More leadership updates are underway at various companies and institutions around the country in recent weeks. Among them, three new changes were announced.
From two executive appointments at PolyActiva to Bausch + Lomb’s new vice president and Wills Eye Hospital’s new CEO—we’ve got the rundown.
First up: PolyActiva.
Company refresh: The clinical-stage ophthalmology company has developed a proprietary polymeric prodrug technology on which its portfolio of investigational, next-generation ocular implants is based.
- Check out this proprietary tech, dubbed Prezia.
And as for those implants: They’re currently under clinical development as biodegradable therapies for a wider range of ocular diseases.
- Latanoprost FA SR ocular implant (PA5108) for reducing intraocular pressure (IOP) in open-angle glaucoma (OAG) and ocular hypertension (OHT)
- See the latest phase 2a data on this, reported in November 2024
- Levofloxacin ocular implant for reducing endophthalmitis risk following cataract surgery
What’s the company’s goal with these implants?
Quite simply: To reduce patients’ need and reliance on daily eye drop administration for the long-term for glaucoma management.
Alrighty, now to these executive appointments.
The new executives joining PolyActiva’s team include:
- Wes Brazell (Chief Financial Officer)
- Michael Brubaker, PhD (Chief Scientific Officer)
And their respective backgrounds?
With over three decades of leadership experience in the pharma and medical device spaces, Brazell most recently served as CFO at Xequel Bio.
Prior to that, he held several executive positions at:
- Eyevance Pharmaceuticals
- TearLab Corporation
- Alcon
Meanwhile: Brubaker has spent 25+ years in research and development (R&D) leadership roles within the ophthalmic, otic, and respiratory disease spaces—focusing on drug and device development; regulatory strategy; and portfolio leadership.
Prior to joining PolyActiva, he most recently served as CSO at Xequel Bio (yes, the same company as Brazell), and also held senior R&D positions at:
- Novartis
- Bausch + Lomb
- Abbott Laboratories
So what will both of these leaders’ focus be while at PolyActiva?
Most dominantly: The company’s launching of its phase 2b trials on PA5108 to advance its path toward potential U.S. commercialization.
This trial follows PolyActiva’s recent Series C financing win in May 2025, in which the company secured $25 million—as well as the appointment of a new CEO and executive director, Jerry St. Peter.
Stay tuned for details on those upcoming clinical trial plans!
Now let’s move on to Bausch + Lomb.
Earlier this month, Wayne Caulder joined the global eye health organization as vice president and general manager, Surgical for the U.S. and Canada.
About Caulder: He brings 30+ years of eye health industry experience, particularly in the therapeutic areas of: age-related macular degeneration (AMD); cataract; cornea; dry eye; glaucoma; refractive; and retina care.
Prior to B+L, Caulder served in several executive leadership positions at Carl Zeiss Medictec. His previous tenure also extends to:
- i-Optics
- VisionCare Ophthalmic Technologies
- ISTA Pharmaceuticals
His areas of expertise: Customer partnerships; scaling regional operations; and promoting surgical innovation commercialization.
And what will his new role entail at B+L?
Operating within the company’s Surgical division, Caulder is expected to focus on growing its business by “aligning strategic vision with customer needs” across North America.
- More specifically, he’ll head up the charge to expand B+L’s surgical product portfolio.
For a look at what the company has been up to as of late, see here for all our coverage.
Last (but not least), tell us about this new CEO at Wills Eye Hospital.
As one of the nation’s top ophthalmic hospitals, the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based Wills Eye has selected a new leader in the wake of Joseph P. Bilson announcing his retirement earlier this year after 40+ years of service.
The new CEO: Julia A. Haller, MD
Let’s get some background on Dr. Haller.
Dr. Haller has served as Wills Eye’s ophthalmologist-in-chief since 2007—and will, most notably, continue to do so as she assumes her new CEO position.
She is regarded as a top retina surgeon and is also:
- Professor and chair of Ophthalmology at Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- A consultant for Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Her areas of expertise: Extend to retinal disorder treatments, particularly in advanced treatments to combat blindness via sustained drug delivery devices, ocular pharmacotherapy, retinal “chip implants,” and gene therapy.
And what does her new role entail?
While maintaining her current responsibilities as ophthalmologist-in-chief, Dr. Haller’s duties will also extend to working closely with Will Eyes leadership team, physicians, and staff members in maintaining patient care standards.
To put that into a numbers perspective: The organization, which provides general eye care and comprehensive ophthalmic speciality services throughout the Philadelphia metropolitan area—as well as across the country and globe—reportedly sees over 350K patients on an annual basis.
So when is this move official?
It already is! Dr. Haller assumed her new role on July 18.