Pauline Merrill MD
Pauline Merrill MD – Board Member
Pauline T. Merrill, M.D., is a nationally recognized specialist in the medical and surgical treatment of diseases of the retina and vitreous. She also has particular expertise in the treatment of uveitis. Dr. Merrill is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Ophthalmology at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, where she is the Section Director for Uveitis and Inflammatory Diseases.
A native of Memphis, Tennessee, Dr. Merrill graduated from Princeton University with an A.B. degree in biology. She earned her medical degree from the Washington School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri, where she also completed a master’s degree in biomedical sciences. Dr. Merrill completed an internship in internal medicine at Good Samaritan Hospital in Portland, Oregon, and an ophthalmology residency at Duke University Eye Center in Durham, North Carolina. She went on to complete a fellowship in vitreoretinal surgery at the Cullen Eye Institute at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, after which she joined Illinois Retina in 1997.
A highly regarded clinical researcher, Dr. Merrill has been principal investigator in a number of ground breaking clinical trials over the years. Recent studies have included the NEI-sponsored MUST, POINT, and MERIT studies, as well as industry-sponsored trials of new treatments for uveitis including adalimumab and intravitreal sirolimus.
Dr. Merrill has published numerous papers on topics ranging from uveitis and ocular complications of AIDS to vitreous hemorrhage and diabetic macular edema. She lectures extensively at national and international ophthalmology meetings and has written articles for several academic specialty journals. Dr. Merrill has written chapters for three books: The Principles and Practice of Ophthalmology, Curbside Consultation in Retina, and Cystoid Macular Edema – Medical and Surgical Management.
Dr. Merrill holds memberships in several professional societies and organizations. She is an Examiner for the American Board of Ophthalmology, and a Committee Member for the Ophthalmic Mutual Insurance Company. She has won numerous professional honors and awards, including the prestigious Heed Ophthalmology Fellowship Award in 1996, the American Academy of Ophthalmology Achievement Award, and the Senior Honor Award from the American Society of Retinal Specialists. Dr. Merrill has been listed in Best Doctors in America.When she’s not working, Dr. Merrill enjoys traveling, bicycling, golfing, hiking, kayaking,skiing, and scuba diving with her husband and two stepchildren.
Christie Morse MD
Christie Morse MD
Dr. Morse is the current Executive Vice President of the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus (AAPOS), the past chair of the Advisory Board of the Foundation of the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO), and of the AAO Ethics Committee. She is also a past member of the AAO Board of Trustees as a Trustee-at-Large and then as Chair of the Foundation. She served as a clinical education committee member and then as chair for 12 years. She currently serves on the Pediatric Preferred Practice Pattern panel and Chairs the EyeCare America Steering Committee and the Orbital Fundraiser for the Foundation of the AAO. She is the AAPOS representative to the American Academy of Pediatrics ophthalmology section, and a past President of Women in Ophthalmology and of AAPOS.
She has also been a member of the New Hampshire Sight and Hearing Foundation Physicians’ Advisory committee, the N.H. Eye Society of Physicians and Surgeons (where she served as the state Councilor to the AAO), and as Chair of the Program Committee of The New England Ophthalmological Society. She is a member of the AAO’s Leadership Development Program Class of 2003.
Dr. Morse graduated from Yale University and received her medical degree from the Medical University of South Carolina with a medical internship at the University of Massachusetts and a residency at Brown University, Rhode Island Hospital. Following her residency, she performed a Pediatric Ophthalmology and Adult Strabismus Fellowship at the Riley Children’s Hospital of Indiana University.
She is a partner in a multi-specialty group private practice in New Hampshire, where she specializes in pediatric ophthalmology and adult strabismus.
David Parke II MD
David Parke II MD
David W. Parke II, MD, leads the world’s largest ophthalmology organization, with 30,000 members and offices in San Francisco and Washington, D.C. It is the principal source of educational materials and programs for ophthalmologists as well as the profession’s voice from Washington to the World Health Organization. Dr. Parke served for 17 years as president and CEO of the Dean McGee Eye Institute and Edward L. Gaylord professor and chair of the department of ophthalmology in the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine. A practicing ophthalmologist with subspecialty focus in retina/vitreous, Dr. Parke served as president of the Academy in 2008
Ron W. Pelton MD
Ron W. Pelton MD
Ronald W. Pelton MD, PhD FACS is a native of Benton, Arkansas. He has lived in Colorado Springs, CO and has been in solo practice in oculofacial plastic surgery since 2000. After a Fulbright to Graz, Austria, Dr. Pelton attended Vanderbilt University Medical School, Nashville, TN. He graduated in 1993 with a PhD and an MD and subsequently completed his residency in Ophthalmology at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, TX. He completed his ASOPRS fellowship at the University of Utah in 2000. Dr. Pelton is certified by the American Board of Ophthalmology and is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons.
In addition to his clinical appointments, Dr. Pelton holds memberships to the following professional organizations:
Fellow, American Academy of Ophthalmology
Fellow, American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
Fellow, American College of Surgeons
Colorado Society of Eye Physicians and Surgeons
Colorado Medical Society
El Paso County Medical Society
AO ASIF Craniomaxillofacial Faculty
American Eye Study Club
Dr. Pelton’s honors and awards include:
Fulbright Scholar to Karl Franz Universität, Graz, Austria
Medical Scientist Training Program, NIH Grant
American College of Eye Surgeons Winner (1st place) resident national videotape competition in cataract surgery.
Heed Fellowship in Ophthalmology
AOS-Knapp Ophthalmology Fellowship
AAO Leadership Development Program (LDP) XI, Class of 2009
AAO Achievement Award
AAO Secretariat Award
AAO Senior Achievement Award
Gaurav Shah MD
Gaurav Shah MD
Gaurav K. Shah, MD, is a retina specialist at The Retina Institute and Professor of Clinical Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences and Co-Director of Vitreoretinal Fellowship Program. He received his medical degree from the University Of Illinois College Of Medicine in Chicago. He completed his residency in ophthalmology at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis followed by a retina fellowship at Wills Eye Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Dr Shah’s clinical and research interests include diabetic retinopathy, diabetic macular edema, age-related macular degeneration, and retinal detachments as well as the economics of retinal healthcare. He has a specific interest on Macular Surgery and Retinal Detachment repair with specific instrumentation design. He has been involved in several pivotal clinical trials including those investigating pegaptanib, ranibizumab, photodynamic therapy (PDT), and combination regimens consisting of PDT and bevacizumab. He is also an investigator for several phase II and phase III clinical trials for age-related macular degeneration, diabetic macular edema, retinal vein occlusion, dry macular degeneration, and new drug delivery devices and is currently the Principal Investigator for the CRAVE study. Dr Shah is a frequent presenter at national and international meetings and has authored 12 book chapters and more than 139 peer-reviewed articles. In addition, he is an elected member of the Retina Society, the Macula Society, American Society of Retina Specialists (ASRS) International Affairs Chair, the American Academy of Ophthalmology, OMIC and part of the ORBIS retina team. He is on the editorial board for Eye Net, OSLI and Review of Ophthalmology. In addition, he is a board examiner for ABO. He also serves as Head of International Affairs for the ASRS.
