About Dr. Scheepers

A career built across three continents. Devoted to one community.

Comprehensive ophthalmology and eye surgery, with over 20 years of postgraduate training and practice spanning South Africa, the United Kingdom, and British Columbia.

Dr. Marius Scheepers, FRCSC
Marius A. Scheepers · MBBCh FRCSC

Biography

Dr. Marius Anton Scheepers is a comprehensive ophthalmologist and eye surgeon with over 20 years of postgraduate training and practice spanning South Africa, the United Kingdom, and British Columbia.

After completing his medical degree at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, Dr. Scheepers undertook specialist ophthalmology training across both South Africa and the United Kingdom — with registrar appointments at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town and Greys Hospital in Pietermaritzburg, and senior house officer and registrar posts at hospitals in London and Reading, including the Western Eye Hospital and Charing Cross Hospital. He completed his specialist examinations in South Africa (FCOphth, MMed Ophthalmology), the United Kingdom (MRCOphth), and Canada (FRCSC).

Before relocating to Canada, he served as a Consultant Ophthalmologist at Queen's Medical Centre and Nottingham University Hospitals, managing complex surgical cases in one of the UK's largest teaching hospital networks.

Since 2012, Dr. Scheepers has practised in British Columbia's Interior — first establishing his practice in the Kootenay Boundary region, where for over thirteen years he provided the full spectrum of ophthalmic care to a rural population for whom subspecialty services were otherwise inaccessible. He performed cataract, glaucoma, pterygium, retinal laser, and SLT procedures for patients who otherwise faced long winter journeys for subspecialty care.

In May 2026, Dr. Scheepers joined Your Eye Surgeons Kelowna as his primary practice location, working alongside colleagues Dr. Alison Banwell and Dr. Gavin Docherty. He continues to see patients in Trail on a continuing satellite basis, with Dr. Ling — a comprehensive ophthalmologist with a special interest in glaucoma and cataract surgery — joining the practice.

He performs approximately 1,000 intraocular surgeries annually and has now surpassed 18,000 cumulative intraocular surgeries in his career — performing cataract and glaucoma surgery continuously since his residency training began in 2003.


Surgical Philosophy

Surgical scope

Dr. Scheepers' surgical practice is centred on cataract surgery, with particular special interest in astigmatism correction and presbyopia-correcting intraocular lenses. He also performs Xen and Preserflo minimally invasive glaucoma surgery, pterygium excision with conjunctival autograft, and eyelid surgery including excision of lid lumps and bumps and upper-lid blepharoplasty. Ptosis and lid malposition surgery are referred to oculoplastic colleagues.

No-touch lens handling. Every lens option available.

Dr. Scheepers uses a meticulous no-touch technique for lens implantation — in over 99% of cases, the intraocular lens arrives preloaded in a sterile cartridge and is never manually handled. This minimises the risk of contamination, lens glistening, and surface damage. His interest in IOL material science includes research into glistening of intraocular lens material.

The full spectrum of lens implants — trifocal, EDOF, toric, and standard monofocal — is available, with selection based entirely on each patient's visual needs, lifestyle, and ocular characteristics.

For patients with astigmatism, Dr. Scheepers employs what is widely regarded as the most accurate toric lens planning system available today — and goes further still with a dual-measurement protocol that sets this practice apart.

The technology platform

The ZEISS IOL Master 700 is the gold-standard optical biometer, using swept-source OCT technology to capture highly precise measurements of the eye's axial length, corneal curvature, and anterior segment dimensions. These measurements feed directly into the Barrett Toric Calculator with True-K — the most validated and widely adopted toric IOL formula in contemporary cataract surgery, specifically designed to account for posterior corneal astigmatism, which conventional measurements miss entirely. Failing to account for posterior corneal astigmatism is one of the most common reasons toric lens outcomes fall short of expectations elsewhere.

These measurements integrate seamlessly with the ZEISS Callisto Eye intraoperative guidance system, which projects a real-time overlay onto the surgical microscope during the operation itself — allowing precise toric lens alignment without manual ink marking, eliminating the human error inherent in traditional axis-marking techniques.

The iTrace advantage

To complement this, Dr. Scheepers uses the iTrace wavefront aberrometer, which separates corneal aberrations from internal (lenticular) aberrations. This distinction is critical — it tells the surgeon exactly how much of a patient's astigmatism originates from the cornea versus from the natural lens. This information refines lens selection and planning in ways that biometry alone cannot provide, particularly in patients with unusual corneal topography or those who have had prior refractive surgery.

Dual-measurement protocol — meticulous by design.

For patients requiring astigmatism management, Dr. Scheepers takes two complete, independent sets of measurements on separate days. This is not standard practice — most centres measure once. Taking measurements on two separate occasions allows comparison of results, identification of any variability, and confirmation of consistency before committing to a lens prescription. Only when both sets of data are in agreement does planning proceed.

The combination of the right formula, the right technology, experienced surgical hands, and a meticulous measurement protocol means that patients undergoing toric lens implantation at this practice benefit from a level of precision that few centres in British Columbia can match.


Research & Publications

Dr. Scheepers is an active researcher with eight peer-reviewed publications, all as first author — in international journals including Ophthalmology (the flagship journal of the American Academy of Ophthalmology), the Canadian Journal of Ophthalmology, the Journal of Cataract & Refractive Surgery, Graefe's Archive, Eye, Orbit, and The Scientific World Journal. First-author status reflects primary responsibility for the design, conduct, and reporting of each study.

First-author publications

  • Scheepers MA, Hall B. Visual outcomes, quality of vision, and patient satisfaction of a trifocal intraocular lens. Can J Ophthalmol. 2025.
  • Scheepers MA, Bunce CB, Michaelides M, Hall B. Clinical outcomes of a trifocal compared with an extended depth of focus IOL following bilateral cataract surgery. Can J Ophthalmol. 2023;58(5):393–400.
  • Scheepers MA, Hall B. Randomized and double-blind comparison of clinical visual outcomes of 2 EDOF intraocular lenses. J Cataract Refract Surg. 2023;49(4):354–359.
  • Scheepers MA, Lecuona K, Rogers G, Bunce C, Corcoran C, Michaelides M. The value of routine PCR analysis of intraocular fluid in the diagnosis of infectious posterior uveitis. The Scientific World Journal. 2013;2013:545149.
  • Scheepers MA, Singh R, Ng J, Zuercher D, Gibson A, Bunce C, Fong K, Michaelides M, Olver J. A randomized controlled trial comparing everting sutures to everting sutures and a lateral tarsal strip for involutional entropion. Ophthalmology. 2010;117(2):352–355.
  • Scheepers MA, Keel S, Michaelides M. Bilateral necrotising fasciitis of the ocular adnexa secondary to Pseudomonas aeruginosa septicaemia in a HIV-positive child. Orbit. 2010;29(1):63–64.
  • Scheepers MA, Pearson A, Michaelides M. Bilateral canaliculitis following SmartPLUG insertion for dry eye syndrome post LASIK surgery. Graefes Arch Clin Exp Ophthalmol. 2007;245(6):895–897.
  • Scheepers MA, Pearson A, Michaelides M. Epileptic convulsion following aspirin withdrawal before lid surgery. Eye. 2007;21(3):446.

Awards

  • ASCRS Annual Meeting — Best Paper of Session, Extended Depth of Focus IOLs, 2022
  • Trail Times — People's Choice Award, recognition of outstanding service to the community, 2019
  • NHG Eye Institute — Best Original Paper Award, entropion research, 2011
  • Department of Surgery — Outstanding Performance Assessment Award, Groote Schuur Hospital, Cape Town, 2009

Presentations

Dr. Scheepers has presented his research at the American Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgery (ASCRS) Annual Meeting in 2019, 2021, 2022, and 2024, at the Canadian Ophthalmological Society 2020 meeting, and at the World Ophthalmology Congress (WOC) 2024.


Teaching & Leadership

  • Clinical Instructor, University of British Columbia, Kootenay Boundary Regional Hospital (2012–2025)
  • Treasurer, BC Society of Eye Physicians & Surgeons — current executive member
  • Past President, BC Society of Eye Physicians & Surgeons (2023–2025)
  • President, BC Society of Eye Physicians & Surgeons (2021–2023)
  • President-Elect, BCSEPS (2020)
  • Economics Committee, BCSEPS — Comprehensive Ophthalmology Representative (2019–2025)

Qualifications

YearQualificationInstitution
2014FRCSCRoyal College of Surgeons of Canada
2012MMed OphthUniversity of Cape Town
2010FCOphthCollege of Medicine, South Africa
2006MRCOphthRoyal College of Ophthalmologists, London
2005MCCEEMedical Council of Canada
2001MBBChUniversity of the Witwatersrand, South Africa

Professional Memberships

American Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgery · Canadian Ophthalmological Society · Canadian Glaucoma Society · Royal College of Surgeons of Canada · College of Physicians & Surgeons of BC · American Academy of Ophthalmology · Royal College of Ophthalmologists (UK) · College of Ophthalmologists of South Africa