At a Glance
Dr. Allison Carter Ramsey
Ophthalmic professional and '01 Doctor of Optometry graduate
Hometown: Colleyville, Texas
Degree: Doctor of Optometry, 2001
Fun Fact: Ramsey enjoys playing pickleball and Mahjong, and she has traveled to many countries in Europe, Central America and Asia.
Dr. Alison Carter Ramsey had always planned to be a medical doctor, but that path shifted after a chance encounter in a Sherwin-Williams paint store.
While picking up supplies for her mom, Ramsey ran into her family optometrist. When he asked what she was going to do after high school, she told him she wanted to major in biology and attend medical school.
“He said, ‘Oh, no you don’t! You don’t want to deliver babies in the middle of the night or do hospital rounds at the end of the day. You want to be an optometrist!’” Ramsey says. “He offered to let me shadow him at his practice, which turned into a part-time job while I was in college. I loved it, so I went to optometry school instead of medical school.”
Ramsey earned her OD from UMSL’s College of Optometry in 2001, and she has used her education to launch a powerful career in the ophthalmic industry. A clinical rotation at the University of Utah John A. Moran Eye Center gave her the opportunity to work on a research project with a cornea specialist, and she quickly realized that research and development was a good fit for her inquisitive nature and her desire to make a difference for patients.
“When I started optometry school, I had no clue that my career would take a turn like that, but I’m really grateful that it did,” she says.
Ramsey spent over 20 years at Alcon, culminating in her role as head of clinical evaluations, where she led a global team supporting medical devices. In her most recent position as a medical director at Bausch + Lomb, where she worked through April 2026, she provided clinical leadership and scientific oversight for a portfolio of dietary supplements that support eye health for millions of consumers worldwide. She worked products that were easily accessible and available on the shelf in Target or Costco.
At Bausch + Lomb, Ramsey worked on projects focused on the connection between nutrition, dietary supplements and ocular health. One of the products she worked on, PreserVision AREDS3, contains nutrients studied by the National Eye Institute in connection with age-related macular degeneration, along with a unique B-vitamin complex designed to support healthy cellular function. Much of her professional motivation comes from knowing that people are counting on her products.
“At the end of the day, the patients are waiting,” Ramsey says. “That’s what drives me.”