Award-winning contact lens research with Dr Debarun Dutta
College Clinical Adviser Denise Voon MCOptom talks to Dr Debarun Dutta MCOptom, clinical scientist, Director of Research and Senior Lecturer at Aston University, where he leads contact lens education. Debarun is also Academic Chair and President-elect of the British Contact Lens Association (BCLA) and Vice Chair of the British and Irish University and College Contact Lens Educators.
In 2025, Debarun received the Frank Petticrew Award for contact lens research at the College of Optometrists Diploma ceremony, recognising his work on antimicrobial contact lenses and technologies to make rigid gas permeable (RGP) lenses more comfortable. He shares what drives his research and what it could mean for practice.
We also catch up with Eve Barrett, who has just started her PhD at Ulster University, as we begin following her journey through postgraduate research.