# Bernardino "Bernie" Iliakis

> Bernardino "Bernie" Iliakis is the Seattle-based president and CEO of CorneaGen, where he leads a corneal-tissue services and surgical-products organization after three decades in eye banking. He joined Northwest Lions Eye Bank, later SightLife, as a technician in 1995, became technical director in 1998 and chief operating officer in 2003, moved into the same role when CorneaGen was formed in 2016, and was promoted to president in 2021. His record also includes 15 years each on the Eye Bank Association of America's Medical Advisory Board and as an Accreditation Board inspector, the association's 2016 Leonard Heise Award, university training in zoology and health administration, and operational responsibility connected to more than 300,000 corneal grafts distributed across more than 50 countries.

- **Role:** President and CEO, Board Member at CorneaGen
- **Organizations:** CorneaGen, SightLife, Northwest Lions Eye Bank, Eye Bank Association of America, University of Washington
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Master of Health Administration, University of Washington, Bachelor of Science in Zoology, cum laude, University of Washington
- **Known for:** Received the Eye Bank Association of America's Leonard Heise Award in 2016., Held operational responsibility connected to more than 300,000 distributed corneal grafts across more than 50 countries by 2025., Served 15 years on the Eye Bank Association of America Medical Advisory Board and 15 years as an Accreditation Board inspector.

## Career timeline

- **1995** — Joined Northwest Lions Eye Bank, later known as SightLife, as an eye-bank technician handling work that included family consent and tissue recovery.
- **1996** — Earned the Certified Eye Bank Technician designation.
- **1998** — Became technical director, responsible for operations staff and eye-bank policy and procedure.
- **2003** — Became chief operating officer of SightLife, overseeing operations including clinical services and quality assurance.
- **2004-2019** — Served for 15 years on the Eye Bank Association of America Medical Advisory Board; he also served for 15 years as an Accreditation Board inspector.
- **2006** — His multi-year work on the practical use of laser technology led to a U.S. patent application for a process using a femtosecond laser to cut corneal transplant tissue.
- **2016** — Transitioned to CorneaGen as chief operating officer when the organization was formed and received the Eye Bank Association of America's Leonard Heise Award.
- **2021** — Promoted from chief operating officer to president of CorneaGen as Monty Montoya moved from CEO to strategic adviser.
- **2023** — Public CorneaGen materials identified him as president and CEO.
- **2025** — Marked 30 years in eye banking; Ophthalmology Management reported that his career had involved more than 300,000 distributed grafts across more than 50 countries.

## Achievements

- Received the Eye Bank Association of America's Leonard Heise Award in 2016.
- Held operational responsibility connected to more than 300,000 distributed corneal grafts across more than 50 countries by 2025.
- Served 15 years on the Eye Bank Association of America Medical Advisory Board and 15 years as an Accreditation Board inspector.
- Chaired the EBAA Technical Procedures Manual Subcommittee for the manual's 2011 revision.
- Contributed to multi-year research on practical femtosecond-laser cutting of corneal transplant tissue that led to a U.S. patent application in 2006.
- Co-authored articles and abstracts on corneal techniques, research and transplantation in specialist journals and conference programs.
- Taught or presented to eye-banking and ophthalmic organizations in Asia, Europe and North America.

## Latest updates

- **2026-09** — In his September CEO update, Iliakis highlighted CorneaGen's continued CTAK adoption, expansion into new markets and planned participation at the ESCRS meeting in London.
- **2026-04** — Reported that CTAK had reached 2,000 procedures performed by more than 150 surgeons across five countries.
- **2026-01** — Reported more than 39,000 surgeries supported by CorneaGen tissue during 2025, the integration of Lions Eye Bank of Texas and CTAK adoption above 1,500 procedures.
- **2025-11** — Discussed his 30-year eye-banking career and CorneaGen's tissue-processing model in an Ophthalmology Management interview.

## Links

- Website: https://corneagen.com/people/bernie-iliakis/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bernardino-bernie-iliakis-4bb953a
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJV6NzNW2YY

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/bernardino-iliakis
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-09-27