Russell L. Woods, PhD, Associate Professor of Ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School and Associate Scientist at Schepens Eye Research Institute of Mass Eye and Ear, is the 2021 recipient of the Low Vision Research Award from Research to Prevent Blindness (RPB) and the Lions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF). The award is designed to serve as a catalyst to launch brand new lines of research that target damage to the visual system.
Dr. Woods will receive $300,000 over three years for his research that aims to better understand how the visual system responds to the loss of foveal vision. He also plans to develop and evaluate the feasibility of a novel vision rehabilitation intervention that employs perceptual learning, oculo-motor training, and scotoma awareness training. If successful, this vision training approach could potentially open a new category of vision rehabilitation methods for patients with central vision loss.
Dr. Woods has contributed to over 100 original research investigations and has been invited to present his research at regional, national, and international conferences, including the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) and the 11th International Conference on Low Vision in Melbourne, Australia. Nationally recognized in the field of vision science, he has chaired the Vision Science Section of the American Academy of Optometry, and the Low Vision Cross-Sectional Group, Annual Meeting Program Committee for ARVO. Dr Woods directs both the Lions Vision Assessment Laboratory and the NIH-funded Laboratory Computer Applications Module, which is part of the P30 vision core at Schepens Eye Research Institute of Mass Eye and Ear.