Oculus Research

 Carol Aune, OD is the President and Director of Clinical Operations as well as a principal investigator for Oculus Research. She is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and University of Houston College of Optometry. She is a practicing optometrist and acts as the principal investigator for multiple research studies. As Director of Clinical Operations, Dr. Aune is responsible for overseeing staff and sub investigators. She has years of experience diagnosing and treating a wide variety of eye disease as well fitting specialty contact lenses. She has been fully trained in clinical research including current GCP training. She also receives ongoing training to ensure that she is up to date with the latest research, technology, practices, and techniques in clinical research and optometry.

 Rosemarie Pladna is the Director of Quality Assurance for Oculus Research (OR). She  received her BA in Biology and Associate Degree in Nursing at Youngstown  State University. Prior to joining OR, she worked in the Pharmaceutical Industry for over 21 years. Rosemarie’s  career at GlaxoSmithKline included experience as a Senior Clinical  Research Scientist, Clinical Compliance Manager and ultimately an  Account Director for R&D Internal Audit. She was the recipient of a  Platinum Award for her successful work in hosting FDA inspections in  France, Germany and the USA, keeping the company in good standing. She  provides guidance to the OR staff with regard to Good Clinical Practice  in the conduct of human subject research. 

 Hoda Gabriel is a clinical research and development professional with 30 years of experience directing, designing, planning, and successfully executing early and late phase clinical drug programs within the pharmaceutical industry. In addition to Oculus Research, Ms. Gabriel is currently the Sr. Director of Clinical Development at T3D Therapeutics. Prior to her current positions, she held director‐level positions with GlaxoSmithKline and Talecris (now Grifols), where she led several international programs and teams to successful NDA/MAA submissions. Additionally, she founded two independent clinical research companies. Ms. Gabriel has experience in the development of multiple therapeutic areas including CNS, Urology, Metabolic, Cardiovascular, Pain, Dermatology and Peripheral Arterial Disease. 

Adel Fahmy is the Chief Financial Officer for Oculus Research. He is also an adjunct professor at North Carolina State University, Duke University, and Durham Tech, where he teaches Computer Engineering and General Engineering. His recent endeavors come after a 30 year career with IBM as Program Director for Software Development and Services. He also served for 16 years as the Treasurer for The Caring Community Foundation, an organization that helps cancer patients, who are in need, with necessary expenses during treatment. He helped the organization raise more than $2M. 

  Jennifer Newsome is the Senior Clinical Coordinator for Oculus Research. She began her career with a degree in Medical Office Administration, leading to her immediate focus in Ophthalmology. She also completed the Ophthalmic Assistant certification process (COA) with the Joint Commission on Allied Heath Personnel in Ophthalmology.  Since 2005, she has worked with various Retina and Glaucoma specialists, Ophthalmologists and Optometrists, assisting in direct patient care for the treatment of multiple eye diseases, laser therapy, and ophthalmic surgery. Following her ten years of ophthalmic clinical experience, Jennifer refocused on clinical research. Her passion for research stems from her deep desire to aid in the advancement of new treatments that will improve the quality of people’s lives. Jennifer has received current Good Clinical Practice (GCP) training, is a Certified Phlebotomist, International Air Transport Association (IATA) trained, and is CPR certified. 

  Erik Aune is the Director of Business Development for Oculus Research. He is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. After completing flight school and receiving his Commercial Pilot License, he worked as a flight instructor before moving on to a career in Optometry. He received training and worked in nearly all facets of the Optometry business including medical billing, collections, lens lab, contacts, patient care, and sales. He also received is a Paraoptometric Certification (CPO) with the American Optometric Association and HIPAA training. In addition to his experience in Optometry, his clinical research experience includes research coordinator duties, IP management and storage, IP dosing/unmasked duties, and current GCP training. Erik also handles regulatory documents for study start-up and manages patient recruitment and retention for Oculus Research.