start and sustain independent research programs.
Bradley J. Katz, MD, PhD, holds a pair of eyeglasses with Avulux Migraine & Light Sensitivity Lenses.
RECOGNITION
Moran Docs Named to Power List
The Moran Eye Center is home to the world’s most influential physicians and researchers in the field of ophthalmology, according to the latest rankings published by The Ophthalmologist magazine.
The magazine named Iqbal Ike K. Ahmed, MD, FRCSC, director of Moran’s Alan S. Crandall Center for Glaucoma Innovation, No. 1 on its annual Power List of the 100 most influential people in ophthalmology. Ahmed is recognized as one of the world’s top surgeons for complex eye conditions and is renowned for his groundbreaking research in the surgical treatment of diseases, including glaucoma, and surgical complications.
ALSO HONORED ON THE LIST:
Gregory S. Hageman, PhD, director of Moran’s Sharon Eccles Steele Center for Translational Medicine.
Nick Mamalis, MD, co-director of the Moran-based Intermountain Ocular Research Center and director of Moran’s Ophthalmic Pathology Laboratory.
Randall J Olson, MD, Moran CEO and University of Utah Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences chair.
Werner, MD, PhD, co-director of the Intermountain Ocular Research Center.
182,600+
Liliana
RESEARCH
Eye Drops to Reverse Cataracts?
Cataract surgery to restore vision as we age is the world’s most common procedure, but a new analysis of research conducted at the Moran Eye Center supports further testing to determine if cataracts might someday be reversed with eye drops.
Moran Eye Center CEO and Distinguished Professor and Chair of the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences Randall J Olson, MD, is the corresponding author of the new analysis, published in the American Journal of Ophthalmology. Cataracts occur as abnormal proteins buildup, gradually clouding the eye’s lens. C-KAD drops aim to reverse early-stage cataracts by removing the build-up from the lens.
This eye drop therapy has the potential to help millions of patients challenged by cataracts worldwide. However, there is still much to learn about the length of the effect and at what stage of cataract formation we can expect any improvement.
—Randall J Olson, MD
HONORS & AWARDS
• Rachel G. Simpson, MD, Moran’s vice chair of education and residency program director, has been accepted into the American Academy of Ophthalmology’s (AAO) prestigious Leadership Development Program.
• Katherine Hu, MD, has been honored with the AAO’s 2024 Secretariat Award, which recognizes significant contributions to the Academy, including her advocacy engagement presentations to the Young Ophthalmologists program.
• Bradley J. Katz, MD, PhD, earned the AAO’s Senior Achievement Award for contributions to the academy, its scientific and educational programs, and the ophthalmology field.
• Silke Becker, PhD, has received an Early Career Development Award from the Intermountain Foundation at Primary Children’s Hospital. The $25,000 award will support her research into retinopathy of prematurity.
• Guoxin Ying, PhD, has been awarded a Seed Grant from the University of Utah Research Foundation. The $50,000 grant supports his research on a novel approach of gene editing for the treatment of retinal degeneration in type II Usher Syndrome.
• Iqbal Ike K. Ahmed, MD, FRCSC, director of the Alan S. Crandall Center for Glaucoma Innovation, and Jeff Pettey, MD, MBA, vicechair of clinical affairs, received Gold Medal awards from the Intraocular Implant Refractive Society of India at its 2024 meeting.
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CELEBRATING A
VIS ION ARY
Randall J Olson, MD, will retire after a storied 46-year career that made him the nation’s longest-serving ophthalmology department chair. His legacy: better cataract care, hope for blinding diseases with new treatments, and a world-class eye center built from the ground up.
John A. Moran Eye Center CEO and Distinguished Professor and Chair of Ophthalmology Randall J Olson, MD, has been many things throughout his remarkable career. A talented surgeon and curious scientist. A trusted advisor and educator. The unflinching optimist. The champion of innovation. A self-made man.
But it all started with falling in love.
Gifted in math and science, Olson thought about becoming a physicist before realizing his joy in working with, speaking with, and helping others. He decided on medical school and quickly chose his specialty.
“Day one, I fell in love,” said Olson, recalling the first day of his ophthalmology rotation. “It was the beauty of it…the fact that you can make such an impact on your patients. In ophthalmology, you’re the pediatrician, you’re the internist, you’re the surgeon, you’re the neurologist. I mean, really, everything is involved. So, it just sang to me. There was no question. I didn’t have a doubt that’s what I wanted to do, and it’s been a good choice—I’ve loved it ever since.”
Olson’s patients were the beneficiaries of his passion.
“Looking at life through broken eyes is not something I’ve enjoyed, but having a partner to guide me through it has been a gift,” said John Cumming, who met Olson as a teen faced with losing vision from an accident before Olson performed surgery.
“Dr. Olson has been a tether of optimism for me. Everything he says is thoughtful, empathetic, and responsible. Even when he has news I don’t want to deal with, it is always delivered with a warm, positive, enthusiastic, and can-do spirit.”
Olson began his career at the University of Utah with that same spirit. In 1979, at the age of 31, Olson cold-called the then-chair of surgery at the University of Utah after hearing its sole faculty ophthalmologist was leaving. The chair agreed to let Olson become a one-person Division of Ophthalmology but gave him no startup funding. Undeterred, Olson set about hiring equally enthusiastic clinicians and researchers, and he rallied the community to his most profound conviction: No one facing blindness should be without hope, understanding, and treatment.
“I just don’t ever remember Randy expressing a feeling
that we might not do well—and I don’t remember that feeling,” remarked Mano Swartz, MD, Olson’s first hire.
Today, Olson leads some 600 employees at an institution featuring more than 50 specialists, 11 satellite clinics, more than 20 research labs and centers, and the largest global outreach program of its kind. The Moran Eye Center is a world-class institution whose clinical care, academic, and research programs have ranked among the Top 10 in the nation.
Relying on the help of friends and donors, including the late John A. Moran, Olson opened the first Moran building in 1993 and later improved upon it with the construction of today’s center. Neither project used state or federal funds.
On the cusp of his 78th birthday, Olson has announced his retirement and says it’s time for new blood at the helm. He will remain in his position until a university committee selects a new department chair in 2025.
Reflecting on Olson’s journey and status as the nation’s longest-serving ophthalmology department chair and longest-serving University of Utah department chair, colleagues often refer to him as a visionary who wasn’t afraid to blaze new trails.
“I would say, foremost, Dr. Olson is visionary,” said neuro-ophthalmologist Kathleen B. Digre, MD. “We all wanted an eye center, a place to call home where we could grow our specialties, but it was Dr. Olson’s vision that was critical.”
While fitting the label, Olson shies away from it to point to something bigger he believes will endure long after his departure.
“It’s not me as the visionary. It’s me as the facilitator getting really good people who have their own visions and concepts so that we have people who are constantly thinking of new and better ways to approach things,” explained Olson. “If it’s all predicated on one individual, that can all fall apart, so it’s got to be something much bigger than that, predicated on an overall culture of excellence. Instead of saying ‘No,’ saying ‘Why not?’ Instead of saying, ‘That’s too hard,’ saying, ‘How can we tackle it?’ ‘What can we do?’ ‘What could we be?’”
I would say, foremost, Dr. Olson is visionary. We all wanted an eye center, a place to call home where we could grow our specialties, but it was Dr. Olson’s vision that was critical.
—Kathleen B. Digre, MD
IMPROVING CATARACT CARE
One of Olson’s first questions as a young surgeon was how he might improve cataract surgery, the most performed procedure worldwide.
Every person will lose vision as they age thanks to cataracts, a gradual clouding of the eye’s lens. Cataracts upend a person’s golden years, taking away the ability to safely perform everyday tasks such as cooking or driving. Like any vision impairment, cataracts can also prompt depression.
Olson helped his patients by removing the clouded lens but watched them struggle afterward. They spent days in the hospital and were advised not to lift anything heavier than a loaf of bread or lean forward beyond their waist for three months. Patients eventually received a pair of thick-lens glasses akin to looking through binoculars.
The invention of a flexible artificial lens made of silicon in the 1970s was a revolutionary innovation, and Olson immediately
Dr. Olson is a testament to the truth that leadership makes a big difference. … He has an eye for spotting and recruiting talent.
—Brian F. Hofland, PhD, president of Research to Prevent Blindness
Randall J Olson, MD, is a worldrenowned expert in cataract and intraocular lens surgery who has received top recognition in his field and at the University of Utah. Among his awards and honors:
• American Academy of Ophthalmology Kelman Award & Lifetime Achievement Award
• American Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgery
Binkhorst Medal
• International Intra-Ocular Implant Club Jan Worst Medal
• University of Utah Rosenblatt Prize for Excellence
• University of Utah Rank of Distinguished Professor
• Governor’s Medal for Science & Technology
Academic/Research
• The Ophthalmologist Power List
realized its significance in improving care. But he also noted a potential danger—no one was funding independent research to improve lens design and surgical practices to keep patients safe.
So, Olson created the world-renowned Intermountain Ocular Research Center (IORC) with the late David J. Apple, MD, to vet the best lens materials and designs. Olson’s clinical research developed small-incision cataract surgery techniques to reduce healing time and infection rates. Under Olson, Moran also became one of the first academic medical centers to begin teaching phacoemulsification, the modern method of cataract removal.
IORC Co-Director Nick Mamalis, MD, first met Olson in medical school, starting a 40-year relationship he has treasured.
“Dr. Olson sees into the future,” said Mamalis. “He’s one of those people who can see where there’s a need, and then he can actually go ahead and take the steps it takes to fill it.”
As Olson hired physicians to provide care in all ophthalmic subspecialties, he bolstered the research program with talented scientists with bold aspirations. Among them was Robert Marc, whose lab in 2011 built the world’s first connectome showing the circuitry of the retina. The task seemed impossible at first since so much computer storage would be needed to hold the data generated by the project. With support from Olson, Marc started anyway with faith that technology would catch up—and it did.
NEW HOPE THROUGH RESEARCH
While treating his patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD), Olson saw another opportunity to bring hope to people facing blindness. Although AMD, which impacts central vision, is a leading cause of blindness for adults 55 and older, most in the field thought it was untreatable and uncurable. Olson, tired of telling his patients they would eventually go blind, thought there had to be a better way.
He recruited Gregory S. Hageman, PhD, to lead Moran’s Center for Translational Medicine, now the Sharon Eccles Steele Center for Translational Medicine (SCTM). The two were kindred spirits: Like Olson, Hageman did not accept the status quo. Hageman had started to unravel the genetics of AMD in hopes
In low-resource countries, people blinded by cataracts used these walking sticks before Moran's Global Outreach Division provided sight-restoring surgery.
of finding a cure. Olson convinced him that, together, they could do something that hadn’t been done before: develop a drug for a major disease in academia rather than big pharma.
The SCTM represented a significant departure from the academic funding model of “publish or perish,” focusing instead on filing patents and quickly bringing therapeutics to patients. It created unique collaborations between philanthropists, industry,
and an interdisciplinary scientific team. The resulting research has completely changed the field’s understanding of AMD.
The first therapy developed by the SCTM, a gene therapy for AMD, is now in human testing.
“The man’s curiosity, passion, and enthusiasm are quite simply infectious,” said Hageman of Olson. “He strives for excellence, but he does so in a very interesting way. He helps you to get on
A view from an upper floor of the current Moran Eye Center building shortly after its opening in 2006.
a path, provides unwavering support, and lets you run. He is bold, committed, respectful, unafraid to tackle new challenges, kind-hearted—a true champion of innovation.”
The latest centers established at Moran, the Utah Retinal Reading Center (2020) and the Alan S. Crandall Center for Glaucoma Innovation (2022), continue the search for cures and new therapies.
EDUCATING FUTURE GENERATIONS
Olson was equally committed to hiring leaders who could elevate a residency program that trains future ophthalmologists and a fellowship program that provides ophthalmologists with advanced subspecialty training.
Under Olson, the program flourished with directors who sought innovation. The program was among the first in the nation to establish a required intern year at Moran in ophthalmology and
Being in Dr. Olson’s presence, you know he’s kind and he’s compassionate and he cares. The team that he has built around him is just as wonderful and inspiring as he is. So, he really has created a family at Moran, which is so wonderful to see. Dr. Olson, we wish you all the best in your retirement. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for all you have done.
—Marisa Moran, daughter of the late John A. Moran
no one was a better teacher on the topic than the late Alan S. Crandall, MD, a talented glaucoma specialist who was one of Olson’s first hires and founder of the outreach division.
Today, the division is the largest outreach program of its kind at any academic medical center. It boasts dedicated space in the center and a cadre of dedicated physicians, medical personnel, and staff who regularly volunteer their time to increase access to care at home and abroad. In Utah and on the Navajo Nation, teams provide charitable care; overseas, the division teaches and trains new physicians and nurses in low-resource countries. The work is solely funded by generous donations from the community.
The concept, however, was novel when Crandall came to Olson seeking to allow physicians and medical personnel time to travel for the greater good. Olson didn’t hesitate.
Olson allowed his physicians to do what they were best at, explained Crandall in a 2019 interview.
“He’s the ultimate chairman because he does what’s best for ophthalmology, for Moran,” said Crandall.
THE ROAD AHEAD
Olson believes he has set up the center to go fearlessly into the future.
The past few years have been a time of expansion, with additions to faculty and exciting work to embrace new technologies such as teleophthalmology, apps, and artificial intelligence.
internal medicine, allowing residents to understand the hospital system from the start and graduate exceptionally prepared.
In more recent years, the residency program has implemented a progressive flipped classroom model, which focuses on active learning outside of the classroom.
Olson has been listed as the author of more than 300 published research papers during his career, and on many of them, he is joined by the trainees he mentored. One of them was Moran Vice-Chair of Clinical Affairs Jeff Pettey, MD, MBA, who was still determining what he wanted to do after finishing his residency in 2010.
“Dr. Olson asked about my passions, and he listened,” said Pettey. “Based on what I had expressed about numerous goals adjacent to ophthalmology, he offered to create a fellowship that would allow me to pursue leadership and global outreach while specializing in cataract surgery. He essentially outlined what my dream career could be, and his support gave me the confidence to believe I could do it.”
Under Olson, the education program has provided residents with unique advantages. At Moran, they can perform far more surgeries than the national average and customize their learning experience, including engaging in charity care with Moran’s Global Outreach Division.
Olson believed part of training successful ophthalmologists was also teaching them about compassionate care. Perhaps
“I see us, with our strength in bioengineering, really being leaders in looking at new technology approaches,” Olson has said. “We want to be a leader, and we should embrace that and not be afraid of it.”
Moran Executive Director Wayne Imbrescia, who helped Olson build both centers and has worked with him for more than 30 years, said Olson has earned a special place in history at the University and in his field.
“It’s a pretty amazing adventure when you think about him as the one and only chairman in the history of the Department of Ophthalmology and all that’s been done on his watch,” said Imbrescia. “It’s impressive.”
Wish Dr. Olson Well
Scan to leave a farewell message.
FROM VISION TO REALITY
Randall J Olson completes his undergraduate degree in medical biology from the University of Utah. In 1973, Olson earns his medical degree from the U. He then completes an intern year at Mary Imogene Bassett Hospital in Cooperstown, New York.
After finishing his residency at the University of California Los Angeles Jules Stein Eye Institute, Olson completes a cornea fellowship at the University of Florida in Gainesville and at the International Eye Foundation in Honduras.
Olson completes a cornea fellowship at Louisiana State University Eye Center in New Orleans in 1978 and then joins its faculty directing corneal services.
Under Olson’s leadership, Moran establishes its Patient Support Program for people experiencing vision loss.
He also supports Alan S. Crandall, MD, in creating Moran’s earliest donor-funded outreach program, with the goal of eliminating preventable blindness worldwide.
1970-1978 1991-1992 1979-1983 1993
Olson returns to Utah as the sole physician in the University of Utah’s Division of Ophthalmology in the Department of Surgery.
Olson earns the division departmental status in 1982. He also co-founds the Center for Intraocular Lens Research, now the Intermountain Ocular Research Center, to study the new technology of intraocular lenses, which replace the eye’s natural lens during cataract surgery.
A year later, Olson is named chair of the Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences.
Recognizing the growing demand for eye care in the Salt Lake Valley, Olson opens the Moran Eye Center’s first community clinic.
1998-2002
Olson partners with philanthropist John Moran (pictured above at left) to build the original 85,000-square-foot John A. Moran Eye Center. The building opens thanks to additional gifts from patients, friends, donors, and organizations. The center houses operating rooms, triage, a pharmacy, and the Utah Lions Eye Bank.
He expands patient services with a new retina clinic and refractive surgery laser suite as well as an optical shop at the University of Utah campus.
Frustrated with telling age-related macular degeneration (AMD) patients there was nothing he could do to prevent them from going blind, Olson recruits Gregory S. Hageman, PhD (pictured in photo at right), to head Moran’s new Center for Translational Medicine. It is later renamed the Sharon Eccles Steele Center for Translational Medicine (SCTM) in honor of Steele's generous pledge of support. The Center is dedicated to finding the cause and cure for AMD.
Olson establishes the Alan S. Crandall Center for Glaucoma Innovation, named in honor of the late Crandall, and recruits Iqbal Ike K. Ahmed, MD, FRCSC, to head it. (Both pictured at right in 2017.)
2009-2011 2022
2006 2025
After raising $54 million, including additional funding from John A. Moran, Olson leads design and construction of a new 210,000-squarefoot eye center. The building consists of a research tower and clinical care pavilion joined by glass bridges that literally and symbolically connect research laboratories to patient care.
In 2011, researcher Robert Marc, PhD, dreams of using electron microscopy to map the circuitry of the retina. At the time, technology did not exist to store the vast amount of data required. Trusting Marc, who told him the technology would catch up with the project, Olson funds the research, and Marc publishes the first map of the retina, known as a connectome.
Human testing in an FDAapproved clinical trial begins for a gene therapy the SCTM has developed for AMD.
As Olson announces his retirement, ophthalmology at the University of Utah has grown into a globally recognized center that employs more than 600 people. Clinical and academic programs feature more than 50 specialists, 11 clinics, more than 20 research labs and centers, and the largest outreach program of its kind.
Olson’s work in building one of the premier eye hospitals in the country is recognized by U.S. News & World Report when it ranks Moran No. 10 nationwide in its annual survey. Doximity.com ranks Moran’s residency program No. 6 nationwide and No. 1 in the West.
p.20 GLAUCOMA Q&A p.22 PROGRAM EXPANSION p.24 SCTM UPDATE
Focus RESEARCH
GLAUCOMA Q&A
Catching up with Dr. Ike Ahmed
Surgeon-scientist
Iqbal Ike K. Ahmed, MD, FRCSC, directs Moran’s
Alan S. Crandall Center for Glaucoma Innovation and is a globally recognized leader in the field.
TELL US ABOUT THE CRANDALL CENTER’S NEW SCIENTIFIC ADVISORY BOARD.
We’ve handpicked top glaucoma experts who will serve as a guiding light for the center. This is a diverse group interested in everything from surgical devices and artificial intelligence (AI) to gene therapy and neuroprotection.
The board is chaired by W. Daniel Stamer, PhD, from Duke University, who is studying the conventional fluid outflow pathway of the eye to develop next-generation treatments. Additional board members are:
• Jonathan Crowston, MD, PhD, of the University of Sydney, studying how aging impacts the risk for developing glaucoma;
• C. Ross Ethier, PhD, of the Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University, an expert in ocular biomechanics research who is one of the world’s most-cited researchers in his field;
• Sir Peng T. Khaw, MD, PhD, from the University College of London, studying new surgical and medical techniques for glaucoma, particularly pediatric glaucoma;
• Ingeborg Stalmans, MD, PhD, of the Catholic University of Leuven in Belgium, who is working to use imaging and artificial intelligence to detect and monitor glaucoma; and
• Donald J. Zack, MD, PhD, of Johns Hopkins University, investigating how to save retinal ganglion cells that die in patients with glaucoma.
WHAT ARE YOU MOST EXCITED ABOUT RIGHT NOW?
For me, it’s the work we are doing evaluating potential new surgical therapeutics and devices
that we hope can increase surgical precision and provide better outcomes for patients.
A big part of that has been evaluating several new types of lasers designed for use during glaucoma surgery. This past year we completed the first-in-human clinical study of the Myra Vision Calibreye System, which allows surgeons to implant a drainage device in the eye and later adjust it without the need for additional surgery. We are about to begin a pre-clinical study with ViaLase to test the first femtosecond laser, image-guided, high-precision trabeculotomy (FLigHT) for open-angle glaucoma. We also will be involved in a drainage device material evaluation for W.L. Gore & Associates.
Ian F. Pitha, MD, PhD, who has just joined the Crandall Center, has an impressive history of evaluating new surgical devices and will take us into exciting new areas as well.
YOU WERE RECENTLY NAMED THE NO. 1 MOST INFLUENTIAL PERSON IN THE FIELD OF OPHTHALMOLOGY WORLDWIDE. HOW CAN YOU USE THAT LEVEL OF INFLUENCE? It’s such an honor to be considered in a group of influential ophthalmologists and clinician scientists. To be No. 1 is a bit weird for me because I’m average, I like to be amongst everyone and feel like we are all the same.
Ultimately, I hope this will shine a light on those who have been an important part of my professional journey, whether it’s my scientific collaborators, clinicians on our teams, fellows and residents I have been fortunate to train and mentor, or administrative staff who are so important.
For the Crandall Center, I hope this brings a light to what we’re doing here.
HOW DO YOU ENVISION GLAUCOMA CARE 10 YEARS FROM NOW?
It’s nice to see how far we’ve come in the last decade as we move forward with technology. We’re using micro instruments, new forms of drug delivery, and lasers to provide better control of glaucoma without burdening patients with prescription eye drops that can be difficult to use and impact quality of life.
In the next 10 years I see the field intervening in a way that doesn’t treat this disease with a Band-Aid. We must get to the root source of the problem, which is at the cellular level of the optic nerve, and protect or regenerate these cells that die in glaucoma.
THERE’S A LOT OF BUZZ RIGHT NOW ABOUT AI. HOW DO YOU SEE THIS BEING USED IN GLAUCOMA CARE?
Glaucoma is a very data-heavy specialty since we rely on thousands of data points measured over a patient’s life to help decide treatment. Being able to synthesize all that data to better select the right therapy for the right patient is where AI can help us.
To do that, we need people who can develop high-quality data sets and use them ethically and effectively. At Moran, clinician scientist Brian Stagg, MD, is using informatics to guide care, and we’re very excited to have added ophthalmic AI expert Adam Dubis, PhD, who has international expertise in building and commercializing ophthalmic data sets.
Learn More
Scan to read more about the Alan S. Crandall Center for Glaucoma Innovation.
New Recruits Are Engineering the Future of Vision Research
Moran has added research faculty members who use advanced methods to explore promising areas of investigation.
Technological advances are giving vision scientists unprecedented opportunities for discovery: think artificial intelligence (AI), 3-D diagnostic imaging, and high-tech medical devices implanted into the eye, to name a few.
Moran Eye Center Vice Chair for Clinical and Basic Science Research Paul S. Bernstein, MD, PhD—who recently collaborated on a retinal eye surgery robot prototype—explains that it is an exciting time for both the field and Moran.
“Moran is known for its unique research resources and has achieved many ‘firsts’ in the field, particularly in retinal research,” said Bernstein. “Now, we are expanding and making substantial investments in research areas that will take us into the future. That means investing in the latest tools for our scientists and recruiting experts in developing areas that will advance new initiatives.”
Six scientists joined Moran in 2024, and their skills strengthen the program in key areas, including AI, disease modeling, surgical devices, and neuroscience.
Neuroscientist Zachary W. Davis, PhD, joined Moran from the Salk Institute for Biological Studies
and investigates how the brain processes information collected by the eye to generate vision. This understanding is fundamental to developing new therapies for neurogenerative diseases, such as glaucoma or Alzheimer’s disease. His lab is focused on developing new models of visual function in the brain and creating new technologies to better measure and manipulate neural activity.
Innovator, educator, and entrepreneur Adam M. Dubis, PhD, joined Moran from University College of London and is a top name at the intersection of AI and ophthalmology. Dubis has commercialized several analytical tools while focusing on developing safer, more robust AI models to support improved ophthalmic care and to better understand disease progression. In his laboratory, Dubis is applying deep learning techniques to retinal image and data analysis. He consults worldwide on data use strategy, the evolution of digital policy, and health technology regulations.
Clinician-scientist Ian F. Pitha, MD, PhD, is a glaucoma specialist trained in pharmacology, models of glaucoma, and biomaterials. He joined Moran from Johns Hopkins University and studies the
From left, Zachary W. Davis, PhD; Adam M. Dubis, PhD; and Ian F. Pitha, MD, PhD.
role of scleral cells, or the white of the eye, in the disease. Pitha is working to develop extended-release medications for glaucoma patients, who must often use multiple prescription eye drops several times a day. He also is studying new materials for microscopic implants used to regulate pressure inside the eye.
Suva Roy, PhD, is a retinal researcher who joined Moran from Duke University. He studies how different types of cells in the retina act in concert within specialized circuits to support vision. Roy is developing new electrophysiological, imaging, viral, and computational approaches to study these cells in normal and diseased conditions induced by glaucoma. He is also leading a National Institutes of Health-funded study to establish a new model for retinal research. His work aims to identify promising targets for new drug and gene therapies.
Two internal University of Utah scientists joined the Moran faculty from other departments, strengthening collaborations and existing lines of research.
Weiquan “Wendy” Zhu, PhD, studies the mechanisms involved in abnormal new blood vessel growth and instability in diseases driven by aging and inflammation. In the eye, this includes age-related macular degeneration; elsewhere in the body, it includes diseases such as multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer’s. Zhu has identified proteins that contribute to inflammation in the brain and spinal cord and to diabetic retinopathy, which occurs when blood vessels at the back of the eye leak fluid. Her work could also identify promising targets for new drug and gene therapies.
Caroline M. Garrett, DVM, has over a decade of
experience supporting translational preclinical research investigations. She collaborates with several researchers at Moran to support studies focused on understanding the anatomical organization and function of neural circuits in the visual cortex. Her expertise includes advanced imaging, neuroanatomical mapping, neurophysiology, and models of ocular disease, including glaucoma. At the University of Utah, Garrett also serves as Senior Clinical Veterinarian in the Office of Comparative Medicine.
Moran
is known for its unique research resources and has achieved many ‘firsts’ in the field, particularly in retinal research. Now, we are expanding and making substantial investments in research areas that will take us into the future.
—Paul
S. Bernstein, MD, PhD, vice chair for clinical and basic science research
From left, Suva Roy, PhD; Weiquan “Wendy” Zhu, PhD; and Caroline M. Garrett, DVM.
Lessons Learned, from AMD to Glaucoma
With a new gene therapy for age-related macular degeneration in clinical trials, Gregory S. Hageman, PhD, is ready to take on glaucoma.
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and glaucoma are slowly robbing a combined 23 million Americans of their sight. There is no cure for either disease, and doctors have limited treatment options with no guarantee of saving vision.
Perhaps no one is better positioned to change this paradigm than Gregory S. Hageman, PhD. He accepted the position of executive director of the Sharon Eccles Steele Center for Translational Medicine (SCTM) at the Moran Eye Center more than a decade ago because he wanted to make a difference in the lives of millions of patients.
To do so, he collaborated with the Utah Lions Eye Bank to build the largest repository of donor eye tissue in the world.
Hageman and his team examine the DNA from the donor tissue samples and pair them with the donor’s genotype and medical records to understand the biology of each disease and advance research.
“We have built an incredible resource that does not exist anywhere else,” said Hageman.
He attributes part of his success to a key lesson: “Simply put, if one is going to make progress on human disease and the notion of precision medicine, one needs to study human tissue.”
A LEAP FORWARD
Hageman and his team have used the donor eye tissue to conduct a multi-year, massive gene expression study to understand the triggers for AMD, a leading cause of blindness for adults 55 and older. They have identified genes on chromosomes 1 and 10 that play an integral role in 90% of all AMD cases.
The team has made the greatest progress in cases associated with a mutation on chromosome 1, the most prevalent form of AMD. This mutation causes the immune system to attack the macula, the specialized, light-sensitive tissue in the back of
the eye. With the macula compromised, patients have difficulty focusing on objects directly in front of them, limiting their ability to read, drive, and recognize faces.
This genetic understanding allowed the SCTM to develop its first gene therapy, which reintroduces a protective form of the mutated protein. An early human study, or Phase 1 clinical trial, has been completed in a small number of patients. Hageman anticipates that the therapy will move into a larger study, or Phase 2 clinical trial, later this year to evaluate the efficacy of the treatment with more participants.
BUILDING ON EXPERIENCE
Hageman explains that, unlike AMD, glaucoma has been loosely tied to more than 80 genes, which complicates developing a therapy based solely on genetics. But lessons learned in his work with AMD as director of the Alan S. Crandall Center for Glaucoma Innovation’s Translational Research Initiative can inform the search for new glaucoma therapies.
There is hope. It is going to take some time, but we know what we need to do, have the resources to expedite discovery, and the talent to make new therapies possible.
—Gregory S. Hageman, PhD, on the SCTM’s new glaucoma research
Glaucoma is a disease of the optic nerve and retina. The first line of treatment is prescription eyedrops that are ineffective for 40% of patients. Similar to his research approach with AMD, Hageman’s team is again collaborating with a major American pharmaceutical company. In
BY RAUL ARIAS
this case, the team is examining the biological pathways, or molecular changes in cells, that contribute to the progression of glaucoma. The company has so far sequenced more than 7,000 proteins from more than 3,000 genotyped healthy and diseased donor eyes.
The end goal of this project is wider than developing new drugs. Hageman believes there is a chance there may be drugs already approved by the FDA for other illnesses that could be used off-label to mitigate the progression of glaucoma.
“You never know what pathway might come to
our attention,” he said. “You never know where an existing drug might already be available that could benefit a patient with glaucoma.”
Hageman believes that new therapies are within reach with the resources available at the University of Utah, the SCTM’s excellent team of researchers and collaborators, and continued support from philanthropists.
“There is hope,” said Hageman. “It is going to take some time, but we know what we need to do, have the resources to expedite discovery, and the talent to make new therapies possible.”
Focus PATIENT CARE
CATARACT SURGERY
Intraocular Lens Innovations, Then and Now
Celebrating 75 years of intraocular lens advancements that have improved care for millions of cataract patients.
On November 29, 1949, Sir Harold Ridley performed a surgical procedure to replace a clouded lens in the eye of a London cataract patient with the world’s first artificial one. His invention, dubbed the intraocular lens (IOL), rocked the ophthalmic world and started a revolution in lens design.
Today, the Moran Eye Center’s IOL experts are building upon Ridley’s legacy by advancing
lens technology to achieve results he could not have imagined.
“Now, replacing a cloudy lens by implanting one of the many sophisticated IOLs available is a quick, life-changing procedure,” said Nick Mamalis, MD, co-director of the Intermountain Ocular Research Center (IORC) based at Moran. “IOLs not only restore sight but can also significantly improve it for some patients.”
THANK YOU, SIR HAROLD
Cataracts, a clouding of the eye’s natural lens, can lead to blurry vision or, in extreme cases, blindness. Generally caused by natural aging, cataracts may also result from exposure to ultraviolet light, injury, or a congenital condition.
Before Ridley’s pioneering work, surgeons treated cataracts by removing a patient’s natural lens. After a lengthy recovery, patients wore thick lenses, often called “Coke bottle glasses,” that helped with reading but distorted vision when walking.
Ridley, a British surgeon who cared for World War II pilots with eye injuries, noticed that pieces of plastic from shattered Spitfire fighter plane windows did not cause inflammation when they entered soldiers’ eyes. He began to explore the possibility of using the material to create an artificial lens that could be implanted into the eye and replace glasses.
Though Ridley faced criticism from peers who objected to placing anything in the eye, he continued to promote and refine his invention. Only later in life would he receive the recognition he deserved.
Most modern IOLs are made of flexible silicone or acrylic as researchers continue to test and refine the technology. Mamalis and co-director Liliana Werner, MD, PhD, lead the field.
“We all in the ophthalmic community are grateful to Sir Harold Ridley,” said Werner. “At Moran, we are finishing what he started.”
Founded under the visionary leadership of Moran CEO Randall J Olson, MD, a renowned cataract surgery expert, the nonprofit research center examines the design, materials, and complications of lenses under development for companies and physicians worldwide. In recent years, the center has studied IOLs and related devices that allow surgeons to adjust the magnification power of a lens once it has been placed in the eye without additional surgery.
Capitalizing on better-understood properties of
SNAPSHOT: MORAN CATARACT SERVICE FISCAL YEAR 2024
4,492
CATARACT SURGERIES/LENS EXTRACTIONS
optics and physics, companies continue working to develop the perfect IOL, capable of replicating the young eye’s ability to change focus. Recently, the IORC evaluated at least four projects related to such accommodative lenses under development.
Moran offers the widest selection of IOLs in the Mountain West, with more than 5,000 individual lenses made by four global manufacturers.
“In the U.S., there are over 3 million cataract surgeries with IOL implantation every year,” Werner said. “One day, most of us will need to choose one.”
Time for Cataract Surgery?
Choosing the type of intraocular lens (IOL) used during your cataract surgery is a big decision. Start by speaking with your ophthalmologist about what’s best for your vision needs, lifestyle, and budget. Each of your eyes will be precisely measured and analyzed to help determine your options. Here is what is available now:
Monofocal lenses provide the best possible vision, either near or far. Most patients choose to have their monofocals set for distance vision and use reading glasses. Others may choose to have their focus set for reading and must utilize prescription glasses for distance. Some choose “monovision”—one eye set for distance vision and one for close-up.
Multifocal IOLs function similar to bifocal or trifocal eyeglasses, allowing you to see objects near and far.
EDOF (extended depth of field) IOLs work by creating a single elongated focal point to enhance “range of vision” or “depth of focus.” Patients may still need low-powered reading glasses.
Toric lenses function like monofocal lenses and can be set for distance, intermediate or near. They are specifically designed to reduce corneal astigmatism.
Light adjustable lenses offer a unique advantage over traditional lenses. Your surgeon will use a special UV light device to make precise adjustments to the power of a lens after it has been implanted in your eye.
Opening New Worlds
Moran’s Patient Support Program offers unique arts experiences for those with low vision.
Wearing a pale blue glove, Mary House gently touched a 14th-century sculpture of the Hindu god Ganesha.
“I can’t see it, but I can feel it,” she said, standing in the dim light of the second floor of the Utah Museum of Fine Arts (UMFA).
House and other Utahns with vision loss visited the museum for a springtime touch tour organized by the Moran Eye Center’s Patient Support Program.
At 85, House has age-related macular degeneration, a leading cause of blindness for Americans
55 and older. In her right eye, she’s legally blind; in her left, vision loss has been slower. For people like House with low vision, experiencing the arts can feel increasingly difficult, whether in museums or theaters.
That can change when people simply ask for support, according to program director Lisa Ord, PhD, LCSW.
“Our team steps in after medical doctors have done as much as they can, but someone is still losing vision or has gone blind,” said Ord. “We can help people learn to live life so they can
• • • Participants at the UMFA “Touch Tour” experience a bronze statue from the 1700s.
PATIENT SUPPORT
function independently, do the things they want, and enjoy life. There’s so much more to pick up through other senses.”
At UMFA, guides challenged the group to experience art using their gloved hands as tools. What was the sculpture made of? How did it feel different in one place than another? What might the details signify about who or what the art represented? Then, they deepened the visitors’ understanding of objects, such as a marble sarcophagus from the Roman Empire, by giving them more context and detail about what they couldn’t see.
Walter Draper, 81, who lost his vision last year from giant cell arteritis, said the museum experience was different than he expected.
“I was hesitant to come, but my wife encouraged me,” he said. “I thought it was silly that someone who can’t see should come to an art exhibit.”
In the end, having the art explained while interacting with other people with visual impairments was “great,” he said.
“It opens new worlds for him,” said his wife, Kathy. “It’s nice to see other people have gone through this and are succeeding.”
OPERATIC EXPERIENCE
The Patient Support Program’s annual partnership with Utah Opera offers another one-of-a-kind art sensory experience through its Blind and Visually Impaired Night.
In 2024, Utah Opera treated Moran patients with low vision and their human and guide dog companions to a full-dress rehearsal of Massenet’s lavish Thaïs, orchestrated especially for them.
The evening included a lecture by Opera Education Manager Kevin Nakatani, who vividly described the story, staging, composer, costuming, and sets and invited guests to touch a selection of props and costume fabric samples. He also
SNAPSHOT: PATIENT SUPPORT PROGRAM FISCAL YEAR 2024
2,080
PATIENT VISITS
gave audience members a choice of braille or large-print supertitle scripts or headphones for descriptive audio.
Moran patient Liam Gallop, 87, was part of that audience. Gallop began to lose his vision to glaucoma several years ago. He quickly joined Moran’s patient support group.
“I enjoyed the camaraderie and found it informative and rewarding,” said Gallop. “I’ve been to several of the opera rehearsals over the years. I could feel the somber atmosphere as the monks sang the opening scene in this one. It was extraordinary.”
The show also provided a training opportunity for guide dogs.
“It’s great to see how much people enjoy these hands-on experiences,” Ord said. “This year, thanks to the guide dogs, we also had the pleasure of spying the occasional wagging tail in the aisle.”
• • •
Utah Opera’s most recent Blind and Visually Impaired Night included a full-dress rehearsal of Massenet’s Thaïs
Learn More
Scan to make an appointment or learn more about the Patient Support Program, including its professionally moderated support groups and vision rehabilitation services.
p.34 LOCAL CLINICS
p.35 OUTREACH SNAPSHOT
Focus OUTREACH
LOCAL CLINICS
Caring for Our Community: Operation Sight Program
Surgeons, medical personnel, and staff donate their time with the Moran Eye Center’s Global Outreach Division throughout the year to provide sight-restoring cataract surgery to Utahns who could not otherwise afford it.
Kaufoou, a 59-year-old with disabilities and without income who relies heavily on her family, received one of 114 cataract surgeries performed through the program in Fiscal Year 2024.
Her sister, Losaline, turned to Moran when Kaufoou needed help. She held her sister’s hand as she underwent the surgery.
“Today, Moran made Kaufoou’s quality of life so much better,” said Losaline. “We both love roses
and now she can see and help in our garden. She also loves to help around the house and go to church. Now, she can make the most of all her favorite things. We are so happy and grateful!”
Created in 2012, the Operation Sight Program is funded solely by generous donors and serves as a model for the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery Foundation Operation Sight network. It is one of several Moran outreach programs providing local care where it is needed most.
“Increasing access to eye care to strengthen our local communities is an important part of our mission,” said Division Medical Director Craig J. Chaya, MD.
• • •
1. Brian C. Stagg, MD, right, checks with a patient and her sister after cataract surgery.
2. Nick Mamalis, MD, right, performs cataract surgery.
3. Volunteer Carmen Little removes a patient’s eye patch after his surgery.
4. Jeff Pettey, MD, MBA, examines a patient before her surgery.
5. Volunteers, from left, Chris Fairclough, Lindsey Fairclough Little, and Carmen Little.
6. Lydia Sauer, MD, talks with a patient post-surgery.
1,350 COMPREHENSIVE EYE EXAMS FOR
532 ADULT AND PEDIATRIC GLASSES
EYE SURGERIES
p.38 RESIDENCY RESEARCH
p.40 FELLOWS
p.41 RESIDENTS
Focus EDUCATION
Supporting Student Scientists
ARCS scholarship program celebrates 15 years of advancing innovative research at Moran.
The chance to investigate a little-known part of the eye that may someday save sight for many worldwide.
That’s what a scholarship from the Achievement Rewards for College Scientists (ARCS) Foundation of Utah meant to Moran Eye Center clinician-scientist Eileen Hwang, MD, PhD, during her residency starting in 2014.
RESIDENCY RESEARCH • •
“Having that financial boost allows you to get started and go on and get other funding to pursue things that interest you and are not necessarily
based on what someone else’s lab is already funded to do,” she said. “It’s an amazing gift that lets you go in a unique direction.”
The ARCS Foundation of Utah in 2024 marked 15 years of enhancing America’s national and local capacity for research and innovation in science and technology.
At the University of Utah, the group provides scholarships to students in two departments: the Moran Eye Center and the College of Engineering. ARCS awards $15,000 annually to incoming
Eileen Hwang, MD, PhD, in her laboratory at the Moran Eye Center.
Moran residents to pursue research, hoping they will choose careers that continue their scientific investigations. Moran matches the award for the following two years of the scholar’s residency, providing a total of $45,000.
For Hwang, the ARCS award allowed her to investigate the vitreous, the transparent gel that fills the eyeball and changes as we age. While changes in the vitreous can cause potentially blinding retinal detachments, little is known about it compared with other parts of our eyes. Since it is 99.8% water, many methods scientists use to study other parts of the eye don’t work well on the vitreous.
Hwang’s interest in the vitreous started as a student at the Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Jersey, where she worked with a lab investigating inherited diseases caused by collagen mutations. Type II collagen is critical to providing structure in the vitreous, and Hwang wondered how changes in the vitreous as people age might cause retinal detachments and other visual conditions, like floaters.
After her residency at Moran, Hwang completed a retina fellowship at the Medical College of Wisconsin, where she developed the clinical skills to repair retinal detachments while continuing her research on how to prevent them.
Now back at Moran, Hwang is collaborating with Brittany Coats, PhD, with the University of Utah Department of Mechanical Engineering, to develop imaging and biochemistry techniques for analyzing vitreous structure.
“We are the first ones to really tackle this challenge by coming up with a way to accurately image the structure of the vitreous using a confocal microscope,” said Hwang. “We found that in some areas of the eye, there is higher density of the vitreous and lower density of the vitreous, so we can explore what is changing with age and why.”
NEW ARCS SCHOLARS
Incoming Moran Eye Center residents Shima Dehghani, MD, and Jenna Jensen, MD, have been awarded ARCS research scholarships for 2025-2026. Dehghani earned her medical degree with high distinction from Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences in Iran. She completed her ophthalmology residency at Tehran University of Medical Sciences, graduating with honors.
She then completed a postdoctoral research fellowship at Schepens Eye Research Institute, affiliated with Harvard University and Massachusetts Eye and Ear, focusing on ocular immunology, corneal neovascularization, and transplant immunity. Dehghani also completed a uveitis fellowship at Bascom Palmer Eye Institute.
As a resident at Moran, she plans to expand her research and explore systematic approaches to optimizing high-quality ophthalmic care.
Without the ARCS Scholarship, residents have to put their research on hold. We understand that hope in medicine lies in future innovation, in the passion of young researchers.
— Randall J Olson, MD, Moran Eye Center CEO
• • • New ARCS scholars Shima Dehghani, MD, left, and Jenna Jensen, MD.
Jensen earned her medical degree and a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Utah. Her clinical research has included exploring patterns of X-linked retinitis pigmentosa, a group of rare eye diseases affecting the retina, and the prevalence of astigmatism in children in the Navajo Nation.
Jensen has also focused on work that empowers women in the ophthalmology field, including writing a book chapter with Moran female physicians about eye conditions found in older women.
As a resident at Moran, she plans to continue her work exploring the relationships between genetics and ocular disease and unrecognized or undertreated eye disease among women.
FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM 2024-25
RESEARCH FELLOWS 2024-25
Roya Garakani, MD Glaucoma
Sean Collon, MD Retina
Belinda Ikpoh, MD Global Ophthalmology
Paul Micevych, MD Retina
Paul Israelsen, MD Global Ophthalmology
Elizabeth “Libby” Fairless, MD Medical Retina
Shwetha Mudalegundi, MD Ocular Pathology
Daniel Savage, MD Cornea
Michael Jensen, MD Glaucoma Research
Sudarshan Srivatsan, MD Plastics
Debora Lee, MD Uveitis
Melissa Yao, MD Ocular Pathology
Mohsain Gill, MD Cornea
Rafaella Cleto Penteado, MD Neuro-Ophthalmology
Irmak Karaca, MD Medical Retina/Uveitis
Austin Bohner, MD Glaucoma
Meghan Sharma, MD, MPH Glaucoma Research
Marcus Altman, MD Retina
RESIDENCY PROGRAM 2024-25
THIRD YEAR
SECOND YEAR
SNAPSHOT:
EDUCATION PROGRAM
FISCAL YEAR 2024 FIRST YEAR
INTERNS 2024-25
Moran offers one of the nation’s top educational programs, providing excellent didactic training and extensive surgical experience. In 2024, Doximity, a networking platform for physicians, ranked Moran’s residency program No. 6 nationwide and No. 1 in the West.
685
RESIDENT APPLICATIONS FOR 4 SPOTS IN 2024 IN A TYPICAL THREE-YEAR PERIOD, ONE MORAN RESIDENT, ON AVERAGE, PERFORMS
740 SURGERIES AND PROCEDURES. MORE THAN
300 ARE CATARACT SURGERIES;
86 IS THE NATIONAL REQUIREMENT.
350+ MORAN-TRAINED OPHTHALMOLOGISTS PRACTICING IN 45 U.S. STATES, THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, PUERTO RICO, AND 2 COUNTRIES
Ashley Polski, MD
Erica Woertz, MD, PhD
Madison Perchik, MD
Jordan Desautels, MD
George Sanchez, MD
Amen Nigussie, MD
Shima Dehghani, MD
Nnana Amakiri, MD
Ayesha Patil, MPH, MD
Nadim Azar, MD
Ivan Cardenas, MD
Mubarik Mohamed, MD
Sam Wilkinson, MD
Chase Paulson, MD
Jenna Jensen, MD Lena Juratli, MD
p.44 GIVING BACK p.46 LISTINGS
Focus DONORS
GIVING BACK
The Magic of Glasses
Fund assists families unable to afford eyeglasses and contacts for their children.
For families of children with complex eye issues, finding a skilled doctor who can help them is life-changing.
From birth, Wren was in danger of losing her vision due to a congenital eye issue. She underwent several successful surgeries with Moran Eye Center pediatric specialist Griffin Jardine, MD, who afterward gave her a prescription for special eyeglasses that further corrected her vision so she could see out of both eyes.
While her grateful family could afford the glasses, they quickly learned that many other families could not. Some insurance policies don’t cover pediatric glasses, and some families completely lack vision coverage.
Jardine explained this problem to Wren’s family after they expressed a desire to honor his efforts and what Wren describes as a “magic” friendship between them. With the family’s generous donation, Jardine created the Pediatric Gift Lens Fund. An average of 100 families have benefited from the fund annually.
“We could just feel the helplessness of parents being told what their child needs for their eyesight to be perfect again, but not being able to provide it for them,” explained Wren’s grandmother.
For Jardine, the fund brings hope and joy to otherwise disheartening conversations.
“Wren’s family is where the magic comes from,” Jardine said. “As a doctor, sometimes there is only so much I can do. A child may still need glasses to see normally. I’m so thankful to be able to tell parents who are struggling to afford those glasses that thanks to a kindhearted family in the community, they don’t have to worry.”
The fund was initially started for Moran pediatric patients with issues like Wren’s, but Jardine recognized a greater need and worked with Wren’s family to expand the initiative.
“The fund now allows pediatric patient families who can’t afford their children’s glasses or contacts to utilize this amazing donation,” Jardine said.
The program is available to all pediatric patients at all Moran locations.
OUTPOURING OF GRATITUDE
Families who have used the fund have expressed their deep gratitude through personal letters shared with Wren’s family. The words of thanks have served as a valuable lesson on the power of giving to Wren, now 10, and her siblings.
In one thank-you note, the mother of a young girl explained her daughter needed glasses but she could not afford to buy them. After benefiting from the fund, the mother sent a card with a picture of her toddler wearing her new glasses.
The picture touched Wren so deeply that it now sits framed on the bedside table in her room. Wren bids the photo “good night” and “good morning” every day.
The fund created by this generous donation makes such a significant difference in the lives of many families.
—Griffin Jardine, MD
At her first appointment at Moran, Wren arrived as a nervous and scared 5-year-old, but she quickly relaxed thanks to Jardine’s care.
“I remember Dr. Jardine doing lots of magic tricks and silly things,” said Wren. “It made it more fun and easier. It’s kind of scary when they have to look at your eyes so carefully. He’s also magic because he helps people’s eyes, like mine.”
Jardine’s “magic” is a collection of what many might call dad jokes—fun things he does to help children relax when they arrive for an appointment, like singing a few lines from a princess song or pretending that touching his patient’s knee makes the exam chair go up or down.
“Kids are resistant to exams. They are scared, and some have had negative experiences,” Jardine explained. “My whole exam is contingent on the child looking at me. They have to want to participate, to feel like they are in a safe place.”
Wren looks forward to more “silliness” from Jardine during her checkups every six months
and says knowing her family is helping other kids get glasses makes her feel good.
“I get happy every time I see the picture,” Wren said. “I think, ‘I helped get her those glasses,’ and it kind of makes me feel magic to know I helped somebody I didn’t even know.”
• • • Wren holds a photo of an eyeglasses donor fund recipient.
The following individuals and organizations contributed to the Moran Eye Center between July 1, 2023-June 30, 2024.
Gifts of $1,000,000 and above
David W. Bernolfo
Dick and Timmy Burton Foundation
Perceive Biotherapeutics
Gifts of $500,000 and above
Cumming Foundation
William and Fern England Foundation
Gabe L. Newell
Olson-Huntsman Vision Foundation
Gifts of $100,000 and above
Judelson Family Foundation
Ruth and Randall J Olson, MD
Sylvia Prahl-Brodbeck*
Sharon Steele-McGee
Gifts of $50,000 and above
Alcon Foundation
Val A. Browning Foundation
William H. and Patricia W. Child
Crocker Catalyst Foundation
Val A. and Edith D. Green Foundation
David Kelby Johnson Memorial Foundation
Kellie Moran
Marisa Moran
Gifts of $25,000 and above
Iqbal Ike K. Ahmed, MD, FRCSC, and Ruby Alvi, MD
Kurt Bestor
The Jeffrey and Helen Cardon Foundation
Willard L. Eccles Charitable Foundation
Christine A. and Fred W. Fairclough
Grandeur Peak Global Advisors
Margaret D. Hicks
The Mark and Kathie Miller Foundation
Kathleen H. and Spencer D. Mortensen, OD
The Olch Family Trust
Thomas C. Praggastis and Michelle Dumke
Praggastis
Daniel Schwartz
Mikel and Janel Trapp
Carlene and Jay Williams
Gifts of $10,000 and above
Anonymous
ARCS Foundation, Utah Chapter
ASCRS Foundation
William and Sara Barrett
Andrea S. Dumke-Manship and Michael A.
Manship
Jane and Stuart Engs
Joan and Tim Fenton Family Foundation
John H. and Carol W. Firmage
The Firmage Group
The Firmco Group
Teri and Dean Flanders Foundation
George, Brack, and Sam Hale Brothers for Hunger & Blindness
Carol O. Holding
Stephen and Lynda Jacobsen Foundation
G. Frank and Pamela M. Joklik
Ranch* and Josie Kimball
Lindsey and Jon Little
James M. and Alison Luckman
Dr. Nick and Mercy Mamalis
Dr. Tina Mamalis and Dr. Shawn Purnell
John M. Martin
Thomas O. and Diane J. Might
Dave and Donna Newberry
Margaret D. Ordway
George and Cynthia Strike Petrow
Rod Semnani
The Semnani Family Foundation
James M. Steele and Linda Wolcott-Steele
Haru Toimoto
James W. and Jeanne J. Welch
Duff M. and Lori Willey
Lisa and Bill Wirthlin
Terry L. Wright
Gifts of $5,000 and above
Anonymous
George M. and Tracy J. Ahn
David G. and Marie P. Anderson
Ronald I. Apfelbaum, MD, and Kathleen A. Murray, MD
Patrice M. Arent and David M. Mock
Fred and Linda Babcock
Eugene W. Banks
Byron B. and Deborah K. Barkley
William F. and Victoria F. Bennion
Joe Bernolfo
Ann P. Bernstein and Paul S. Bernstein, MD, PhD
Barry and Denise Blackett
Rodney H. & Carolyn Hansen Brady Foundation
Burningham Foundation
Irene G. Casper and Ruth A. Morey
Danielle Charlot
Ben Chortkoff, MD, and Susan Chortkoff, MD
Howard S. and Betty Clark
Jeff and Jane Cobabe
Cohenour Family Trust
Traci O’Very Covey
Julie T. Crandall
Tony and Joyce G. Crandall
Eileen Crawford and Alan Jones
Robert W. and Carol N. Culver
Allison A. and Michael E. Daun, MD
Jim and Susan C. Deacon
Kevin W. Deesing
Bianca DeMasi and Robert B. Lense
The Dorsey & Whitney Foundation
Errol P. EerNisse and Sonja Chesley EerNisse
Tracy J. Eilers
Joan B. Firmage
David and Karen Flood
John Foley, MD, and Dorene K. Sambado
Cecelia H. Foxley, PhD
Linda L. Francis
Claire Freedman
Pamela Fullerton
Chris Gandy
Sivaraman Guruswamy and Vasantha
Sivaraman
R. Craig and Gloria H. Hansen
Julie K. and Ryan Harmon
Carolyn S. and Robert O. Hoffman, MD
Katherine S. Hu, MD
Hullinger Family Foundation
Theodore M. and Charlotte G. Jacobsen
Jim S. and Jeanne M. Jardine
Katie and Griffin J. Jardine, MD
John W. and Helen B. Jarman Family Foundation
Martha Lewis Jennings
Jeffrey E. Jones
Karen and Douglas K. Kelsey, MD, PhD
Rick and Beth Kent
Lisa G. and David B. Kieda
Judd P. and Lori R. King
Kate Lahey and Michael J. Lahey, MD
Mel and Wendy S. Lavitt
Frank and Barbara Layden
The Robert B. Lence Family
Kay W. Lipman
Kimberly G. and W. Scott Lohner, MD
Alice and Jared Lynch
Paul and Ruth Lyon Family Foundation
Susan R. Madsen
Milo S. and Karen J. Marsden
William and Suzelle McCullough
Ted A. McKay
Charles H. McLeskey, MD, and Nanci S. McLeskey, DNP
Chris Horne McRoberts
Vicki Bettilyon Merchant
Herbert I. and Elsa B. Michael Foundation
Valerie A. and Mark D. Mifflin, MD
The June Morris and Frendt Family Foundation
Karl and Joan M. Mosch
Moschetti Family
Pegah N. and Majid Moshirfar, MD
Viet Tan Nguyen
Brent T. Nilsen
O.C. Tanner Company
Josephine C. and Merrill C. Oaks, MD
Suzanne E. Oelman
Harry and Karen Page
Nancy A. and Randy A. Parker
Chris and Lisa A. Peterson
Gretchen and Jeff Pettey, MD, MBA
Brent Price
David P. and Suzanne J. Razor
Reagan Outdoor Advertising
Daniel and Lynette E. Reichert
Bill and Gail B. Reisinger
Gary W. Rodgers and Chris Filtz
Lorena and Thomas D. Rosenberg, MD
Derek Sakata, MD, and Cindy Sumarauw, DDS
San Diego Eyelid Specialists
Steffen Schmitz-Valckenberg, MD, and Monika Fleckenstein, MD
Meagan D. Seay, DO
Tueng T. Shen, MD, PhD, and Johannes Thijssen
Shiebler Family Foundation
Rachel G. Simpson, MD
Jonathan P. and Elizabeth M. Slager
Britney and Tyler S. Snell
John Sofro
Stephen and Marji Bailey Sofro
Sun Print Solutions
Stephen D. and Sonnie S. Swindle
Susan O. Taylor
John Cramer Terrill
Gretchen and Michael P. Teske, MD
I. Ray Thomason, MD
W. James and Elizabeth Tozer
Candy Turnbull
Susan Bollinger Tybur and Jim Tybur
University of Utah Advancement
US Foods
Utah Lions Foundation
Sravanthi Vegunta, MD
Albert T. Vitale, MD, and Patricia A. Vitale, MD
Cynthia A. and Gary W. Wallace, MD
Matthew J. and Lynn W. Ward
Warde Foundation
Judith E.A. Warner, MD
Liliana Werner, MD, PhD
Thomas and Melissa Wheatly
James R. and Linda R. Wilson
Gifts of $1,000 and above
Anonymous
Michael Alessandro
Barry J. and Cathy F. Angstman
Scott and Elaine Bergeson
Margaret D. and Peter W. Billings
Michael and Patricia Brill
Blaine L. Carlton and Marilyn Bushman-Carlton
Robert S. Carter Foundation
Val E. and Steve L. Chin
Richard L. and Janice M. Corbin
Ronald W. Crouch and Elizabeth A. Nielson
Dry Creek Charities
Jack M. and Marianne Ferraro
Tom and Lynn Fey Family Foundation
Richard K. Frerichs and Jean Zancanella
Ernest and Judith Getto
Robert M. Graham
Julia A. Hardy
Robert S. and Kim Hood
Julia and Clair Hopkins Jr., DDS
Jerry S. and Claudia F. Howells
Rodney John
Donald C. Johnson
Randolph L. Johnston, MD
S. Whitfield and Christina Lee
Roy F. Miller
George and Pauline Mulligan
Van B. and Maude E. Norman
Ruth L. Novak
Ranae and Harald E. Olafsson, MD
Bonnie D. and James L. Parkin, MD*
Tanya Polzer
Ronald Reaveley Family
Arnold and Mary Richer
Edward N. Robinson
Gerald Rolfe
Karen O. and Stephen C. Roney
John and Patricia Rosenwald
Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort
Kent P. and Dana L. Strazza
Lary J. and Judy W. Talbot
Virginia S. and Verl H. Talbot, MD
Allan and Frances Tessler
Daniel M. Thomas
Douglas Unger
University of Utah Department of Athletics
Tod Wadsworth
Loren and Jane Yager
W. Craig and Jan L. Zwick
William J. Zwiebel, MD
Gifts of $100 and above
Anonymous
Scott Adelman
Hans G. Ahrens
Stan G. and Joyce Aiazzi
Anne Davis Alexander
John C. and Sheryl L. Allen
JoAnne Ambrose
Carol A. and James A. Anderson, PhD
DeAnn R. Anderson
Kristin Wann Anderson and Richard
Anderson, MD
Lissa C. Anderson
Milton M. and Emily Dianne Anderson
Lecia D. Andrews
Seamus Appel
Amir and Lisa B. Arbisser, MD
Asart Design
Pamela J. Atkinson
Ekhlas A. Attia
Catherine Bachman
Ann Crandall Bagley
Ballet West
Margaret D. and Bryce G. Barker, MD
Larry R. and DeAnn Barrigar
F. Robert and Jan L. Bayle
Barbara E. Bean, MD, and James R. Haisley
David W. Becker Jr., MD, JD
John E. Bendixen
Kelly Bennett
Richard and Ronni Bergman
Erin Westenskow Berrett
Sarah A. Berry
Sheila M. Bilbrey
Beverly Blair
Bonnie Blanchard
Christie and BJ Blaser
Jonathan D. and Stephanie Anne Bletzacker
Blue Halo
BMW of Murray
Arlyn R. and Norma Bodily
Sheri A. Bodily
Jon Boney
William J. and Heather F. Bonn
Gary and Herlinda B. Bowen
Alan C. and Ann Bradshaw
Dennis and Kathy Brandon
Richard T. and Sharon Bretzing
Steven M. and Joan M. Brinton
Merle Y. Broadbent
Tim W. and Marlise P. Brough
Barbara and Lewis J. Brown, MD
Susan J. Brown
Judge James Bucci
David C. Burke
Ann and Darryl Butt, PhD
Cactus & Tropicals
Cadenza Family Dentistry
Douglas and Jeannette Callister
Camp Chef
Jules Campbell
Linda J. Campbell
Robin C. Campbell and Marion R. Riley
Randall C. Carlisle
John K. and Shirley A. Carmack
Wallace and Dianne C. Carr
Levi and Marcie Carrigan
Keith Carson
Tyler D. Carson
Jason E. Castor
Donald A. Cathcart Jr.
Jean Chang
Shobhana Chavada
Michelle and Craig J. Chaya, MD
The Cheesecake Factory
Jimmy Chen, PhD, and Ling-Ling Leu
Chick-fil-A
Qing Chong
Gerald N. and Karen Christensen
Kara E. Clapp, PhD
James R. and Barbara S. Clark
Ann Clawson
Phil W. and Susan D. Clinger
Sherman and Susan Clow
Stanley Clyde and Lana J. Jardine
Kristen Mirinda Cobabe, MSW
Susan Coble
Arthur and Barbara Colton
Chris Conabee
Marian A. Connelly-Jones and Gary Jones
Rebecca and Vernon Cooley, MD
Claude and Mary E. Cornu
Bernadette M. Coughenour
Cranky’s Bike Shop
Caroline M. Craven, MD
Dorothy Cromer
David and Debra Cronshaw
Paul B. and Tonita M. Crookston
Current Fish and Oyster
Julie Slocum Dahlgren
Dean Dalby
Everett P. and Mary Kay Davis
Kimberlee Davison
Monika M. and H. James de St. Germain
Linda P. and Nathan C. Dean, MD
Kyle L. Dearden
Nancy DeCamp
Deerfield Ranch Winery
Donna Dempster-McClain and John McClain
Carl Dennison
Carolyn Bartlett Deru
Richard S. and Janet DeWolfe
Carl and Kathleen Diegert
Kathleen B. Digre, MD, and Michael W. Varner, MD
Lynn Dillabough
Discovery Gateway Children’s Museum of Utah
Huyen T. Do
Vivian Dowsett Interiors
Dream Inn
Peter M. and Bonnie H. Edwards
Karen Ehresman
Maureen C. Ellis
Erin Evans
Every Blooming Thing
Robert and Barbara H. Farr
Fat Cats
Daniel S. and Carri Fergusson
Theresa Ferraro
Tyler and Missy Firmage
Fish Tech Outfitters
Kristen M. Fletcher and Dan McPhun
Robert D. Folker
Jennifer J. and Mark C. Foote, MD
Elaine T. and Frank W. Fox, PhD
Todd and Michelle France
Luella B. Freed
B. J. and Brian Fullmer
D. Jay Gamble
The Garden Store
Gregory and Jannis Gardner
K. Gary and Linda S. Garff
Martin I. and Sheila G. Gelman
Rebekah Gensure, MD, PhD
Jennifer George
Douglas D. Gerstner
Tyler Gillespie
William A. and Claudia M. Gislason
Zella F. Gledhill Family Trust
Lawrence K. Goldsmith
Steve and Merrilee Gottfredson
The Grand America Hotel
Green Drake Outdoors, Dustin Carlson
Kay B. Greene
Jean Groce
Nancy O. Groce
Bernard I. Grosser, MD, and Karen J. McArthur
Kathleen Gubler
Kirsty Ann Gunther and Coleson Firmage
Jill L. and Gregory S. Hageman, PhD
Jon and Karen J. Hale
Mark R. and Julie K. Hale
Curtis R. Haley
Vicky Hall
Steven T. and Julie Halvorson
Ronald C. Hamblen and Kristine Janson
Miles and Siena Hansen
Gareld D. and Betty Jo Hanson
Joan M. and Francis V. Hanson, PhD
Timothy R. and Gloria T. Jean Hanson
Brad D. Hardy and Jolie A. Coleman
Harper Nail Salon
Deborah Y. Harrison
Patricia Harte
Robert Hartleben
Douglas Hattery
James V. and Gail Hawkins
Susan D. Heath and William R. Tanner
Nicole L. Herman
Deon T. Hilger
Richard G. and Ruth Ann Hills
Hires Big H
Max R. Holcomb
Deloris Holley
Raymond Hollowell
Roy Hood
Vaughn Howard
Samuel and Sandra Hunter
Hunt’s Trading Post
I.J. & Jeanne Wagner Jewish Community Center
Illumni8skin Medical Spa
Helene Imber
Albert Imesch
Harry F. and Marjorie Immerman
Kathleen A. Isaac
Clare E. Jackson
JAM Collective and Vasque Footwear
Roy and Eileen G. Jenkins
John Jensen
Peter E. Jensen, MD
Amy A. and Matthew Johnson
Marci Johnson and Dorothy Shober
Merlyn W. and Bonnie T. Johnson
James and Lauren Jolly
Bonnie Jones
Gary Jones
Kevin F. Jones
Paul Jones
Judy O’s Floral
Kamas Valley Lions Club Service Project
Robert Kersten, MD, FACS, FASOPRS
Lloyd Kianfar
Paul and Geraldine Kilpatrick
Cornelia Kincanon
Laura Kinser Studios
Julia J. Kleinschmidt, PhD
Russell M. Knapp
Koloa Landing Resort
Barbara Brittain Korous
Panangipalli R. Krishna, MD, and Fermina
Rivera-Krishna
Bob and Marilyn Kukachka
Erica L. and Rajiv Kumar, MD
Melinda Kurnath
Heather L. Labrum
Lagoon Corporation
Christine Lake and Heber S. Jacobsen
Stephen and Natalie Lam
Loris Largo-Rhodes
Jean M. Larsen, PhD
John Larsen
Gen Larson
Shane Larson and Genevieve Christianson
Lynn Lehmann
Melvin D. and Barbara Leibsla
Lawrence J. Leigh, PhD, and Wendy Foster
Leigh
Judy Levine
Liberty Heights Fresh
Herb Lichtenstein and Barbara E. Highlander
Lichtenstein
Light Walk at Tracy Aviary
Amy Lin, MD
Edward G. Lind
Stephen W. and Judy Lindsey
Chris and Susan E. Lockwood
Terry M. and Marilyn Lotz
Loveland Living Planet Aquarium
David L. and Marilyn J. Maher
Peter Mandros
Collette Marthia
Peter F. Martin
Tawnja Stout Martin
Alan A. and Milicent H. Matheson
Dustin Matinkhah
Kurt Matzen
Willard Z. Maughan, MD, and Rona Lee W. Maughan, PhD
James McClain
John McClain and Donna Dempster-McClain
Lori L. and Brian McCoy
Marcie and Wade McEntire
Kathryn Grant McFarland and Avery R. McFarland
Philip and Susan L. McLaughlin
Gary B. McNally
Michael McNamara
Juan E. and Esther R. Medina
Marvin A. and Renee B. Melville
Sheri and David A. Meyer, OD
Ann Marguerite and Kenneth G. Miller
Frances J. Miller Fund
Larry H. Miller Megaplex Theatres
Loretta Miller
Betsy J. Minden
Kerry C. and David B. Miner, MD
MINI of Murray
Minky Couture
Risa Moffitt
Mubarik Mohamad, MD
Momentum Indoor Climbing Gym
Sean Mooney
Casey E., Daysha, and Elle Moore
Dallas Moore
Moran Eye Center Optical Shop
Moran Eye Center’s Leadership Team
Edward B. Moreton
Mary and Tony W. Morgan, MD
Paula F. and Michael V. Morris
Greg and Robyn Moss
Lisa and Gary W. Mulcock
Margaret K. Mumford
Derek and Gina A. Murdock
Maral Namdari
Natural History Museum of Utah
Kent O. and Deanna Naylor
Ron and Anna M. Naylor
Gary W. and Roslyn S. Nelson
Julie Kristl and Richard E. Nelson
Sylvia Newton Family Trust
Jeanette Nice
Deanna Nielsen
Teresa Nielsen
Vincent and Elizabeth Novack
Jim and Sandra C. O’Hearn
Joan J. Odd
Aaron Oliver
Erica Oliver and Kylie Wack
Stephen L. and Barbara F. Olsen
Sarah Berry and Anthony P. Olson
Emily E. and Patrick R. Olson, MD
Julie and Jeffery E. Olson, PhD
Lisa M. Ord, PhD
Erma J. Oten
Kami Page
Lacy Page
Brent Palfreyman
Douglas D. and Joan B. Palmer
Ian and Tammi Parish
Park City Culinary Institute
Anne J. and Dennis L. Parker, PhD
Wells Stellman and Elizabeth Lynn Parker
Robin L. and Myron Patterson
Aurelia L. and Jordan C. Pederson, PhD
Madison Perchik, MD
Ronald J. Petersen
Lynn and Gary G. Peterson, PhD
Marshall R. Peterson
Nedra A. Peterson
Wade Peterson
PETZL USA
The Pie Pizzeria
Lyddia and Robert D. Pierce
Virginia N. Pinder
Pintura Fine Art Imaging and Framing
Roy W. and Elizabeth E. Simmons Pioneer Memorial Theatre
Howard and Sharon Poch
Ashley Polski, MD
Donald R. and Joyce M. Polster
Mike and Deborah A. Poor
Brett Prettyman
John and Marcia P. Price Family Foundation
Kandace O. and Keith A. Prisbrey, PhD
Paul Proctor
Scott E. and Karin U. Pynes
Diana L. Ramirez
Thomas U. and Karma Ramsey
V. Raman and Elizabeth D. Rao
Red Butte Garden and Arboretum
Nishika Reddy, MD
Barbi Reed
Jerry B. and Barbara G. Reese
Warren Reese
Jeffery A. and Heidi G. Reid
Jo Richardson
Alvin Richer
Helene H. Richer
Merrill K. and CoDele C. Ridd
Gail Robinson
Tonya Rogers
Francis X. and Georgina Rossbach
Alene M. Russon
John M. and Melanie A. Sacco
Patricia Sanchez
Sandra Lee Corp
Lara M. Schenk
Susan B. Schulman
Jeff Scott
Kellie and Weston Seiler
Duane and Christine C. Seppi
Dayna Lyn Shepherd
David K. and Patricia L. Sias
Sherman Simmons
Mimi and Cory Sinclair
Susan M. Skankey
Vicki A. Slotte
Richard and Jenny M. Smartt
Gerald G. and Carol R. Smith
Rosanne Smith
Frances Staciokas
Still SLC, Julie Nielsen, DNP, FNP-C
David and Londa Stout
Gerald B. and Barbara F. Stringfellow
Weston P. Stringham
George A. Sumner and Tina Kae Hose-Sumner
Sundance Catalog
Edward S. and Lu Matheson Sweeney
Carlyn S. Sweet
Thomas C. and Marsha Swegle
Jean Tabin, MD
Temple Grounds Coffee Company
Laura Thomas
Sally B.L. Thompson, MD
Toni Thompson
Ning Tian, PhD, and Ping Wang
Matthew Toone
Becky Topham
Torrent Cycle
Sylvia D. Torti, PhD, and Scott Woolsey
Stephen Trimble and Joanne C. Slotnik
Dan Tsoi, MD, and Chung Foon
Christopher Allard Turner
V. Randall and Susan F. Turpin
Stephen and Ingrid Tyler
University of Utah College of Pharmacy
University of Utah Football
Utah Division of Wildlife
Utah Museum of Fine Arts
Utah Olympic Park
Utah Symphony | Utah Opera
Utah Trout Unlimited
Utah’s Hogle Zoo
V Chocolate
E. Russell and Phyllis J. Vetter
Joseph S. and Margaret P. Viland
Theresa Vonier
Verdon R. and Laurene S. Walker
Kelsey Warburton
Garda L. Wardle
Wallace J. and Maysie E. Watts
Richard M. and Judy G. Webber
Charles H. Weber, MD, and Lana S. Weber, MD
Elaine B. and Joseph P. Weis
Lisa Weston
Larry Allen Wheeler, PhD
Bart L. and Marlene Wheelwright
David C. and Gloria H. Whipp
Abby Whiting
John D. and Diane B. Whittaker
Steven D. and Deidre Whittaker
Coach Kyle Whittingham
Pauline Wiessner, PhD
Andre and Brenda L. Williams
Stephen P. and Nancy Z. Williams
Willow Creek Country Club
David J. Wilson
Thomas A. and A. Kaye Winegar
Pamela J. and Robert W. Wing, MD
Barbara M. Wirostko, MD, and Joseph Morelli, MD
Judith Wolfe
Hope H. Worner
Phillip A. and Judy V. Yeates
Louise M. and Norm A. Zabriskie, MD
David R. and Susan Zangrilli
IN HONOR OF
Those in whose honor gifts were made to the Moran Eye Center between July 1, 2023-June 30, 2024.
48th Wedding Anniversary
JoAnne Ambrose
David R. Bachman
Karen S. Bachman
Heidi Bailiff
William R. Barlow, MD
Paul S. Bernstein, MD, PhD
Doreen Bromfield
Dorothy Burton
Craig J. Chaya, MD
Susan C. Chortkoff, MD
Caroline M. Craven, MD
Joseph D’Agnillo
Kathleen B. Digre, MD
Christine Fairclough
Monika Fleckenstein, MD
Alice Frigerio, MD
Jason Groce
Eric Hansen, MD
Katherine S. Hu, MD
Eileen Hwang, MD, PhD
Rachael Jacoby, MD
Griffin Jardine, MD
Gracie Jones
Bradley J. Katz, MD, PhD
Robert C. Kersten, MD, FACS, FASOPRS
James Kohler, MD
David Krizaj, PhD
Marissa Larochelle, MD
Amy Lin, MD
Kay W. Lipman
Lindsey Fairclough Little
Nick Mamalis, MD
Douglas Marx, MD
David Meyer, OD, FAAO
Mark D. Mifflin, MD
Kathie Miller
Moran External Relations Team
Majid Moshirfar, MD
Austin S. Nakatsuka, MD
Randall J Olson, MD
Dix H. Pettey, OD, MS
Jeff Pettey, MD, MBA
Ashley Polski, MD
Price Lions Club
Brian T. Rose, MD
Steffen Schmitz-Valckenberg, MD
Akbar Shakoor, MD
Donald Shearer
Rachel G. Simpson, MD
St. George Lions Club
Brian C. Stagg, MD
Stanza Italia Bistro & Wine Bar
Kim Y. Taylor, MD
Michael P. Teske, MD
Timothy Truong, MD
Barbara M. Wirostko, MD, FARVO
Norm A. Zabriskie, MD
Brian E. Zaugg, MD
IN MEMORY OF
Those in whose memory gifts were made to the Moran Eye Center between July 1, 2023June 30, 2024.
Martha G. Ahrens
Neil Andersen
Lynn Arent
Marvin V. Arent
Thomas Arquette
Barnie P. Babbitt
Elizabeth Beck-Thomason
Colleen Bowman
Rourke H. Bowman
Lauren Bradley
Lyman Buhler
Jo Ann Miller Mahoney Butler
F. Burton Cassity
Ruth H. Craig
Alan S. Crandall, MD
Donald C. Crawford
Margaret Crawford
Yuriko Dennison
Carol Dumke
Edmund Dumke
Elwin J. Duston
David Ebbert
Fern England
Janelle Evans
David Todd Evans
Joseph K. Everton
J.R. Fisher
Susan Bracken Ford
William Arthur Francis
Suzanne F. Goldsmith
Larry Dean Hale
Steven A. Huish
Jaime
Yoshie Kondo Kishimoto
Wm. M. Kleinschmidt
Jack Lohman
Helen Torgerson Mehrens
Gerald Millard
Jean Miller
John A. Moran
Katherine Tingey Morton
J. Bill Moschetti
Marie Nelson
Jack Newton
Steven J. Nichols
Jerry S. Nielsen
Marilyn Noorda
Darcy Rollins-Peterson
Geraldine Sharman
Richard M. Walker
William A. Worner
PLANNED GIFTS
Those who have planned gifts in place to the Moran Eye Center as of June 30, 2024.
Anonymous
Joanne Ambrose
Neal R. Anderson
David R. and Karen S. Bachman
Bonnie Barry
Joseph E. Bernolfo
Elmen D. Bloedel
Toni F. Bloomberg
Irene G. Casper and Ruth A. Morey
Donald A. Cathcart
Richard and Susan Coe
Julie T. Crandall
Everett P. and Mary Kay Davis
Thomas D. and Candace C. Dee
Carol M. Fay
Daniel G. Forman, CVM
Elaine T. and Frank W. Fox, PhD
Bernard I. Grosser, MD, and Karen J. McArthur
Cliff Hammer
Joseph L. Hatch, MD
Jerry S. and Claudia F. Howells
Curtis C.* and Lynne P. Kennedy
Ranch* and Josie Kimball
Tim and Wendy A. Lacy
Charles H. McLeskey, MD, and Nanci S. McLeskey, DPN
Ruth and Randall J Olson, MD
Ken and Holly Reynolds
Janet M. Schaap
Edward H. Skinner
Daniel Soulia
Linda Stauss, PhD
Sharon Steele-McGee
Susan O. Taylor
Alice G. Telford
Mary E. Thompson
Haru Toimoto
The Moran Eye Center is grateful for contributions that support our mission and goals. We have made every effort to ensure that this Fiscal Year 2024
Donor Report is as accurate as possible. Should you find an error or wish to change your listing, please contact us at 801-585-9700.
*Deceased
Faculty OPHTHALMOLOGISTS
Iqbal Ike K. Ahmed, MD, FRCSC
Professor; Jack R. and Hazel M. Robertson Presidential Endowed Chair
SPECIALTIES
Glaucoma
Complex Cataract Surgery
Lens Implant Complications
William Barlow, MD
Professor
SPECIALTIES
Comprehensive Ophthalmology
Cataract Surgery
Refractive Surgery
Paul S. Bernstein, MD, PhD
Professor; Val A. and Edith D.
Green Presidential Endowed Chair
SPECIALTIES
Vitreoretinal Diseases and Surgery
Retinal Biochemistry-Nutrition
Inherited Retinal Diseases
Macular Degeneration
Craig J. Chaya, MD
Associate Professor; Medical Director, Moran Global Outreach Division; John E. and Marva M. Warnock Presidential Endowed Chair
SPECIALTIES
Cataract Surgery
Glaucoma
Anterior Segment Surgery
Susan Chortkoff, MD
Adjunct Associate Professor; Associate Editor of morancore. utah.edu
SPECIALTY
Glaucoma
Alison Crum, MD
Associate Professor
SPECIALTY
Neuro-Ophthalmology
Kathleen B. Digre, MD
Distinguished Professor of Neurology and Ophthalmology; Chair, Bloomberg Library Committee; Senior Editor of morancore.utah.edu
SPECIALTY
Neuro-Ophthalmology
David C. Dries, MD
Associate Professor
SPECIALTIES
Pediatric Ophthalmology
Adult Strabismus
Complicated Adult and Pediatric Strabismus
Craniofacial Disorders
John B. Fassio, MD
Adjunct Associate Professor
SPECIALTIES
Comprehensive Ophthalmology Glaucoma
Geriatric Ophthalmology
Monika Fleckenstein, MD
Professor
SPECIALTIES
Treatment and Management of AMD
Degenerative Retinal Diseases
Eric Hansen, MD
Adjunct Assistant Professor
SPECIALTY
Ocular Oncology
Robert O. Hoffman, MD
Professor
SPECIALTIES
Pediatric Ophthalmology
Adult Strabismus
Complicated Pediatric and Adult Strabismus
Pediatric Outreach
Katherine S. Hu, MD
Assistant Professor
SPECIALTIES
Corneal Transplantation
Cataract Surgery
Vision Correction Surgery (LASIK, PRK, Phakic IOLs)
Eileen Hwang, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor
SPECIALTIES
Adult and Pediatric Retina Diseases and Surgery
Griffin Jardine, MD
Associate Professor; Director of Medical Student Education for the Department of Ophthalmology; Editor of morancore.utah.edu
SPECIALTIES
Pediatric Ophthalmology
Adult Strabismus
Bradley J. Katz, MD, PhD
Professor
SPECIALTIES
Cataract Services
Neuro-Ophthalmology
Comprehensive Ophthalmology
Robert C. Kersten, MD, FACS, FASOPRS
Professor; Division Chief of Oculoplastics
SPECIALTIES
Oculoplastics and Facial Plastic Surgery
Pediatric and Adult Eyelid, Eye Socket, Tear Duct Abnormalities
H. Joon Kim, MD
Associate Professor
SPECIALTIES
Oculoplastic and Facial Plastic Surgery
Pediatric and Adult Eyelid, Eye Socket, Tear Duct Abnormalities
Marissa Larochelle, MD
Associate Professor
SPECIALTIES
Uveitis and Ocular Immunology
Comprehensive Ophthalmology
Cataract Surgery
Amy Lin, MD
Professor; Medical Director of Utah Lions Eye Bank; Vice Chair of Faculty Affairs
SPECIALTIES
Corneal Transplantation
Cataract Surgery
Vision Correction Surgery (LASIK, PRK, ICL)
Ocular Surface Disease
Theresa Long, MD
Assistant Professor; Director of Ophthalmology Consult Services
SPECIALTIES
Cataract Surgery
Comprehensive Ophthalmology
Ophthalmic Hospitalist Services
Nick Mamalis, MD
Professor; Director, Ophthalmic Pathology Laboratory; Calvin S. and JeNeal N. Hatch
Presidential Endowed Chair
SPECIALTIES
Cataract Services
Ophthalmic Pathology
Comprehensive Ophthalmology
Douglas Marx, MD
Adjunct Associate Professor
SPECIALTIES
Oculoplastic and Facial Plastic
Surgery
Mark D. Mifflin, MD
Professor; Director, Cornea and Refractive Division; Associate Medical Director, Utah Lions
Eye Bank; Director, Cornea
Fellowship Program
SPECIALTIES
Corneal Transplantation
Cataract Surgery
Vision Correction Surgery (LASIK, PRK, Phakic IOLs)
Austin S. Nakatsuka, MD
Assistant Professor
SPECIALTIES
Anterior Segment and Complex
Cataract Surgery
Medical and Surgical Glaucoma Cornea and Refractive Surgery
Comprehensive Ophthalmology
Randall J Olson, MD
Distinguished Professor; Chair, Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences; Cumming Presidential Endowed Chair; CEO, John A. Moran Eye Center; Director, University of Utah
Vision Institute
SPECIALTIES
Cataract Services
External Eye Diseases
Jeff Pettey, MD, MBA
Professor; Dr. Ezekiel R. and Edna Wattis Dumke Endowed Chair; Vice-Chair of Clinical Affairs
SPECIALTIES
Anterior Segment and Complex Cataract Surgery
Comprehensive Ophthalmology
Ian F. Pitha, MD, PhD
Associate Professor
SPECIALTIES
Glaucoma
Comprehensive Medical and Surgical Ophthalmology
Nishika M. Reddy, MD
Associate Professor
SPECIALTIES
Comprehensive Ophthalmology
Ocular Surface Disease
Medical Cornea
Brian T. Rose, MD
Adjunct Associate Professor
SPECIALTY
Comprehensive Ophthalmology
Steffen SchmitzValckenberg, MD
Professor; Jon M. Huntsman
Presidential Chair at the University of Utah
SPECIALTIES
Macular and Vitreoretinal Diseases and Surgery
Meagan Seay, DO
Associate Professor; Chair of Visual Electrophysiology; School of Medicine Course
Director
SPECIALTIES
Neuro-Ophthalmology
Visual Electrophysiology
Akbar Shakoor, MD
Associate Professor; Director of the Uveitis Fellowship Program
SPECIALTIES
Retinal Diseases and Surgery
Uveitis and Ocular Immunology
Rachel G. Simpson, MD
Associate Professor; Vice Chair of Education; Residency
Program Director
SPECIALTIES
Glaucoma
Cataract Surgery
Anterior Segment Surgery
Brian C. Stagg, MD
Assistant Professor
SPECIALTIES
Glaucoma
Comprehensive Ophthalmology
Cataract Services
Geriatric Ophthalmology
Jean Tabin, MD
Adjunct Associate Professor
SPECIALTY
Comprehensive Ophthalmology
Kim Taylor, MD
Adjunct Associate Professor
SPECIALTY
Comprehensive Ophthalmology
Michael P. Teske, MD
Professor; Director of Vitreoretinal Diseases and Surgery
SPECIALTIES
Retinal Diseases and Surgery
Sravanthi Vegunta, MD
Assistant Professor; Associate Residency Program Director
SPECIALTIES
Neuro-Ophthalmology
Pediatric Ophthalmology
Adult and Pediatric Strabismus
Albert T. Vitale, MD
Professor; Director of the Uveitis Division
SPECIALTIES
Uveitis and Ocular Immunology
Vitreoretinal Diseases
Judith E. A. Warner, MD
Professor; Chief of NeuroOphthalmology; Chair of Continuous Quality Improvement Committee
SPECIALTY
Neuro-Ophthalmology
Barbara M. Wirostko, MD, FARVO
Adjunct Professor; Adjunct Professor Biomedical Engineering
SPECIALTY Glaucoma
Marielle Young, MD
Professor; Chief, Division of Pediatric Ophthalmology
SPECIALTIES
Pediatric Ophthalmology
Adult Strabismus
Norm A. Zabriskie, MD
Professor; Glaucoma Division Chief; Glaucoma Fellowship Director
SPECIALTIES
Glaucoma Services
Brian E. Zaugg, MD
Associate Professor
SPECIALTIES
Corneal Transplantation
Cataract Surgery
Vision Correction Surgery (LASIK, PRK, Phakic IOLs)
Meet Our Physicians
Scan the video playlist to learn more about the care our physicians provide.
Patrick G. Bakke, MD
Medical Director of Anesthesia Services at Moran
SPECIALTY
General Anesthesiology
Robert M. Christiansen, MD, FACS
Patient Support Program Specialist SPECIALTY
Vision Rehabilitation
Roger P. Harrie, MD
Director, Ophthalmic
Ultrasound Department SPECIALTIES
Ophthalmic Ultrasound Comprehensive Ophthalmology
Lisa Ord, PhD, LCSW Director, Patient Support Program
SPECIALTIES
Psychosocial and Functional Issues Related to Vision Loss
Katherine Anderson, OD
SPECIAL INTERESTS
Contact Lenses
Ocular Disease Management
Geriatric Optometry
Low Vision
Deepika Bagga, OD
SPECIAL INTERESTS
Contact Lenses Dry Eye Management
Shandi M. Beckwith, OD
SPECIAL INTERESTS
Myopia Management Contact Lenses
Robert H. Corry, OD
SPECIAL INTERESTS
Ocular Pathology
Contact Lenses
Dry Eye Management Pediatrics
Ryan Coyle, OD
SPECIAL INTERESTS Contact Lenses Diagnosis and Treatment of Ocular Diseases
Brandon J. Dahl, OD, FAAO
SPECIAL INTERESTS
Primary Eye Care Contact Lenses
Ocular Disease Management Pediatrics
Timothy L. Gibbons, OD Director of the Optometry Division
SPECIAL INTERESTS Contact Lenses Pediatrics Glaucoma
Gabriel A. Hulewsky, OD
SPECIAL INTERESTS Contact Lenses Dry Eye Management
Mark A. McKay, OD SPECIAL INTERESTS Contact Lenses Anterior Segment Eye Disease Pediatrics
David Meyer, OD, FAAO Director, Contact Lens Services
SPECIAL INTERESTS Fitting Lenses for Keratoconus Pediatric Specialty Contact Lenses Cosmetic Contact Lenses for Eye Trauma Irregular or High Astigmatism Post-Surgical Corneas
Edward R. Nicholls, OD SPECIAL INTERESTS Contacts Ocular Pathology Myopia Control Pediatrics Special Needs
Dix H. Pettey, OD, MS SPECIAL INTERESTS Fitting Contact Lenses for Keratoconus Pediatrics Post-Surgical Severe or Irregular Astigmatism
Iqbal Ike K. Ahmed, MD, FRCSC
Professor; Director, Alan S. Crandall Center for Glaucoma Innovation; Jack R. and Hazel M. Robertson Presidential Endowed Chair
SPECIALTIES
Glaucoma, Complex Cataract, and Lens Implant Surgical Therapeutics; Novel Device and Surgical Technique Development
Alessandra Angelucci, MD, PhD
Professor; Mary H. Boesche Endowed Chair of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences
SPECIALTIES
Visual Cerebral Cortex Structure and Function; Development of Novel Technologies
Afua Oteng Asare, OD, PhD
Research Assistant Professor
SPECIALTIES
Pediatric Vision Health; Health Services and Systems Research; Health Equity and Disparities; Cost Effectiveness Analysis; Implementation Science
Wolfgang B. Baehr, PhD Professor
SPECIALTIES
Membrane Protein Transport in Photoreceptors for Inherited Retinal Disease; Photoreceptor Biochemistry; Molecular Cell Biology
Ophthalmic Imaging and Therapeutic Development; Using Data Science and Population Health Methods of Large Dataset Acquisition, Curation, and Modelling to Explain Biological Processes
Monika Fleckenstein, MD
Professor
SPECIALTIES
AMD, Degenerative Retinal Diseases; High-Resolution Imaging; Identification of Prognostic Biomarkers for Disease Progression; Validation of Clinical Endpoints for Interventional Trials
Caroline M. Garrett, DVM, DACLAM
Research Assistant Professor
SPECIALTIES
Laboratory Animal Medicine; Nonhuman Primate Behavior, Reproduction, Anesthesia, and Surgery; Translational Animal Modeling in Ophthalmology and Neuroscience
Gregory S. Hageman, PhD
Distinguished Professor; John A. Moran Presidential Endowed Chair; Executive Director, Sharon Eccles Steele Center for Translational Medicine
SPECIALTIES
Genetics and Assessment of Pathways Involved in AMD and Glaucoma Etiology; AMD Target Identification and Therapeutic Development
Eileen Hwang, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor
SPECIALTIES
Vitreous; Collagen; Extracellular Matrix; Aging; Protein Aggregation
Bryan W. Jones, PhD
Associate Professor; Director, Marclab for Connectomics
SPECIALTIES
Retinal Degeneration Disorders; Retinal Neurotransmission and Neurocircuitry; Metabolomics
Bradley J. Katz, MD, PhD
Professor
SPECIALTIES
Photophobia (abnormal light sensitivity); Migraine and its Effects on Visual Quality of Life; Optic Nerve Drusen
David Krizaj, PhD
Professor; Deputy Director of Research; Ralph and Mary Tuck Presidential Endowed Chair
SPECIALTIES
Glaucoma and Intraocular Pressure Regulation; Calcium Signaling in Retinal Neurons, Glia, and Cornea; Pressure-Induced Neurodegeneration; Nonvisual Phototransduction
Binxing Li, PhD
Research Associate Professor
SPECIALTIES
Biochemistry and Biophysics of Macular Carotenoids; Models of Retinal Disease; Raman Imaging of Nutrients in the Retina
Nick Mamalis, MD
Professor; Co-Director, Intermountain Ocular Research Center; Calvin S. and JeNeal N. Hatch Presidential Endowed Chair
Clinical Decision Support in Glaucoma; Personalized Medicine; Health Informatics; Population Health
Ning Tian, PhD
Professor
SPECIALTIES
Retinal Neurobiology; Synaptic Plasticity
Frans Vinberg, PhD
Associate Professor
SPECIALTIES
Retinal Neurobiology; Bioengineering; Mechanisms of Light Signaling and Plasticity in the Retina; Retinal Disease
Liliana Werner, MD, PhD
Professor; Co-Director, Intermountain Ocular Research Center; H.A. and Edna Benning Presidential Endowed Chair SPECIALTIES
Ocular Biodevices Research; Different Intraocular Lens Designs; Materials and Surface Modifications; Interactions between Ocular Implants and Ocular Tissues
Jun Yang, PhD
Professor
SPECIALTIES
Pathogenetic Mechanisms of Retinal Degeneration; Cell Biology of Photoreceptors
Angiogenesis and Vascular Instability and the Nexus with Inflammation, Infection, and Immune-Related Diseases of the Eye and Central Nervous System
ADJUNCT RESEARCH TEAM
INTERNAL |UNIVERSITY OF UTAH
Brittany Coats, PhD
Karen Curtin, PhD, MStat
Jungkyu Kim, PhD
Kristen Kwan, PhD
Jon Rainier, PhD
Jason Shepherd, PhD
Monica Vetter, PhD
EXTERNAL
Moussa A. Zouache, PhD
Assistant Professor SPECIALTIES
AMD; Genetics of Eye Disease; Computational Biology; Engineering Ophthalmology; Drug Development
EMERITUS RESEARCH FACULTY
Donnell J. Creel, PhD
SPECIALTY
Electrophysiology
Jeanne M. Frederick, PhD
SPECIALTIES
Retinal Cell and Molecular Biology
Helga E. T. Kolb, PhD
SPECIALTY
Retinal Anatomy
Robert E. Marc, PhD
SPECIALTIES
Retinal Neurotransmission and Networks; Retinal Degenerations; Metabolomics
Richard A. Normann, PhD
SPECIALTIES
Artificial Vision/Neural Prosthetics
Catherine Bowes Rickman, PhD
Paul Bressloff, PhD
Victor Chong, MD
Margaret DeAngelis, PhD
Ticiana De Francesco Figueiredo, MD, PhD
Eugene de Juan, MD
Eduardo Fernandez, MD, PhD
Werner Gellermann, PhD
Mary Elizabeth Hartnett, MD
Wen Fan Hu, MD, PhD
Ariana Levin, MD
Anat Loewenstein, MD
Philip Luthert, MBBS, FRCP, FRCPath, FRCOphth
Jordi Monés, MD, PhD
Debra Schaumberg, ScD, OD, MPH
Matthew B. Schlenker, MD
Arsham Sheybani, MD
William Daniel Stamer, PhD
Omer Trivizki, MD
Larry A. Wheeler, PhD
Barry Willardson, PhD
Lloyd Williams, MD, PhD
Adjunct volunteer faculty collaborate on research projects, participate in clinical studies, attend teaching opportunities, and assist on our outreach medical missions.
Jason Ahee, MD St. George, Utah
Arwa Alsamarae, MD Santa Rosa, California
Lisa Arbisser, MD Sarasota, Florida
Nicholas Behunin, MD St. George, Utah
John Berdahl, MD Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Ronnie Bhola, MBBS St. Augustine, Trinidad
Kristin O. Bretz, MD Salt Lake City, Utah
Eric Brinton, MD Salt Lake City, Utah
Gregory Brinton, MD Murray, Utah
Michael Burrow, MD Salt Lake City, Utah
Paul Chamberlain, MD, MPH Boise, Idaho
Joseph Chen, MD Ventura, California
Robert J. Cionni, MD Salt Lake City, Utah
Richard P. Corey, MD Provo, Utah
David A. Crandall, MD West Bloomfield, Michigan
Sonya Dhar, MD New York, New York
Ticiana De Francesco Figueiredo, MD, PhD Fortaleza, Brazil
Jane Durcan, MD Salt Lake City, Utah
Jayson David Edwards, MD St. George, Utah
David Faber, MD Salt Lake City, Utah
Sophia Fang, MD Tigard, Oregon
William J. Fishkind, MD Tucson, Arizona
Nicole R. Fram, MD Los Angeles, California
Spencer Fuller, MD, MPH Reno, Nevada
Roger C. Furlong, MD Butte, Montana
Rebekah Gensure, MD, PhD Salt Lake City, Utah
Mitchell J. Goff, MD Salt Lake City, Utah
Robert Goodrich, MD Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Shawn Gulati, MD Chicago, Illinois
Reeta Gurung, MD Kathmandu, Nepal
Anna Gushchin, MD Hines, Illinois
Arezu Haghighi, MD Ventura, California
Tara Hahn, MD Houston, Texas
Bradley Hansen, MD Idaho Falls, Idaho
Matheson A. Harris, MD Salt Lake City, Utah
James G. Howard, MD Murray, Utah
Todd Jackson, MD Las Vegas, Nevada
Zachary Joos, MD Renton, Washington
Khizer Khaderi, MD Sacramento, California
Victoria Knudsen, MD Murray, Utah
Elliott Kulakowski, MD Park City, Utah
Robert C. Kwun, MD Murray, Utah
David P. Lewis, MD Brigham City, Utah
Susan MacDonald, MD Concord, Massachusetts
Jay J. Meyer, MD Auckland, New Zealand
Cole Milliken, MD Charleston, South Carolina
Majid Moshirfar, MD Draper, Utah
Valliammai Muthappan, MD Sewickley, Pennsylvania
William Myers, MD Chicago, Illinois
Anastasia Neufeld, MD Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
