Presenters
Mauricio Aldrete, MD
Dr. Aldrete is New Brunswick's pediatric ophthalmologist, joining the team at the Dr. Georges L University Hospital in September 2020. A native of San Luis Potosi, Mexico, Dr. Aldrete completed his medical degree at the Universidad Autonoma de San Luis Potosi, then completed ophthalmology residency training at the Monterrey Institute of Technology. After rotating at the Wills Eye Hospital (Philadelphia), he completed a two-year fellowship in Pediatric Ophthalmology and Adult Strabismus at the IWK Health Centre/Dalhousie University, in Halifax. Dr. Aldrete has a keen interest in global healthcare, and has provided his surgical skills to patients/underserviced areas in Saint Lucia, Mexico and Central America. Dr Aldrete is looking forward to developing his practice in New Brunswick, providing ophthalmological care in English, French and Spanish.
.jpg/:/cr=t:0.7%25,l:0%25,w:100%25,h:89.29%25/rs=w:600,h:300,cg:true/qt=q:1)
Krista Kelly, PhD
Dr. Kelly joined the Retina Foundation in 2014 directly after receiving her Ph.D. in Psychology at York University in Toronto, Ontario. Upon completing her postdoctoral fellowship in the Crystal Charity Ball Pediatric Vision Laboratory, Dr. Kelly became the Director of the Vision and Neurodevelopment Laboratory. Her research on amblyopia (lazy eye) is partially funded by a prestigious five-year grant from the National Eye Institute at the National Institutes of Health. Her research is showing that children with amblyopia read slower than their peers and have impaired fine motor skills. Her findings will the guide development of more effective screening and interventions to prevent or improve reading and motor issues in children with amblyopia.
Robert Hayes, MD, FRCPC
Dr. Hayes is a dermatologist with a strong interest in skin cancer. He graduated from Dalhousie Medical School in 2000, did his residency in Dermatology at the University of Toronto, and then completed a fellowship in Mohs Micrographic Surgery at UBC. Since 2006, he has been in practice in Saint John, New Brunswick, where he devotes half of his week to general dermatology, seeing kids and adults,and half of his week to Mohs surgery, where he removes challenging skin cancers on the face. He shares an office in Quispamsis with his mentor Dr. Doug Keeling and their newest colleague Dr. Anne-Marie Hunt. He loves to get outside and ride bikes. His wife Sarah, a geriatric psychiatrist, and their three boys ages 14, 12 and 10, keeps him grounded.
Ryan Kazakow, OD & Megan Burns, OD
Dr. Kazakow is a born and raised Calgarian. He attended the University of Calgary where he received degrees in Zoology & Cellular, Molecular and Microbial Biology. Ryan then went on to receive his Doctor of Optometry (OD) from NOVA Southeastern University in 2018, where he was awarded honours for both academics as well as his clinical rotations. Dr. Kazakow was also awarded ‘Extern of the Year’ for the class of 2018, for his excellence in patient care and work ethic.
Dr. Burns grew up in Moncton, NB. She received her bachelor’s degree in Science (B.Sc) with a major in Biochemistry at the University of Moncton in 2015. She went on to graduate from Nova Southeastern University with a doctorate of Optometry (O.D.) in 2019. She received honors in her clinical rotations in ocular disease, pediatrics, and contact lenses. Dr. Burns successfully completed the PAVE Sanet Vision Therapy program in San Diego. She is passionate about binocular vision and vision therapy.
Sarah MacIver, OD, FAAO
Dr. MacIver is an optometrist and associate clinical professor at the University of Waterloo School of Optometry and Vision Science. She has a special interest in the treatment and management of chronic ocular disease, specifically glaucoma and dry eye. She has been invited to speak at various continuing education events including interprofessional conferences and public education events to disseminate knowledge about eye health and vision care. Areas of scholarship include glaucoma, dry eye disease, retinal imaging, inter-professional collaboration with primary healthcare and optometric education. She is co-chair of the continuing professional development committee and residency supervisor for the ocular disease and glaucoma residency position at the university of waterloo. She is a member of the optometric glaucoma society and program chair for the American Academy of Optometry Glaucoma section.
.jpg/:/cr=t:0%25,l:0%25,w:100%25,h:100%25/rs=w:600,h:300,cg:true/qt=q:1)
Gregg MacLean, MD, FRCPC
Dr. Maclean has been in practice at the Saint John Regional Hospital for the past 30 years. Born on PEI , he studied medicine at Dalhousie and trained in Neurology at the University of Ottawa. He developed and has directed the MS clinic in Saint John for the past 13 years. The clinic has had more than 500 patients in research trials.
Natalie Davison
Natalie is the CEO of Marrow Marketing. Be prepared to dig
deep because she won’t allow you to stay on the surface. Natalie helps her clients think bigger about their businesses and stay on-brand. An expert at building audiences, particularly on social media, Natalie’s work in this space has been recognized by Canadian Contractor Magazine, The Financial Post and Social Media For Business, For Dummies. She believes in a perfect blend of speaking + listening and facilitating truly interactive workshops that will leave audiences with an entirely new perspective about their lives and their businesses.
Frederick R Edmunds, OD
Dr. Edmunds owns and runs a sports vision only practice, the XTREMESIGHT Performance Clinic, devoted to visual performance enhancement of athletes. In addition to his work with professional and collegiate teams, he offers sports vision practice management services. Previously, he worked for Bausch & Lomb and was awarded ‘Sports Vision Optometrist of the Year” for his efforts to promote sports vision worldwide through the Olympic Vision Center. He is a fellow of the American Academy of Optometry, on the Board of Directors of the International Sports Vision Association and a member of the AOA Sports & Performance Vision Committee. He lectures internationally and has published numerous articles on sports vision and contact lenses. Dr. Edmunds is an extreme sports athlete, actively racing motocross and mountain bikes.
Marilyn Anne Smith, RO
Marilyn has been an optician since 1981. After working in retail, she joined the University of Waterloo, School of Optometry staff in 1988 & was invited to join the Faculty as a Clinical Lecturer at the in 2004. Marilyn retired from UW in June 2016 to pursue new career adventures.
Marilyn is the lead instructor for the CAOs Canadian Certified Optometric Assistants (CCOA) program. She also consults in private optometry offices and speaks on a regular basis in the ophthalmic industry. Marilyn is CEO of MAS Productions Consulting. She brings humour, compassion & her own life experiences to each seminar she conducts for maximum enjoyment, learning, insight and growth for each participant.
Nir Shoham-Hazon, MD
Dr. Shoham-Hazon has completed an Ophthalmology residency at the Kaplan Medical Center in Rehovot, Israel, in January 2010. During his residency Dr. Shoham-Hazon was appointed chief resident and was awarded two awards of excellence 1. Outstanding
resident award for the Kaplan Medical Center 2. Outstanding resident award for the School of Medicine, Hebrew University and Hadassah, Jerusalem, Israel. Thereafter, Dr. Shoham-Hazon pursued the highly competitive fellowship at the University of Toronto, with the world renowned, Dr. Ike Ahmed. This was a three year fellowship which included clinical, surgical and research aspects of Glaucoma, Advanced Anterior Segment & IOL
surgery (GAASS). During his fellowship, Dr. Shoham-Hazon has received numerous awards for presentations in international conferences and research grants for numerous research studies. During Dr. Shoham-Hazon’s career, he has transitioned from practices of different types. Ranging from academic practice to independent and private practice. He is currently practicing GAASS in independent practice in Atlantic Canada - Miramichi, NB. Dr. Shoham-Hazon has academic affiliations with Dalhousie and Memorial universities as Assistant and Clinical Assistant Professor respectively.
Patrick Hamel, MD CSPQ FRCSC
Dr. Hamel is a Paediatric Ophthalmologist at CHU Ste-Justine and Montreal Children’s Hospital (MUHC). Dr. Hamel received his MD from Université Laval and completed his Ophthalmology residency training at Université de Montréal. Dr. Hamel also completed a Fellowship training in Paediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus at University of Toronto and Fellowship training in Glaucoma at Université de Montréal. Dr. Hamel is an Associate Professor of Ophthalmology, Université de Montréal and an Associate Post Graduate Vice-Dean, Post Graduate Medical Education, Université de Montréal
Stanley Woo, OD, MS, MBA, FAAO
Dr. Woo is the Director of the University of Waterloo School of Optometry & Vision Science. Previously, he served as Dean of the Southern California College of Optometry at Marshall B. Ketchum University supporting a transformation into an interprofessional health sciences university. He received his Doctorate of Optometry from the University of California at Berkeley. At the University of Houston College of Optometry, he completed a Master’s in Vision Science and a residency in Low Vision Rehabilitation. At Rice University Jones Graduate School of Business he completed an MBA with a concentration in medical and health care management.
Dr. Woo is a diplomate in low vision with the American Academy of Optometry and diplomate with the American Board of Optometry. His research interests include vision rehabilitation, ophthalmic imaging, public health policy, and systems for optimizing patient care outcomes.