NEW YORK—SUNY Optometry has announced that Deborah Amster, OD, will join the school as the new chief of pediatric service. She will head the implementation of the University’s new Center for Pediatric Eye Care, which is set to open in early 2020 and will offer expanded services to children and their families. Dr. Amster previously spent 16 years teaching and conducting research, which included participating in national multi-center studies like PDIG (Pediatric Eye Disease Group) and CITT (Convergence Insufficiency Treatment Trial) at Nova Southeastern University (NSU)’s College of Optometry. In addition, she is a fellow of the American Academy of Optometry and of the College of Optometrists in Vision Development. Dr. Amster completed her residency in pediatrics and binocular vision at NSU after graduating from the New England College of Optometry in 2001.

SUNY Optometry president Dr. David Heath said, “With her impressive clinical and teaching experiences, SUNY Optometry is proud to have Dr. Amster lead our new Center for Pediatric Eye Care. The unparalleled services we provide to children and their families will certainly be enhanced by her leadership, as well as her deep passion for emphasizing the importance of pediatric vision services and access to care for underserved communities.”

Dr. Amster said, “It is a true privilege to lead the pediatrics division at SUNY Optometry, one of the most renowned patient care and academic institutions in the nation. Through pediatric eye care, optometrists help to improve and enhance children’s vision so they may function and thrive academically, recreationally and socially. I look forward to working with patients and families to set them up for a lifetime of healthy vision—while also carrying on the College’s mission of delivering quality and innovative care, empowering our students, and impacting the local community as well as the field of optometry.”

SUNY Optometry’s new Center for Pediatric Eye Care will be a 5,000 sq. ft. center to accommodate all pediatric patients. It will include eight exam rooms, fully-equipped with state-of-the-art equipment and technology, an interactive child-friendly waiting area, a separate quiet waiting room with soothing sensory stimulation, and an optical shop designed for children. The Center was funded through the Our Vision for Children Campaign which included significant donations from Barbara Saltzman, chair of the Optometric Center of New York – the college’s affiliated foundation; the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, one of the world’s leading philanthropic organizations; and other generous donors.