Optical Biographies
Peter McGrath (Chairperson)
Peter McGrath is the Chair and an Optometry Director with Specsavers Optical and Hearing Centres, Henry Street, Grafton Street and Omni Centre, Santry.
He graduated from the University of Manchester in 1987 with a BSc. (Hons) Ophthalmic Optics and became a member of College of Optometrists in 1988 after passing the Professional Qualifying Examinations. Peter then registered with the General Optical Council. Peter is the inaugural Chairman of the Federation of Ophthalmic and Dispensing Opticians (FODO) Ireland since 2011. It is a representative body for professional opticians in business and individual optometrists. FODO members currently deliver over 55% of the eye care volume in the Republic.
Owen Blee
Owen Blee is a Dispensing and Contact Lens Practitioner with qualifications in accounting and finance, with twenty years’ experience in supply chain and service delivery optics.
From 2000 to 2005, he was an Executive member of COSI (Confederation of Optical Suppliers Ireland), and since 2005 has been a practice based Dispensing Optician/Director at two south Dublin optical practices. Since 2012 to present, he has served as an Executive Member for FODO (Federation of Ophthalmic and Dispensing Opticians). Owen’s interests include promotion of eye health awareness to the public through national campaigns, dispensing, contact lenses, CPD and the education and training of Dispensing Opticians.
Seamus Boland
Seamus Boland is CEO of Irish Rural Link, a voluntary organisation, which promotes the interest of rural communities, through advocacy and research based analysis.
Senior management skills include organisational governance matters, finance, HR, negotiation skills. Career to date includes Speech and Drama Instructor, Facilitator, Youth Work Training, Disability Community and Voluntary Sector. Seamus is Chairperson of Pobal and The Irish Peatlands Council, and a member of The European Economic and Social Council. He brings a knowledge of organisational management and matters of governance. His skills in the development of organisational strategic planning have benefitted CORU.
Richard Brennan
Richard Brennan is currently the Financial Controller at the Children’s Medical and Research Foundation (CMRF). Over the past five years, he has worked in finance management in the public sector and with various NGOs. Prior to this, Richard gained valuable experience and knowledge of the regulation of healthcare professionals while working with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI). This included involvement in the regulatory processes for approving education institutions and requirements leading to registration as well as the development of guidelines and professional codes for the professions.
Richard graduated in 2006 with a Degree in Public Administration from the University of Limerick and went on to complete a Post Graduate Diploma and Masters in Public Management at the Institute of Public Administration. Richard has completed research on the involvement of the public and other stakeholders in the decision-making processes of healthcare professional regulators.
Richard is an accountant registered with the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.
Martin Coyne
Martin Coyne is a General Practitioner in Lifford, Co Donegal.
His knowledge, skills, and experience includes Principal Partner in a six Doctor GMS/Private Practice for 23 years; Founding member of Lifford Primary Care Team; Member of Letterkenny General Hospital GP Liaison Committee; Former Chairman of NOWDOC out of hours GP care; Former Chairman of Donegal Clinical Society and PRO ICGP Donegal Faculty. Martin’s special areas of clinical interest include; ophthalmology in primary care (Member of the Irish College of Ophthalmologists) and osteoporosis and bone health in primary care (Board Certified Clinical Densitometrist).
Peter Davison
Peter Davison is an Optometry Lecturer at the Dublin Institute of Technology.
Peter’s knowledge, skills and experiences to-date includes serving as a member of CORU’s Registration and Education Committees; being appointed as an elected member to the Opticians Board and being an observer to the Health and Social Care Professionals Council (representing optometrists on the Opticians Board). Peter is a former Head of Department of Optometry, Dublin Institute of Technology. Peter is a former practising optometrist, and a former Fellow of the College of Optometrists (UK); Member (and former Council Member) Association of Optometrists Ireland. He also formerly lectured in Optometry at Singapore PolytechnicPeter Davison is also a member of Council.
Éilis Dolan-English
Éilis Dolan-English is a Sligo and Leitrim based Optometrist. Éilis is a very keen negotiator with experience in policy development and implementation. She has ten years of teaching experience, which enabled her to assess portfolios of work for students involved in Leaving Cert and Junior Cert examination. Prior to taking up her teaching career, Éilis qualified as a Pharmaceutical Technician.
She worked in the pharmacy department of the oncology hospital in St Luke’s Hospital in Dublin and again this setting enabled Eilis to identify the importance of a shared care approach to delivering an efficient health care system for everyone. She qualified as an optometrist in 2008, and has since taken over the ownership and management of a long-established opticians in Sligo.
John Doran
John Doran is Head of the School of Physics for DIT, based at Kevin Street in Dublin. He graduated in 1989 with B.A.(Mod) in Experimental Physics from Trinity College Dublin.
From 1989 to 1994, John studied under the supervision of Prof. John Hegarty at the Physics Department, TCD and graduated with a PhD in May 1994 with a thesis entitled ‘Exciton Dynamics in CdZnTe/ZnTe Multiple Quantum Wells’. He was appointed Postdoctoral Fellow at Physics Dept., Trinity College Dublin in 1994. John worked on the E.U. Esprit Project SMILES on Semiconductor Microcavity Structures for light emission, involving partners in five countries. He has been a member of staff of DIT since January 1997.
Charles Irwin
Charles Irwin is a Chartered Accountant who qualified in 1989 with Coopers and Lybrand in Limerick and subsequently worked with both Price Waterhouse and BDO.
He completed a BA in Divinity in St. Patrick’s College, Maynooth in 1996 and subsequently a Higher Diploma in Education in 1998. Charles taught in Business, Accounting and Religion in St Munchin’s College until 2006. He served as Principal of St. Munchin’s College from 2006 until 2011 and is currently studying for a Master’s in Business Administration with Griffith College in Limerick. Both of his parents, Charles and Kathleen Irwin, were dispensing opticians for many years in Limerick city.
Norma Judge
Norma Judge is an Optometrist and Barrister, and has been in practice as an Optometrist since 1991 and as a Barrister since 2000.
She has lectured at the Optometry Department in Kevin Street College and was an Examiner for many years in the annual Association of Optometrists Professional Qualifying Examinations (PQE’s). As a practitioner, Norma has worked in California and the United Kingdom. Norma has extensive and varied experience in both contact lens and general Optometry having worked in over 100 practices as a locum. Norma’s qualifications and experience have incrementally built knowledge that will help progress the goals of the Optical Registration Board.
Ann Sheehan
Ann Sheehan has been a Senior Business Manager, Customer Solutions Marketing & Sales Consultant since 2002. Prior to that, she worked for 12 years as a Senior Marketing/Sales Executive with Shannon Aerospace / Lufthansa. She has also worked with An Bord Altranais where she served as a member of the board for 7 years in addition to being on a number of its committees. Ann is currently a member of that body’s Preliminary Proceedings Committee. She has also been a Council member of the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland since 2015. Ann is currently studying part-time for a degree in psychology. Ann also volunteers as a SAGE Advocacy Representative offering support and a service for older people. In addition to this in 2017, Ann was made a Director of Cuan Counselling located in Dingle Co. Kerry.
Vivienne Starr
Vivienne Starr is a Dispensing and Contact Lens Optician who qualified with the Association of British Dispensing Opticians in 1980.
Vivienne is an observer to Council of CORU, and is very interested in improving the quality of dispensing in Ireland for young and old.
Vivienne is also a past president and now committee member of the Irish Association of Dispensing Opticians (IADO). She brings with her years of experience at committee level since IADO’s resurrection in 1986.
