Profile

Hi Everyone!

My name is Saoirse. I am 25 years old and I am from Sligo. I moved to Dublin in 2012 to go to college to study Optometry in DIT and I have lived in Dublin since. However I do love a visit home to Sligo! My main hobbies are going to the gym and travelling. I work two days per week as an Optometrist (also known as an Optician) and the rest of my week I spend doing my PhD research in Dublin Institute of Technology. I love my job and I love how exciting my research is!

I work in Dublin as an Optometrist and I am also a PhD researcher in Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT).

As an Optometrist I test people’s eyes to check the health of their eyes and to examine whether they require glasses or not.

The research I am currently doing is aiming to stop shortsightedness (or myopia) in children. Shortsightedness is when you have to wear glasses to see objects far away, such as the board in school. It is becoming more and more common in Ireland, with over half of us students needing glasses by the time we finish school or college. Last year I did a study around Ireland asking students to keep a diary of their daily activities for 1 week. It turns out technological devices such as mobile phones, laptops, iPads and tablets cause shortsightedness in children. I will be starting a study in January in DIT testing a new eye drop to see if it can stop shortsightedness in children.

I suppose I have two typical days-one  spent working as an Optometrist in Vision Express and another typical day spent doing research in Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT).

In Vision Express I conduct approximately 15 eye exams every day, meaning I get to meet lots of patients. I examine people’s eyes to find out if they need glasses and I examine the health of their eyes to check for any disease or abnormalities. I like doing paediatric (or children) eye examinations best. It is so important for everybody to have their eyes tested as I find many people do not realise there is something not quite right until they have an eye test!

My research work in DIT varies. At the moment I am writing a report based on the results of the study I carried out last year in Primary Schools, which looked at how technology was affecting children’s eyes. Therefore, I am currently doing a lot of reading and writing. I also have to attend lectures every Monday and Friday. In January I will start a new study where I will be working in a lab most days with children, to try and stop shortsightedness. That will be exciting.

So as you can see my week varies a lot- from working in Vision Express, to going to lectures, to doing experiments, to studying! And of course in the evenings I leave time to see my friends, go to the gym and cook!