Our Doctors & Our Practice
in Maple Ridge

Originally from Salmon Arm, British Columbia, Dr. Hurlbert returned to BC after graduating from the University of Waterloo, School of Optometry, in 1995. In 1997, he joined Maple Ridge Eye Care and assumed ownership of the practice shortly thereafter.

Dr. Hurlbert attended the Omni Eye Center in Atlanta in 1994 where he worked alongside cataract, glaucoma, and retinal surgeons in the treatment of advanced eye disease. Subsequent to this, he was certified by the American Board of Examiners in the treatment and management of ocular disease.

Dr. Hurlbert enjoys living and volunteering in the community. He was previously elected to the board of the College of Optometrists of BC in October 2007, serving for close to 4 years, as well as serving on the Board of the British Columbia Doctors of Optometry. Dr. Hurlbert now volunteers, currently working as the treasurer, on the board of directors for the Ridge Meadows Child Development Centre, a nonprofit society that provides early intervention therapies in the areas of speech and language, physiotherapy, and occupational therapy to local children under the age of 5.

In his spare time, Dr. Hurlbert enjoys playing soccer and has played in the Fraser Valley Soccer League for over 20 years. Additionally, he has managed the Masters O-35 North Delta team for the past three years.

Dr. Hurlbert’s wife, Eileen, works for the practice as well (behind the scenes). They have 2 wonderful daughters, aged 10 and 12 years old.

Dr. Gary Matter received his Bachelor of Science from the University of Waterloo in 2007 with an emphasis in human physiology. He later returned to school to pursue his passion for eye care. In 2012 he graduated from the renowned New England College of Optometry amongst the flourishing medical community in Boston, Massachusetts. He has the distinction of being a member of the Optometric Honour Society during all 4 years of schooling in Boston. He completed a specialty contact lens rotation in the treatment of keratoconus, post-surgical complications, and many more corneal conditions utilizing scleral lenses and other forms of custom contact lenses.

Originally from Ontario, Dr. Matter appreciates the people, the outdoors, and everything British Columbia has to offer so much, he relocated to Pitt Meadows, joining Maple Ridge Eye Care optometrists in August of 2012. He became a partner in the practice in September of 2015. Since then, he has enjoyed establishing himself in the local community and providing quality eye care in the Ridge Meadows area.

Dr. Rughani was born and raised in Kingston, Ontario. She graduated from the University Of Waterloo’s Doctor of Optometry program in 2004. During her externship at Waterloo, Dr. Rughani worked alongside several ophthalmologists specialized in glaucoma, cataracts, retina, and oculoplastics. She has also worked at a Lasik centre where her primary roles were to evaluate and approve Lasik/PRK patients, as well as manage their post-operative care. In addition, she has volunteered on eye care missions to Jamaica and Mexico and hopes to do so again in the future to help underprivileged people in need of eye care. Dr. Rughani’s optometric interests include contact lenses and treating/managing ocular disease. She is a certified Holistic Nutrition and Health Coach, and is a firm believer in preventing eye disease by way of healthy diet and lifestyle.

In her spare time, Dr. Rughani enjoys hiking, yoga, biking, and spending time with her three children. Music plays a big role in her life – she loves to play the piano and has been the lead singer in several bands.

Originally from Delta, Dr. Naidu graduated with honours from the Illinois College of Optometry in 2018.
As an extern at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Dr. Naidu triaged urgent care cases, co-managing patients with ophthalmologists of all sub-specialties. This externship also allowed him to fit a wide variety of specialty contact lenses including scleral lenses, RGP lenses, and orthokeratology lenses. During his time as an extern at the Illinois Eye Institute in Chicago, Dr. Naidu treated and managed patients at the Chicago Public School System with conditions such as amblyopia, strabismus, and binocular vision disorders. These 2 externships related to 2 areas of interest for him: specialty contact lenses and ocular disease.

Dr. Naidu has been an active volunteer over the years, serving for a year as the elected president of the Gold Key International Optometric Honor Society. He also mentored for the Vancouver Boys and Girls Club for 2 years, where he launched a new program designed to tutor/mentor foreign students within the community.
Dr. Naidu has now moved to a practice closer to his home but will be seeing patients a few days at our office throughout the year. We’re sorry to see him go after 6 and a half years with our clinic but wish him great success in all future endeavours.