ContactConnect 2027
Contact Lenses, Every Chapter
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Program Guide
The prelim program will be released soon.
Program - Friday Program - Saturday Program - Sunday
ContactConnect 2027 - Our Speakers
Dr Obinwanne Chukwuemeka Junior
Dr Obinwanne Chukwuemeka Junior is a clinician-scientist specialising in cornea, contact lenses, ocular surface health and myopia. He leads the Cornea, Contact Lens and Myopia Management Department at De Lens Ophthalmics in Abuja, Nigeria, and is an Adjunct Lecturer at the University of Cape Coast, Ghana. He earned his Doctor of Optometry degree from the University of Benin in 2012, completed a two-year fellowship in cornea, specialty contact lenses and anterior segment at LV Prasad Eye Institute, India, and holds a master’s in research optometry from the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.
A Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry, Dr Obinwanne is the first African Diplomate of its Cornea, Contact Lenses and Refractive Technologies section. He is also the first West African Fellow of the Scleral Lens Education Society and serves as its International Chair. He has contributed to work with the Tear Film and Ocular Surface Society and British Contact Lens Association. A certified myopia management expert, he fits specialty and medically necessary contact lenses. His clinical and research interests include keratoconus, childhood myopia, scleral lenses, corneal disease and ocular surface health. He also contributes to research, peer-reviewed publications and professional education for eye-care clinicians locally and internationally.
Dr Kate Gifford
Dr Kate Gifford is an internationally renowned clinician-scientist optometrist, Visiting Research Fellow at Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Australia and co-founder of Myopia Profile, the world-leading educational platform for childhood myopia management. Kate holds a PhD in contact lenses and binocular vision in myopia from QUT, four professional fellowships, 100+ publications and has given over 300 lectures internationally. She has recently completed an Executive MBA through University of Sydney. Kate was the youngest ever President and Chair of Optometry Australia, and has been Chair of the International Myopia Institute Clinical Management Guidelines committee since 2017.
Kate has won multiple honours including QUT Young Alumnus of the Year, British Contact Lens Association (BCLA) President’s Award for Excellence and the Global Specialty Lens Symposium (GSLS) Rising Star Award. After running her pediatric, contact lens and myopia specialty practice in Brisbane, Australia for 13 years, since 2020 Kate now works full-time on peer education and industry consulting through Myopia Profile.
Paul Gifford
Dr Paul Gifford is a research scientist and industry innovator based in Australia, an Adjunct Senior Lecturer at the University of New South Wales (UNSW), Australia, and Associate Professor at University of Waterloo, Canada. Paul graduated Optometry and completed his Masters through City University, London, England; and was awarded his PhD in hyperopic orthokeratology and contact lens optics from UNSW. Paul’s 30 years' experience covers every facet of the optometry profession, from clinical practice to academia, research and industry. He holds three professional fellowships (FIACLE, FAAO, FBCLA), more than 60 peer reviewed and professional publications, has been conferred several prestigious
research awards and grants, and has presented more than 70 international conference lectures. Paul designs and builds responsible and sustainable software solutions harnessing artificial intelligence (AI) for educational and research functions; and consults to industry on projects relating to products and systems. He is co-founder of the world-leading educational platform Myopia Profile, which supports practitioner management and raises public awareness of childhood myopia.
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