Dr. Tara Jayne graduated from The Ohio State University College of Optometry in 2003 as recipient of the Air Force Health Professions Scholarship Program. She started her career at Vandenberg Air Force Base in central California for two years before moving on to Osan Air Base, South Korea where she worked as a liaison to the Republic of Korea Air Force and helped return several pilots to flight duty.
In 2006, Dr. Jayne transferred to Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii, where she served as President of the Tri-Services Optometric/Paraoptometric Society (TOPS), coordinated information flow and tri-service coverage for the island of Oahu, and organized free continuing medical education for TOPS members. She represented optometry as a forensics expert by identifying the remains of repatriated military members found by the Joint Pacific Accounting Command over a three-year period.
Once she moved to Ramstein Air Force Base, Germany, she gained recognition for optometry as an “aerospace scientist” by providing analysis in the investigation for a destroyed unmanned aircraft, for which she developed an optical system standard in order to define a weapons design flaw, allowing the military to swiftly correct the flaw and keep the airframe from being grounded.
Due to Dr. Jayne’s diverse experiences while teaching optometry and ophthalmology examination techniques in austere environments to local national health care providers on humanitarian missions in eleven cities of four countries, she was selected by the USAF Optometry Chief Consultant to the Surgeon General to author the disease and injury training module for all Air Force optometrists to review yearly to assure their readiness status.
Amidst her duties to the Air Force, she attained her Fellowship in the American Academy of Optometry in 2010.
Recently, Dr. Jayne served the Air Force as the Optometry Flight Commander and the Biomedical Sciences Chief Executive officer at Lajes Field, Portugal and is currently at Langley Air Force Base in Virginia. In 2013, Dr. Jayne won the Armed Forces Optometric Society Junior Optometrist of the Year award.
Dr. Jayne spends much of her non-duty time travelling with her seven-year-old twins, Bryson and Dakodah. They are proud to say that they have seen and experienced over 30 countries, and they enjoy their weekends at home kayaking and playing with their dogs.