About Us

The Optics is web-based initiative that partners with the Department of Ophthalmology and the Students for Blindness Prevention (SBP) group at the George Washington University School of Medicine (GW). Our aim is to increase ophthalmology education, research, and volunteer opportunities within the GW and DC communities. 

Our Team

  • Jason Dossantos

    Co-Founder
    President
    Director of Research
    GW On-Call Editor-in-Chief
    Class of 2025

  • Priyanka Bhatnagar

    Co-President-Elect
    Director of Education
    Class of 2026

  • Yusuf Bade

    Co-President-Elect
    GW On-Call Co-Editor-in-Chief
    Class of 2026

  • Nitya Kumar

    Vice President
    Director of Social Media
    Class of 2027

  • Tyler Muser

    Treasurer
    Chief Website Developer
    Class of 2025

  • Shaleen Arora

    GW On-Call Editor
    Class of 2025

  • Mike Nguyen

    Co-Director of Volunteering
    Event Coordinator
    Class of 2026

  • Hannah Becker

    GW On-Call
    Co-Editor-in-Chief
    Second Sight Director
    Class of 2026

  • Jacob Diaz

    Co-Director of Volunteering
    Class of 2026

  • Sinan Akosman

    Co-Director of Research
    Class of 2026

Faculty and Resident Leadership

  • David Belyea, MD MBA

    Chairman, Department of Ophthalmology
    Professor of Ophthalmology
    Daniel P. Shepard, MD, and Dennis D. Shepard, MD, Endowed Chair
    GW On-Call Faculty Reviewer

  • Julie Thomasian, MD

    Co-Founder
    GW On-Call Resident Editor
    PGY-2

Alumni

  • Braedon Murdock, MD

    Co-Founder
    Comprehensive Ophthalmology
    Private Practice, Utah

  • Masumi Asahi, DO

    Retina Senior Fellow
    UC Irvine Gavin Herbert Eye Institute

  • Devin Hill, MD

    PGY1 Ophthalmology Resident
    Brooke Army Medical Center