Our day surgeries offer the ideal operating solution for smaller/solo surgical practices, across a wide range of specialties including ophthalmology, IVF, gynaecology, pain management, orthopaedics, general surgery, plastic surgery, ENT, gastroenterology and dermatology. The Vision Hospital Group day surgeries are expertly managed by a long-established and experienced provider, Vision Eye Institute, which operates a number of surgeries and clinics throughout Australia.
We are dedicated to providing state-of-the-art equipment and technology to support the latest surgical techniques, optimise patient outcomes and ensure patient comfort at all times. Examples of some of our technology include Alcon LenSx® Femtosecond Laser System, Alcon Centurion® Vision System, VERION Digital Toric Marker, reinforced operating tables and premium-quality instrumentation. Our Windsor Gardens Day Surgery has also installed the CANEXIS™ Endoscope track and trace software – a first for the Asia-Pacific region.
Vision Hospital Group comprises 10 day surgeries across New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia.
New South Wales
South Australia
Our Executive Leadership Team provides strategic direction to ensure that Vision Hospital Group delivers on its key commitments and values.
James has spent over 30 years working in healthcare in both the public and private sectors. He joined Vision Eye Institute in 2017 as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director. James is ultimately responsible for ensuring Vision Eye Institute delivers the highest quality of care to its patients and that the organisation delivers on its strategic priorities.
Immediately prior to joining Vision Eye Institute, James was the Group CEO and Managing Director of Monash IVF Group (ASX:MVF) for eight years. Monash IVF Group is one of the most respected fertility care providers in Australia and the world.
Over his career in healthcare, James has been the CEO of Noosa Private Hospital on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast and held senior roles with Ramsay Health Care, Affinity Health, Mayne Health and Health Care of Australia. Before moving to the private health industry, James held senior policy and planning positions in the public sector with the Queensland Department of Health.
James holds a Bachelor of Business (Health Administration) from Queensland University of Technology and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Griffith University. He is also a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
James lives in Melbourne with his family (when he’s not travelling) and in his spare time is a (terra firma) long-boarding tragic – just ask his embarrassed teenage son.
Peter is a Chartered Accountant with over 20 years’ experience across numerous well-known companies. He is an accomplished Chief Financial Officer (CFO) with a proven track record of adding commercial and operational value, executing strategic outcomes and enacting positive business change.
Before joining Vision Eye Institute, Peter was CFO of Ramsay Pharmacy Group, the centralised pharmacy division of Ramsay Health Care. Here he oversaw substantive business transformation and creation through a large-scale acquisition program and strong organic growth.
Peter started his career at Ernst & Young, after which he spent time in London at leading investment banks. On his return to Australia, he managed the finance team of Village Roadshow Production Group (part of Village Roadshow Limited). He then went on to lead the management consulting division of a boutique consultancy firm.
In late 2019, Peter commenced his role as CFO of Vision Eye Institute where he aims to utilise his wealth of experience to add value, drive strategy and help grow the organisation.
Peter loves spending time with his family. Outside of this he is passionate about kite-surfing (particularly chasing large storm fronts) and when it’s not windy he enjoys downhill mountain biking.
Karen joined Vision Eye Institute in 2011 as Company Secretary. She is responsible for supporting the Vision Eye Institute Board and its directors, ensuring the company’s compliance with the Corporations Act and overseeing corporate governance within the organisation generally.
Before joining Vision Eye Institute, she held Company Secretary or Secretariat Manager roles at several large ASX-listed corporations, including Symbion Health Limited, Mayne Pharma Limited, Mayne Group Limited and Colonial Limited. There she was involved with a number of strategic initiatives and projects, including mergers and acquisitions activity and capital raising, along with the usual secretariat responsibilities.
Karen holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Western Australia and a Graduate Diploma in Applied Corporate Governance. She is a Fellow of Governance Institute of Australia.
Karen lives in Melbourne and is mother of two teenage girls. She spends much of her time ferrying them to and from their many sports activities.
Siobhan has been part of the Vision Eye Institute team for over 20 years, starting in 1997 at the Bondi Junction clinic. During this time, she has held a variety of roles across the business, including Practice Manager at Bondi Junction and St Kilda Road, Call Centre Manager and Business Support Manager.
As Group Marketing Manager, Siobhan oversees Vision Eye Institute’s strategic marketing and promotion, cementing its position as one of Australia’s leading providers of high-quality patient care and institutional excellence. She also oversees communications across Vision Eye Institute’s 27 clinics and day surgeries, including internal, patient and referrer touch points. In addition, Siobhan liaises with peak industry bodies to collaborate on public and healthcare professional education initiatives.
Siobhan has a strong interest in the People and Culture function of the group. She believes in fostering a culture of excellence that attracts and supports world-class ophthalmologists, ensuring the best possible outcome for Vision Eye Institute’s patients.
Siobhan is a busy mother of three teenagers therefore spare time is precious and generally spent taking long walks on the beach.
Cathie has been part of the Vision Eye Institute family for over 16 years. She is currently the General Manager of Operations for North Queensland, with oversight of the consulting and laser practices. Cathie enjoys seeing every member of the Vision Eye Institute team contributing to the organisation’s mission – ‘Transforming lives, that’s our vision.’
Prior to joining Vision Eye Institute, Cathie held a clinical role as an orthoptist at the Royal Alexandra Hospital for Children. After being appointed Deputy Director of Administrative Services, she formed part of the team that oversaw the hospital’s relocation to its new facility, The Children’s Hospital at Westmead (CHW). Project management of the construction of Ronald McDonald House, Westmead and Bear Cottage, were other significant responsibilities during her tenure with CHW.
Cathie has a Master of Health Administration from the University of New South Wales and a Diploma of Applied Science (Orthoptics) from Cumberland College of Health Sciences.
Amanda has over 30 years’ experience working in both the public and private healthcare sectors. She commenced her clinical career in Queensland, working as an orthoptist in private practice as well as for Queensland Health, before transitioning to operational management in 2007.
Amanda has held several senior roles with Vision Eye Institute, including Victorian Orthoptic Team Leader, Victorian Business Manager and National Operations Manager. Throughout this time, she has overseen significant business growth and expansion of the organisation.
Amanda’s current role has seen her project manage the building of Panch Day Surgery Centre in Melbourne, which opened in October 2015. The following year, she managed the major refurbishment of Level 3 at RiverCity Private Hospital in Brisbane, which saw the reassignment of patient wards into specialist consulting space. Amanda also has national responsibility for day surgery health fund negotiation.
As a member of the Executive Leadership Team, Amanda is responsible for the overall operational management, strategy and growth of the Victorian and Brisbane consulting and laser businesses, ensuring the highest quality patient care and institutional excellence.
She is also a Board Director of Alina Vision, a social enterprise that aims to address the rising demand for eye health services in the world’s most underserved communities.
Outside of work, Amanda likes to indulge in her passion of cooking and spending great times around the table with her family.
Rodney has over 15 years’ experience in the healthcare sector. He has been the Chief Financial Officer for a number of organisations and brings considerable financial and commercial management skills to Vision Eye Institute. His broad expertise also includes risk management, governance, stakeholder management, legal and project management.
As General Manager of Business Development, Rodney oversees the Group’s acquisitions, joint ventures, major financial investments and a range of ongoing business growth initiatives.
He is also the Director and Treasurer of Day Hospitals Australia, the peak industry body representing day surgeries across the country. As part of this role, he represents Day Hospitals Australia on the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (ACSQHC) Private Sector Committee.
Rodney has a Master of Business Administration (AGSM) and a Bachelor of Commerce. He is also a Chartered Accountant.
Claire has worked in healthcare for 20 years, predominantly in private hospitals. She has a clinical background in nursing and spent most of her nursing career in the operating theatre. She also has experience across many health disciplines, ranging from transformation programs to Aged Care.
Born and raised in Tasmania, Claire completed her undergraduate nursing degree at the University of Tasmania. She undertook her graduate year at Calvary Health Care Tasmania, where she discovered her passion for theatre nursing. After moving to Perth in 2013, Claire was fortunate enough to work in a number of roles for both St John of God Health Care and Healthscope. Most recently, Claire has worked in General Manager and Director of Nursing roles. She greatly enjoys leading teams to improve the delivery of individualised, holistic care to the community.
Claire moved to Melbourne and joined Vision Eye Institute in 2020, where she is responsible for overseeing the Group’s world-class day surgery portfolio and provides leadership to the Directors of Nursing and associate staff. Claire also works in conjunction with the Medical Advisory Board (MAB) and Clinical Care Committee (CCC) to oversee clinical governance, quality and clinical risk management across the organisation.
Despite having to manage an ongoing Hawthorn versus Essendon rivalry, Claire enjoys spending time with her family. She has two children who keep their mother on-trend and on her toes.
Greg has spent 40 years in healthcare, in both the public and private sectors. He joined Vision Eye Institute in 2022 as the acting General Manager of Windsor Gardens Day Surgery in Adelaide and was recently appointed General Manager of the consulting and laser suites in New South Wales and South Australia.
Before joining Vision Eye Institute, Greg was the Group CEO for Ramsay Sime Darby Health Care based in Malaysia – a role that involved overseeing the Group’s private hospitals in Indonesia and Malaysia, as well as their day surgery centre in Hong Kong. He worked for Ramsay Health Care for 17 years, starting as the CEO of North Shore Private Hospital in Sydney and the Executive Operations Manager (Sydney Metropolitan Hospitals) before relocating to Malaysia.
Greg has held senior executive positions in the management of public and private hospitals, radiology practices, medical centres and multiple business units in Asia, metropolitan Sydney, Queensland, the Australian Capital Territory and regional New South Wales. He has a strong financial background with a strategic focus and has had significant experience in major refurbishment and new development projects, as well as the acquisition of businesses in Australia and Asia.
Greg loves spending time with his large family. Together with wife Michelle, he has 7 children and 13 grandchildren – all of whom live in New South Wales and Victoria.
Our medical advisory board provides expert guidance to our Executive Leadership Team to ensure that Vision Hospital Group delivers clinical and scientific excellence and best-practice care to our patients. The board is comprised of highly accomplished surgeons and specialists with an incredible wealth of knowledge and clinical experience.
James has spent over 30 years working in healthcare in both the public and private sectors. He joined Vision Eye Institute in 2017 as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director. James is ultimately responsible for ensuring Vision Eye Institute delivers the highest quality of care to its patients and that the organisation delivers on its strategic priorities.
Immediately prior to joining Vision Eye Institute, James was the Group CEO and Managing Director of Monash IVF Group (ASX:MVF) for eight years. Monash IVF Group is one of the most respected fertility care providers in Australia and the world.
Over his career in healthcare, James has been the CEO of Noosa Private Hospital on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast and held senior roles with Ramsay Health Care, Affinity Health, Mayne Health and Health Care of Australia. Before moving to the private health industry, James held senior policy and planning positions in the public sector with the Queensland Department of Health.
James holds a Bachelor of Business (Health Administration) from Queensland University of Technology and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Griffith University. He is also a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
Dr Lewis Levitz is a highly experienced ophthalmic surgeon, with a special interest in conventional and laser cataract surgery. He offers his patients the latest in lens technology such as toric and multifocal intraocular lenses. Dr Levitz also has a special interest in reconstructive eyelid surgery (oculoplastics), including eyelid correction, repair and reconstruction, and management of eyelid cancers. In addition to these specialty areas, Dr Levitz also treats general ophthalmological disorders.
Dr Joseph Reich is a highly experienced cataract and refractive surgeon. With the evolution of laser eye technology, Dr Reich has maintained his expertise and performs LASIK and ASLA/PRK.
He also specialises in cataract surgery and refractive lens exchange, and has extensive experience with multifocal and toric lenses. Dr Reich performs complex cataract surgery on patients with co-occuring eye diseases, such as keratoconus, glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy.
Dr Michael Lawless is one of Australia’s most experienced eye surgeons, having performed more than 30,000 surgical procedures. He is a Clinical Professor at Sydney Medical School (University of Sydney) and is recognised throughout the world as an authority on laser eye surgery.
Dr Lawless’s expertise encompasses laser eye surgery (LASIK, ASLA/PRK and SMILE®), cataract and lens replacement surgery (including laser cataract surgery) and phakic intraocular lenses. In addition to his refractive work, Dr Lawless treats corneal conditions using procedures such as corneal cross-linking and corneal transplantation. He is frequently invited to present at major international conferences.
Dr Lee Lenton is a highly respected and experienced cataract and refractive surgeon. Since 1995, he has performed over 15,000 LASIK laser eye surgery procedures. Dr Lenton also specialises in refractive lens exchange and cataract surgery, with expertise in intraocular lens technology. For the past 5 years, Dr Lenton has specialised in cataract and refractive surgery using multifocal IOL insertions, having performed more than 4000 trifocal IOL insertions.
In addition, Dr Lenton manages diseases that affect the surface of the eye (e.g. dry eye, red eye, corneal ulcers and chronic conjunctivitis). He has done pioneering research into dry eye and the use of medicated honey to treat chronic blepharitis and dry eye before and after laser eye surgery and cataract surgery.
Dr Abi Tenen is a highly experienced and well-respected refractive, corneal and cataract surgeon. Her areas of expertise include LASIK, PRK/ASLA, implantable contact lens, refractive lens exchange, keratoconus and collagen cross-linking, intracorneal rings and inlays, pterygium removal and cataract surgery with premium lens implants. By working closely with a broad range of refractive-based procedures, Dr Tenen is able to offer a customised care plan for each patient.
Dr Tenen’s compassionate manner has led her to be extensively involved in various charity and teaching pursuits, including a long-term appointment as Adjunct Senior Lecturer for the School of Primary Healthcare in the Faculty of Medicine at Monash University. She has worked with technologies running in parallel to her ophthalmic work, including programs using neuroplasticity in order to improve vision.
More recently, Dr Tenen has developed a keen interest in regenerative medicine and is involved in leading research focusing on the use of mesenchymal stem cells. As a pioneer in the field, she was involved in the introduction of the femtosecond laser to Australia in 2006 and she continues to stay at the forefront of ophthalmic technologies.
Dr Tenen is a frequent contributor and invited speaker at local and international conferences.
Dr Paul Athanasiov is an experienced ophthalmologist and the Founder and Principal Ophthalmologist at Eye Surgeons SA. His areas of expertise include advanced laser cataract surgery, corneal grafting and surgery, pterygium excision and glaucoma surgery. Dr Athanasiov also diagnoses and treats macular degeneration, diabetic eye disease and keratoconus. In addition, he has been published widely in the areas of cataract, oculoplastic surgery and ocular anaesthesia.
Dr Athanasiov completed his medical training at the University of Adelaide and further sub-specialist training in the areas of cornea, glaucoma and complex cataract surgery at the Royal Adelaide Hospital in 2013. His post-graduate qualifications also include a Master of Medicine (Ophthalmic Science) from the University of Sydney and a Master of Ophthalmology from the University of Adelaide. Since completing his training, he has been the Principal Ophthalmologist at Eye Surgeons SA and has additional consulting locations in Elizabeth Vale and Whyalla in South Australia. To book an appointment with Dr Athanasiov at one of these satellite locations, please call the clinic directly.
All of our day surgeries are fully accredited against National Safety and Quality Health Services Standards and ISO 9001, with an on-site Director of Nursing to lead the clinical support team.
“Auditors comment on how enjoyable it is to audit our facilities because of the standard of Clinical Governance and the high quality of systems and processes that we have in place.”
“All our day surgeries have achieved a perfect score under Version 2 of the National Standards – a really impressive outcome for the individual locations and for Vision Hospital Group as a whole.”
In accordance with our values, Vision Hospital Group endeavours to provide excellent care based on integrity, accountability and team work to deliver high quality patient centered care. This is supported through consumer engagement and feedback to ensure optimal patient outcomes and customer service for those who access our care.
This is achieved by implementing robust quality management systems that meet the requirements of the internationally recognised ISO 9001 Quality Management System, as well as the Australian Commission on Quality and Safety in Health Care National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) Standards (in our day surgeries).
Accreditation to these standards involves:
Vision Hospital Group is committed to a patient-centred care approach which aims to improve the healthcare experience and outcomes of consumers. This is achieved through strong leadership, good corporate governance and effective risk management in a controlled and appropriate manner.
ISO 9001 is one of the most recognisable international standards for quality management – certification indicates that an organisation’s service or product meets a certain level of quality. ISO 9001 is the standard accepted by the NSW Ministry of Health and all private health funds.
The Australian NSQHS Standards were developed to protect the public from harm and improve the quality of health care.
A surveillance audit is undertaken regularly to ensure that our processes are monitored, maintained and reviewed and that improvements are continuously implemented. A re-certification audit is conducted every 3 years, with all safety and quality processes assessed to ensure the standards required by ISO 9001 and the NSQHS are still being met.
Our aim is to deliver world-class health care to patients by focusing on the quality and safety of our services. We promise to provide a safe and comfortable environment for your medical care by focusing on three key areas: infection control, emotional safety and wellbeing and a commitment to quality – you can download our ‘In safe hands’ program outline here.
As Australia’s largest private ophthalmology provider, our aim is to deliver world-class eye care to patients by focusing on the quality and safety of our services. We promise to provide a safe and comfortable environment for your medical care by focusing on three key areas: infection control, emotional safety and wellbeing and a commitment to quality – you can download our ‘In safe hands’ program outline here.