Dr VN Sukati, the current Head of Department, was born in Swaziland and earned his undergraduate degree in optometry from the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) in 2008. Upon completion, he was recruited by the department as a resident optometrist, where he was responsible for clinical supervision and lecturing to optometry students. While at UKZN, he was a member of the team that was involved in Ocular Disease Certificate training for optometrists in South Africa. While working as a resident optometrist, he earned his Master of Optometry in 2012 and his PhD from the same institution in 2018. His PhD research focused on the barriers to child eye health services in Swaziland's public health system in order to recommend strategies to improve access and address their specific eye health needs through the development of an access framework. The study discovered a lack of an eye health policy/guidelines, as well as various access barriers in both the health and education sectors. The framework developed could serve as a foundation for eye health policy formulation and programmes in Swaziland aimed at redressing, promoting, and preventing visual impairment or blindness. This is Swaziland's first access framework study for child eye care, and it provides an opportunity to serve as a model for other developing countries facing similar challenges. Clinical optometry, visual science, and public health optometry are among his research interestsHe was a member of the panel that contributed to the design and development of Masters and PhD curricula at Kenya's Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology, and he has also served as an undergraduate and postgraduate external examiner there. Dr Sukati previously worked as an external examiner at the University of Limpopo before being appointed Head of Department, where he continues to play an important role in the curriculum redesign to incorporate Ocular Therapeutics.
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Dr VN Sukati, the current Head of Department, was born in Swaziland and earned his undergraduate degree in optometry from the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) in 2008. Upon completion, he was recruited by the department as a resident optometrist, where he was responsible for clinical supervision and lecturing to optometry students. While at UKZN, he was a member of the team that was involved in Ocular Disease Certificate training for optometrists in South Africa. While working as a resident optometrist, he earned his Master of Optometry in 2012 and his PhD from the same institution in 2018. His PhD research focused on the barriers to child eye health services in Swaziland's public health system in order to recommend strategies to improve access and address their specific eye health needs through the development of an access framework. The study discovered a lack of an eye health policy/guidelines, as well as various access barriers in both the health and education sectors. The framework developed could serve as a foundation for eye health policy formulation and programmes in Swaziland aimed at redressing, promoting, and preventing visual impairment or blindness. This is Swaziland's first access framework study for child eye care, and it provides an opportunity to serve as a model for other developing countries facing similar challenges. Clinical optometry, visual science, and public health optometry are among his research interestsHe was a member of the panel that contributed to the design and development of Masters and PhD curricula at Kenya's Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology, and he has also served as an undergraduate and postgraduate external examiner there. Dr Sukati previously worked as an external examiner at the University of Limpopo before being appointed Head of Department, where he continues to play an important role in the curriculum redesign to incorporate Ocular Therapeutics.