Harminder Dua

About Harminder Dua

Harminder Dua

Chair and Professor of Ophthalmology at the University of Nottingham and Head of the Division of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Nottingham, UK; and Head of Service, Department of Ophthalmology, Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust.

What are your career highlights?

I have been very fortunate to have the trust and confidence of my peers and colleagues who supported and promoted me to a number of positions on the national and international stage.

• I am currently President of the European Association for Vision and Eye Research Foundation (EVER).

• Chairman of the Advisory committee of the International council of ophthalmology.

• Editor in chief of the Journal of EuCornea.

• Member of the Academia Ophthalmologica Internationalis.

• Member of the American Ophthalmological Society.

• Master elect of the Oxford Ophthalmological Congress.

I have been:

• The 9th President of the Royal College of Ophthalmologists, UK (2011–14)

• Chairman Clinical Council for Eye Health Commissioning, England (2013–2015)

• Editor in Chief of the British Journal of Ophthalmology (2007–2014)

• President, European Society of Cornea and Ocular Surface Disease Specialists (EuCornea) (2011–2013)

• President, European Association for Vision and Eye Research Foundation (EVERf;  2010–2014)

• Trustee, Sightsavers International (2004–2012)

• President, European Association for Vision and Eye Research (EVER) (2008).

• I have supervised 47 PhD, MD students

• Published over 350 peer reviewed papers

• Received over a hundred and thirty awards, accolades and eponymous lectures including the Platinum award from the Department of Health UK, The Rotary Foundation Global Alumni Service to Humanity Award (2013) and The Times Higher Education Award UK, 2014 for ‘Research project of the year’ on the discovery of the pre-Descemets layer (Dua’s Layer), which has recently been endorsed by the American Association of Ocular Oncologists and Pathologists.

• One eponymous lecture, “The Dua Lecture” Birmingham, and a seminar room in the Nottingham post-graduate centre, “The Dua Room” have after me.

• I have received Honorary Fellowships (the highest accolade conferred by the respective organisations) from the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, The Royal College of Ophthalmologists, UK and the College of Optometrists, UK.

What is exciting you right now?

My Research, both in clinical management and basic science. It is exciting to see how the discovery of the pre-Descemet’s layer has evolved into direct clinical applications both form our own research but more importantly from research from other independent groups around the world. We have made new discoveries in relation to this and other aspects of corneal transplantation which are either in press or submitted to reputed journals. Major strides have also been made in basic research related to antimicrobial peptides, a less well known area of leading research from my group.

Who inspires you?

My family, my students.

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