Project Title: Interaction in Optometric Consultations: The changing role of the optometrist in assessing eye-sight and eye health during and after Covid-19

Supervisor: Professor Dirk vom Lehn, Dr Peter Allen

Year of Entry: 2021, full-time

Holly Dobrzycki is a PhD student with a background in English Language and Linguistics. She is a member of the Public Services Management and Organisation (PSMO) and Work, Interaction and Technology (WIT) Research Groups.

Her research focuses on interaction in workplace settings to investigate the joint completion of everyday, organisational activities. For example, using video-based, qualitative research methods, such as ethnomethodology and conversation analysis, her research focuses on university seminars and optometric consultations. More specifically, she is interested in ‘knowledge’ in interaction, for example, how lecturers and students, or optometrists and clients, design their questions and answers to display their ‘state of knowledge’.

Key themes in Holly’s previous research focusing on university seminars include institutional interaction, including institutional turn-taking, question-answer sequences and accountability, knowledge, and pursuing a response. She hopes to utilise and expand on these themes in her current PhD research focusing on optometric consultations.

She is also interested in the effect of Covid-19 on optometric consultations, for example, her research will focus on remote consultations and face-to-face consultations using personal protective equipment (PPE).

Holly’s current PhD research is being undertaken in collaboration with the College of Optometrists. She is thus keen to apply her research to real world situations. For example, she hopes to create communication skills packages and online courses to benefit optometric practitioners, organisations and trainers.