March 24, 2026
Meredith Bishop, OD, MS
The Global Myopia Awareness Coalition (GMAC) recently announced its 2026 Board of Directors. Meredith Bishop, OD, MS, FAAO, Global Medical Education, Vision at Johnson & Johnson, was officially named the 2026-2027 GMAC Board Chair, alongside Roni Kennison, VP Product Strategy & Development at UnitedHealthcare Vision, who will serve as Co-chair.
Following Dr. Bishop’s appointment, Review of Myopia Management interviewed her to find out her plans for how the organization will continue working toward its mission of raising awareness and promoting a greater understanding of childhood myopia as a treatable disease.
Review of Myopia Management (RMM): Let’s start with some of your own background, including how you got started in the eye care industry, as well as your current role with Johnson & Johnson and this new role with GMAC.
Meredith Bishop, OD, MS: Both of my parents had careers in health care, so I knew I wanted to do something in that field. Optometry was always really appealing to me because I have high myopia and my whole family wore contacts and glasses growing up. I went to the Indiana University School of Optometry. While I was there, I was introduced to clinical research, and I fell in love with contact lens research. I did my OD and MS concurrently, and then I stayed on for four years as a research faculty member after I graduated from IU.
In 2013, I joined our Vision business at Johnson & Johnson in research and development (R&D). I was one of the research optometrists designing and executing clinical trials and working throughout the innovation process. About five years ago, I switched to a global medical education role where I develop an education strategy and create assets that can be used globally to help educate eye care professionals.
RMM: What involvement do you have with myopia management in your role with Johnson & Johnson?
Dr. Bishop: I’ve had the chance to contribute to some of the myopia clinicals during my R&D role, and I currently lead our myopia management strategy and asset creation from a global medical education standpoint.
I’m looking forward to amplifying GMAC’s efforts to drive eye exams and awareness of myopia management options.
RMM: Transitioning into your role with GMAC, what has it been like so far working with them and being named Board Chair?
Dr. Bishop: GMAC unites industry partners and professional associations to raise awareness of myopia prevention among consumers and ECPs. It has been a great experience working with GMAC so far, and I am excited and honored to be named Board Chair of such a great organization.
RMM: Recently, several international organizations have become GMAC members. How do you think this helps the myopia management field overall?
Dr. Bishop: Bringing international organizations into GMAC is incredibly valuable because the collection of experiences enables us to share knowledge, strategies and best practices from around the world. By collaborating globally, we can address unique regional challenges, learn from each other’s successes and ultimately drive more effective myopia awareness and management strategies around the world.
RMM: GMAC has had some big myopia awareness campaigns in the last couple of years. Are there any plans for similar initiatives or ideas about what the future holds for building awareness?
Dr. Bishop: This year, GMAC’s main goal is to increase awareness about myopia management and prevention strategies by leveraging social media and engaging more with organizations and associations. We have developed a robust toolkit full of educational information and resources, and we’re now focusing on building awareness so that more people can access and use this toolkit.
The toolkit is entirely free to use and ECPs can download it from the GMAC website.
The reason we developed this resource is because we found that some ECPs who aren’t as familiar with myopia management may not have the knowledge, resources or time to create myopia management assets. It can be intimidating to create brochures to talk about myopia management. Having this free toolkit easily accessible allows ECPs to use their time to share these important resources in their practices. By providing this toolkit, we’re taking away the heavy lifting of gathering knowledge and providing a starting point.
RMM: What goals do you have planned, and how does that fit in with the overall GMAC mission?
Dr. Bishop: My two big goals for 2026 are providing ECPs with the toolkit and resources needed to educate parents and children about myopia and increasing our partnerships with global professional associations. These goals align with the overall GMAC mission to increase public awareness about the growing prevalence and consequences of myopia, especially in children.
RMM: Long term, what do you see as the goals of GMAC and your involvement with them as the new board chair?
Dr. Bishop: The overall long-term goal is greater global awareness of myopia so that more ECPs can better understand the tools that are available to them and introduce these resources to patients, all in an effort to lower the prevalence of myopia. Every industry partner and professional association that is part of GMAC wants a stronger awareness of myopia, and we plan to educate ECPs and patients on why myopia is a problem and what can be done about this common eye disorder.
As board chair, I believe giving ECPs improved tools and resources helps parents and children understand the need for myopia control and their options.
RMM: How do you think your role with Johnson & Johnson has helped prepare you for this role with GMAC?
Dr. Bishop: My roles at Johnson & Johnson have set me up nicely for understanding both the in-depth R&D of myopia management, and how to share the important educational message with an ECP so they feel confident discussing the tools and resources available to their patients and parents.
RMM: What are you most excited about in this new role?
Dr. Bishop: I’m really looking forward to getting to know the other members of GMAC. There are many industry members and professional associations around the world that not everyone is as familiar with. Getting to know their goals and what educational tools they have, and learning from them as they learn from us, is exciting. These partnerships will help expand GMAC’s global presence and impact.
