Sunday, February 2nd, 2025
8:00 AM - 3:00 PM Pacific Time
Viticus Center - Eastern Campus
5810 S Eastern Ave Las Vegas, NV 89119
Join Woo University and Nevada Optometric Association for our first OPTIC hybrid event, filled with a range of courses from dry eye management, glaucoma treatment, to cataract surgery updates.
In person attendees will have the opportunity to learn from industry sponsors during live presentations and exhibit hall interactions. Registration includes breakfast, lunch, and 4 hours of free CE!
*CE is certified by the Nevada Optometric Association, an affiliate of the American Optometric Association.
Agenda:
*All times are in Pacific Time
7:30 AM – 8:00 AM
8:00 AM –8:30 AM
11:30 AM – 12:10 PM
Registration
9:00 AM –9:50 AM
1:10 PM – 2:50 PM
Welcome & Gold Sponsor Presentations
8:30 AM –9:00 AM
10:30 AM - 11:20 AM
Bausch + Lomb Vyzulta Breakfast Presentation with Justin Schweitzer, OD
CE: Managing Dry Eye with a Variety of Treatment Options
by: Melissa Barnett, OD, FAAO, FSLS, FBCLA
10:00 AM –10:30 AM
Coffee Break in Exhibit Hall (Courtesy of RxSight)
12:10 PM – 1:10 PM
CE: Cataract Surgery Update: An Overview of What is New in the World of IOLs Including Toric, Multifocal, and Light Adjustable Lenses
by: Kent Wellish, MD & Eissa Hanna, MD
Lunch Presentation from Diamond Sponsor (Bausch and Lomb Miebo)
3:00 PM
Exhibit Hall Break
CE: Tying Together Structure & Function - Interpreting OCT Imaging and Visual Fields for the Glaucoma Patient
by: Justin Schweitzer, OD, FAAO
Raffle Winners & Event Conclusion
Meet the Program Chairs
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Contact Lens Institute of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV
Dr. Stephanie L. Woo was born and raised in Lake Havasu City, AZ. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Arizona with a degree in Biology Science Education. She graduated with honors from the Southern California College of Optometry. She completed a Cornea and Contact Lens Residency at the University of Missouri, St. Louis, where she was trained to fit highly irregular corneas.She was the recipient of the Gas Permeable Lens Institute Award for Clinical Excellence and also the John R. Griffin Award for Excellence in Vision Therapy. Dr. Woo is a Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry and a Fellow of the Scleral Lens Society.
She authored the Gas Permeable Lens Expert column in Review of Contact Lenses. She is a frequent author to several professional publications including Contact Lens Spectrum, Contact Lens and Cornea section of the American Optometric Association, Review of Cornea and Contact Lenses, and Review of Optometric Business.
She is an active GPLI advisory board member. Dr. Woo is a Past President of the Scleral Lens Education Society, a non-profit organization committed to teaching the art and science of scleral lenses to practitioners.
Dr. Woo is an adjunct professor at Midwestern University. Dr. Woo enjoys lecturing around the world on the subject of contact lenses and anterior segment ocular disease.
Dr. Woo owns the Contact Lens Institute of Nevada, a clinic dedicated entirely to custom contact lenses. In her spare time, Dr. Woo is an avid wine collector and is a Level 2 WSET Sommelier.
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Pearle Vision, Las Vegas, NV
Dr. Abraham Motola is a board-certified optometrist with interests in the treatment and management of Glaucoma and Dry eyes. He joined the Practice in 2018 and earned his undergraduate degree from San Diego State University, a Master's degree from Point Lola Nazarene University followed by his Doctor of Optometry from Pennsylvania College of Optometry class of 2016. He supports the profession with involvement in the Nevada Optometric Association and is the current president of the Southern Nevada Society. Dr. Motola was born and raised in San Diego California. Both his parents were born in Mexico City where he is able to do eye exams in Spanish. Dr. Motola enjoys spending his free time with his family. He also enjoys dancing, sports games, and listening to music.
Meet the Faculty
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UC Berkeley, School of Optometry
Melissa Barnett, OD, FAAO, FSLS, FBCLA, is a world-renowned key opinion leader recognized for her expertise in specialty and scleral lenses, dry eye disease, keratoconus and presbyopia. She has authored more than 275 articles and books, delivered over 350 lectures, is a board member and founding member of Intrepid Eye Society and serves on several industry boards. Her work has been featured in medical journals, professional magazines, as well as consumer publications such as Bloomberg, Prevention Magazine and Good Housekeeping.She is energized by her passion for helping people improve their lives by optimizing their vision, health and wellness with a customized approach. Dr. Barnett is most proud of being awarded the Scleral Lens Practitioner of the Year from the Scleral Lens Education Society, the inaugural Theia Award for Excellence for Mentoring by Women In Optometry and was granted the Most Influential Women in Optical from Vision Monday.
Dr. Barnett is the Director of Optometry at the University of California, Davis, and is the host of the Clearly KC podcast. She advocates for elevating eye care through technology and her influence on the profession.
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Wellish Vision Institute, Las Vegas, NV
Fellowship – Ophthalmic Pathology, Mass Eye and Ear, Harvard Medical School
Residency – Ophthalmology, Pennsylvania State University
Medical School – M.D., University of California, Davis
Undergraduate – B.S., Biochemistry & Cell Molecular Biology, University of California, DavisBorn and raised in the state of California, Dr. Hanna earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Davis, where he later attended medical school on full academic scholarship. He left his West Coast roots for a residency at Penn State and a fellowship with the Harvard Medical School.
In 2012 Dr. Hanna moved back to the West Coast to join the nation’s top medical school at the University of Washington, serving as both a premier ophthalmologist and a professor of ophthalmology. There, Dr. Hanna ran one of the busiest ophthalmic practices in the Greater Seattle area, caring for in-state, out-of-state, and internationally referred patients. Additionally, Dr. Hanna served as the Chief of Ophthalmologic Trauma Services.
He has taught nearly 150 ophthalmology residents and fellows the medical and surgical management of ocular trauma; corneal infections, degenerations, and dystrophies; uveitis; cataracts; macular degeneration; glaucoma; diabetic retinal disease; ocular surface inflammatory disorders; eyelid tumors, trauma, reconstruction, ptosis, infections; papilledema; and other disorders affecting the ocular surface and orbit. Dr. Hanna was awarded Teacher of the Year, voted on by his residents.
Wanting a new challenge and to trade Seattle rain for Nevada sunshine, Dr. Hanna leaves his 10-year span at the University of Washington to join the top-rated Wellish Vision Institute.
Currently, Dr. Hanna is the region’s only Stevens-Johnsons-TENS and GVHD ocular specialist. He has special interest in premium multifocal and Toric cataract cases, complex cataracts (traumatic, uveitic), IOL exchange, secondary IOL placement, phakic IOLs, and all the conditions normally treated at eye centers of higher-level care.
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Wellish Vision Insitute, Las Vegas, NV
Dr. Wellish has trained over 120 Optometry Students as a level one training center over the past 20 years, including Dr. Woo.A Two Year Stein Eye Cornea & Refractive Surgery Fellowship Trained specialist, Dr. Wellish founded the Wellish Vision Institute in 1994. Nevada's First Laser Vision Correction Specialist since 1994, Dr. Wellish has published original clinical research in the areas of LASIK, Advanced Cataract Surgery Techniques and Ocular Surface Disease.
Dr. Wellish has participated in over a dozen FDA studies in the areas of Keratoconus, Glaucoma, Advanced Technology in Cataract Surgery, Ocular Surface Disease, and novel treatments. He is currently recruiting patients for a novel treatment for Pterygium consisting eyedrops only without the need for surgery.
He and his growing team of MDs and ODs enjoy sharing their clinical pearls, while bringing excellence in eye care to the Las Vegas area.
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Vance Thompson Vision, Sioux Falls, SD
Dr. Justin Schweitzer specializes in advanced glaucoma, refractive surgical clinical care, and anterior segment pathology at Vance Thompson Vision. He received his professional training and Doctor of Optometry degree from Pacific University College of Optometry in Forest Grove, OR.
In 2012 he pursued his dream to focus on glaucoma, advanced anterior segment surgery care and pathology, joining Vance Thompson Vision in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. He earned Fellowship in the American Academy of Optometry in 2013, is the Optometric Externship Director at Vance Thompson Vision, and Adjunct Clinical Professor of the Illinois College of Optometry and Kentucky College of Optometry.
Dr. Schweitzer regularly lectures on glaucoma, anterior segment pathology, refractive surgical clinical care, and surgical management at state, regional, and national meetings. He is currently the Chief Medical Editor for Modern Optometry and has contributed book chapters, journal articles, and case studies in peer reviewed and non-peer reviewed journals including Review of Optometry, Optometry Times, Primary Care Optometry News, Optometric Management, The Journal of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, Clinical Ophthalmology, and The Journal of Glaucoma. He has research interests in minimally invasive glaucoma surgery and biomechanical properties of the cornea as it relates to glaucoma.
Dr. Schweitzer is an advocate of an integrated eye care delivery model and is currently serving as a board member for the South Dakota Optometric Society. He also serves as a board member of the Optometric Glaucoma Society, a member of the American Optometric Association, Optometric Cornea, Cataract, and Refractive Society, Scleral Lens Education Society, Intrepid Eye Society, and is actively involved in his communities eye care initiatives.
