Paul Murphy

Dr. Paul J Murphy graduated from Cardiff University in 1988 with a BSc in Ophthalmic Optics, and completed his training at the Newcastle General Hospital, Department of Ophthalmology, Newcastle-upon-Tyne. He obtained his optometric licence in 1990 from the General Optical Council (UK), and entered practice at the Royal Victoria Hospital, Contact Lens and Low Vision Unit, Belfast.

In 1993 Dr. Murphy enrolled as a graduate student under the supervision of Professor Sudi Patel and Professor John Marshall, and he was awarded his PhD from Glasgow Caledonian University in 1996 with a thesis entitled: “An examination of human corneal sensitivity by non-invasive methods”. Subsequently, he completed a post-doctoral fellowship and was appointed a Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in the Department of Vision Sciences at Glasgow Caledonian University in 1997. In 2001, he was appointed Director of Teaching and Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor); School of Optometry and Vision Sciences, Cardiff University and was promoted to reader in 2007. While at Cardiff, he established the Contact Lens and Anterior Eye Research Unit (CLAER). Through this research unit, he collaborated with colleagues in the UK and Europe, and developed novel systems for imaging the ocular surface and tear film. He was appointed as the President of the European Academy of Optometry and Optics in 2013.

In 2013, Dr. Murphy was appointed director of the School of Optometry and Vision Science at the University of Waterloo, and also completed his MBA at the University of South Wales. In 2015, he was appointed an honorary professor at Cardiff University. In 2016 he stepped down from the position of Director. He has established the Murphy Laboratory of Experimental Optometry within the School of Optometry. His research interests are concentrated on the anterior ocular surface, and include instrument design, contact lens wear, tear film physiology, ocular anatomy and corneal sensation. He has published in these areas, and in topics as varied as visual impairment, eye movement and optometric practice.

Dr. Murphy is a member of the Centre for Bioengineering and Biotechnology (CBB), and a collaborator with the Centre for Ocular Research and Education (CORE) at the University of Waterloo. He is a fellow of the College of Optometrists (UK), the American Academy of Optometry, the European Academy of Optometry and Optics, and the British Contact Lens Association.

• Clinical Imaging

• Ocular Biology

• Technology and Optics

• Neuroscience

• Optical Devices

Ocular surface sensation

Tear film dynamics and dry eye

Ocular surface shape

Contact lens wear complications

Optometric instrumentation

Student satisfaction/expectation surveys

• 2013 MBA, University of South Wales

• 2000 Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) in Tertiary Level Teaching Methods (TLTM), Glasgow Caledonian University

• 1996 PhD Optometry, Glasgow Caledonian University

• 1988 BSc Ophthalmic Optics, Cardiff University

• Fellow, College of Optometrists, UK (FCOptom)

• Fellow, American Academy of Optometry (FAAO)

• Fellow, British Contact Lens Association (FBCLA)

• Fellow, European Academy of Optometry and Optics (FEAOO)

• College of Optometrists, UK

• American Academy of Optometry, USA

• Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, USA

• European Academy of Optometry and Optics, UK

• British Contact Lens Association, UK

• OPTOM 152 - Clinical Techniques 1
  • Taught in 2022
• OPTOM 170 - Public Health Optometry
  • Taught in 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025
• OPTOM 245L - Diseases of the Eye 1 Laboratory
  • Taught in 2020, 2021
• OPTOM 252L - Clinical Techniques 2 Laboratory
  • Taught in 2020
• OPTOM 347L - Contact Lenses 1 Laboratory
  • Taught in 2022, 2023, 2024
• OPTOM 367 - Contact Lenses 2
  • Taught in 2024, 2025
• OPTOM 670 - Vision Science Part 1
  • Taught in 2024

* Only courses taught in the past 5 years are displayed.

• Shahsavari N, Zare Bidaki E, Wong A and Murphy PJ (2025). Improvements in image registration, segmentation, and artifact removal in ThermOcular imaging system. J Imaging 11:131

• Turner JM, Chi HL and Murphy PJ (2025). The Cardiff Eye Shape Analysis Protocol (CESAP): producing a digital representation of the anterior ocular surface. Heliyon 11: e42601

• Mungalsingh MA, Thompson B, Peterson SD and Murphy PJ (2025). Modelling the thermal effects of stimulus airflow from the Dolphin aesthesiometer on a model eye surface. Ophthal Physiol Opt 45: 361-371

• Shahsavari N, Murphy PJ, Wong A and Zare Bidaki E (2024). Towards precision in ocular surface temperature measurement: Improvements in the ThermOcular system's image segmentation. J Comp Vis Imag Sys 9: 15-18

• Mungalsingh MA, Thompson B, Peterson SD and Murphy PJ (2024). Stimulus characteristics of a novel air-based multiple stimulus aesthesiometer. Ophthalmic Physiol Opt 44: 32-41

• Bidaki EZ, Wong A and Murphy PJ (2023). A novel system for ocular surface temperature measurement and tracking. IEEE Access 11: 140893-140899

• Van Tilborg MMA, Murphy PJ, Evans KS and Kort HSM (2023). Office workers with dry eye symptoms: workplace environment satisfaction and lifestyle effects. Optom Cont Lens 3: 375-384

• Zare Bidaki E, Wong A and Murphy PJ (2023). A novel computational thermal-visual imaging system for automatic cornea temperature measurement and tracking. J Comp Vis Imag Sys 8:20-23

• Monfared N and Murphy PJ (2023). Features and influences on the normal tear evaporation rate. Cont Lens Anterior Eye 46(2): 101809