Associate Professor Mitchell Lawlor

After completing 4 years of ophthalmology training at Sydney Eye Hospital, he undertook a further 3 years of sub-specialty training. This began with 4 months in India and Timor Leste performing cataract surgery, followed by an observership at the Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. He then moved to London for 3 years to complete dual fellowships in neuro-ophthalmology and surgical glaucoma. These were both undertaken at Moorfields Eye Hospital, which is the largest eye hospital in Europe. The experience provided unparalleled exposure to dealing with the medical and surgical management of complex eye disease.

Dr Lawlor is able to provide advice on all aspects of glaucoma diagnosis and management, and he performs all forms of glaucoma laser and surgery. This includes cataract surgery for closed angle glaucoma, “cataract plus” procedures to reduce dependence on eye drops for glaucoma, trabeculectomy filtration surgery, and tube shunt surgery. His particular areas of interest are normal tension glaucoma, and the surgical management of complex secondary glaucomas. Mitchell has received peer reviewed research funding from groups such as the Australian Vision Research and the Sydney Eye Hospital Foundation. He has over 50 original research publications in peer-reviewed journals including PRER, IOVS, Ophthalmology Glaucoma, Survey of Ophthalmology and the British Journal of Ophthalmology.

Dr Lawlor has a PhD in bioethics from the University of Sydney where he remains a clinical academic. He has an active research program including peer reviewed grant funding and numerous publications of primary research. He works as a Consultant Ophthalmologist at Sydney Eye and Royal Prince Alfred Hospitals. He is the NSW chair of the RANZCO education committee where he has oversight of training the next generation of eye surgeons.
His current research is focused on improving outcomes from glaucoma and cataract surgery. He is the Chief Investigator of the Fight Glaucoma Blindness registry, which is one of the world’s largest glaucoma registries with the goal of improving outcomes from glaucoma surgery and ensuring each patient has access to the best procedure for their given situation.

Mitchell has a longstanding commitment to development work in low-resource settings in the Asia-Pacific region, with work in Cambodia, East Timor, Solomon Islands, Mongolia and Myanmar. He previously served as a director for the eye health foundation, Foresight Australia.