• The Bedford Eye Care Centre Team
• Careers with Bedford Eye Care Centre

Team Members

Dr. Erin Sheppard

Profile

Erin grew up in Cole Harbour, Nova Scotia. When she was 12 years old, she accompanied her mother to a routine eye examination. Riding home on the bus from Halifax, she turned to her mother and said “That’s what I want to be when I grow up – an optometrist”. She completed a Bachelor of Science with an Advanced Major in Biology from Dalhousie University and graduated with First Class Honours with Distinction in 1999. She then spent the next four years at the University of Waterloo’s School of Optometry, pausing briefly in 2000 to marry her husband, Patrick (also from Cole Harbour), before graduating in 2003.

Erin spent her first year in Halifax, working at several different offices before eventually relocating to Bridgewater where she practiced in both Bridgewater and Liverpool for the next 6 years. After welcoming 2 boys to their family, Erin and Patrick decided to relocate back to HRM and have since settled in Bedford – a short drive from two very ecstatic sets of grandparents.
 

Education

Dr. Sheppard attended Dalhousie University from 1995-1999, and received a Bachelors of Science in Biology. She then attended the University of Waterloo in Waterloo, Ontario, where she graduated with a Doctor of Optometry in 2003.

Clinical Training

During Dr. Sheppard’s final year at the University of Waterloo, she completed an externship at Health Plus Optometry in Calgary, AB. This externship included rotations through ophthalmology clinics specializing in laser eye surgery, glaucoma and cataract surgery, corneal surgery, retinal surgery and pediatric ophthalmology.

Work History

Dr. Sheppard spent her first year of practice at several different clinics in HRM as well as occasionally filling in for the Clinical Director at TLC, doing pre and post operative care of LASIK and PRK patients. She then moved to the South Shore and practiced in Bridgewater and Liverpool for the next 6 years. She has spent the past year working in Cole Harbour and is now delighted to join the Bedford Eye Care Centre.

Professional Involvement

Dr. Sheppard is an active member of the Canadian Association of Optometrists, the Nova Scotia Association of Optometrists and the Nova Scotia College of Optometrists. She Chaired the Children’s Vision Committee from 2003-2005 and until recently had served as the Children’s Vision Initiative representative from Nova Scotia for the Canadian Association of Optometrists. She joined the Association Council in 2005 and served as a Councilor until 2007 when she became the Vice President. At this time, she also Chaired the College Mediation Committee – a position she currently maintains. From 2009-2011, she took on the role of Secretary-Treasurer and as of November 2011, she was elected President of the Association – a position she will hold until 2013.

Dr. Sheppard is passionate about serving her professional community and finds meeting with colleagues on a provincial and national level to be energizing and inspiring.