Angelica C Scanzera, OD, MPH, FAAO, FSLS
Associate Professor
Director, Tele-Ophthalmology Service
Director, Optometry Fellowship in Medically Necessary Contact Lenses
Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science
Email:
Related Sites:
About
Dr. Angelica Scanzera is an Associate Professor of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences. She is a contact lens specialist and clinician‑scientist whose work centers on health equity and improving access to eye care. Dr. Scanzera serves as the Director of the Tele‑Ophthalmology Service and Contact Lens Fellowship Program at UIC. She is a faculty affiliate in the AI.Health4All Center and Center for Dissemination and Implementation Science (CDIS) at UIC, and clinician lead on the University of Illinois Health System’s Health Equity Committee.
Dr. Scanzera received her BBA from Loyola University Chicago, OD from the New England College of Optometry, MPH in Epidemiology from UIC, and Certificate in Implementation Science from the University of California San Francisco (UCSF). She completed her Residency in Primary Care and Ocular Disease at the Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center in North Chicago, IL, followed by a clinical Fellowship in Advanced Medically Necessary Contact Lenses at UIC.
A specialist in medically necessary contact lenses, Dr. Scanzera fits soft, rigid gas permeable, hybrid, and scleral lenses for acute and chronic ocular conditions, and is certified in the use of EyePrintPRO, an impression‑based scleral lens. Her clinical interests include improving vision from corneal irregularities as well as reducing symptoms from severe ocular surface disease.
Her experience providing clinical care in Federally Qualified Health Centers, including Mile Square Health Center, served as the foundation for her career as a health equity researcher and implementation scientist. She has previously been awarded a pilot grant from the Center for Health Equity Research (CHER) Chicago and was selected for the UIC Department of Ophthalmology K12 Clinician Scientist Development Program. She is currently funded by a K23 Career Development Award through the National Eye Institute, focused on improving access to eye care for Medicaid patients with diabetic retinopathy. Dr. Scanzera applies human-centered design and implementation science to understand how structural factors influence disparities in eye care access and to develop interventions to reduce these inequities.
Dr. Scanzera is a Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry (AAO), Diplomate of the Public Health & Environmental Vision Section of AAO, and Fellow of the Scleral Lens Education Society (SLS). She serves on the AAO Access, Collaboration, and Engagement Committee and the AcademyHealth Health Equity Interest Group Advisory Council. She joined the faculty of the Department of Ophthalmology at UIC in 2016.
Selected Publications
- Scanzera AC, Tu E, Joslin CE. Acanthamoeba Keratitis in Minors with Orthokeratology (OK) Lens Use: A Case Series. Eye & Contact lens. 2020.
- Hallak J, Scanzera AC, Azar DT, Chan RP. Artificial Intelligence in Ophthalmology during COVID-19 and in the post COVID-19 Era. Current Opinion in Ophthalmology. July 2020.
- Scanzera AC, Cole E, Valikodath N, Pham C, Vajaranant TS, Edward DP, Hallak J,Leiderman YI, Kalinoski L, MacIntosh P, Aref AA, Shukla D, Bhat P, Tu E, Chan RP. Implementation of COVID-19 Protocols and Tele-Triage in an Academic Ophthalmology Department. Journal of Academic Ophthalmology. 2020.
- Scanzera AC, Dunbar G, Shah V, Cortina S, Leiderman YI, Shorter E. Visual Rehabilitation with Contact Lenses Following Open Globe Trauma. Eye & Contact Lens. 2020.
- Scanzera AC, Kim SJ, Paul Chan RV. Teleophthalmology and the Digital Divide: Inequities Highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Eye (Lond). 2020.
- Scanzera AC, Thermozier S, Chang AY, Kim SJ, Chan RVP. Adherence to Urgent Eye Visits during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Population Characteristics Study. Ophthalmic Epidemiol. 2021 Dec 13:1-8.
- Ndukwe T, Cole E, Scanzera AC, Chervinko MA, Chiang MF, Campbell JP, Chan RVP. Health Equity and Disparities in ROP Care: A Need for Systematic Evaluation. Front
Pediatr. 2022;10:806691. - Scanzera AC, Deeley M, Joslin C, McMahon TT, Shorter E. Contact Lens Prescribing Trends for Keratoconus at an Academic Medical Center: Increased Utilization of Scleral Lenses for Severe Disease. Eye Contact Lens. 2022 Feb 1;48(2):58-62.
- Scanzera AC, Kravets S, Hallak JA, Musick H, Krishnan JA, Chan RVP, Kim SJ. Evaluating the Relationship between Neighborhood-Level Social Vulnerability and Patient Adherence to Ophthalmology Appointments. Ophthalmic Epidemiol. 2023 Feb 23:1-10.
- Scanzera AC, Nyenhuis SM, Rudd BN, Ramaswamy M, Mazzucca S, Castro M, Kennedy DJ, Mermelstein RJ, Chambers DA, Dudek SM, Krishnan JA. Building a new regional home for implementation science: Annual Midwest Clinical & Translational Research Meetings. J Investig Med. 2023 Mar 31:10815589231166102.
See a representative list of Dr. Scanzera’s published journal articles PubMed and Google Scholar
Education
OD: New England College of Optometry
Residency in Primary Care and Ocular Disease: Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center
Clinical Fellowship in Advanced Medically Necessary Contact Lenses: Illinois Eye and Ear Infirmary at UIC
MPH in Epidemiology: University of Illinois Chicago
Certificate in Implementation Science: University of California San Francisco