Our Doctors
Our 12 experienced doctors are ready to handle your eye health and vision needs. For more than a decade, we have been dedicated to improving the lives of our patients by providing high-quality and comprehensive eye care.
Our 12 experienced doctors are ready to handle your eye health and vision needs. For more than a decade, we have been dedicated to improving the lives of our patients by providing high-quality and comprehensive eye care.
Dr. Ken Parschauer specializes in cataract and refractive surgery and has been serving the Sandusky community since 1984 when he joined the practice to work with his brother, Dr. John Parschauer. Dr. Ken couples excellent medical and surgical skills with high-quality personalized care. He has been a leader in no-stitch cataract surgery and has brought refractive surgery to the area. Dr. Ken earned his medical degree from Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. He completed his basic science training at Stanford and residency at Sandusky Memorial Hospital. He has performed over 50,000 microsurgical eye procedures including 30,000 refractive surgeries (LASIK, PRK, ICL, etc.).
Dr. Ken is a Board Certified Ophthalmologist and a Fellow of the American Academy of Ophthalmology. He is a member of the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons. He is an active staff member at Firelands Health in Sandusky.
Dr. Ken has been involved in short-term medical mission trips with the Christian Medical Society where he has performed nearly 2,000 free surgeries in third world countries. He is an accomplished pilot and enjoys skiing, car racing, soccer and photography.
Dr. Ken has assisted Pilots for Paws, an organization dedicated to transporting rescue animals to their forever homes.
Dr. Eric Dudenhoefer specializes in cornea, external disease, cataract and refractive surgery. He joined Parschauer Eye Center in July 2006 after eight years of Ophthalmology practice serving in the U.S. Air Force. Dr. Eric enjoys combining his extensive experience, from the United States and abroad, to the unique needs of each patient to carry out a personally tailored plan of medical and surgical care.
In addition to excellent skills in no-stitch cataract surgery and refractive surgery, he has brought corneal transplant surgery, both full thickness and DSAEK, to the area. Dr. Eric earned his medical degree, magna cum laude, from Loyola University in Chicago. His Ophthalmology Residency training was performed in the combined U.S. Air Force and U.S. Army program at Wilford Hall USAF Medical Center, TX and Brooke Army Medical Center, TX where he served as Chief Resident during the final year. He completed fellowship training in cornea, external disease and refractive surgery at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, Harvard Medical School, Boston, serving as Chief Fellow. Dr. Dudenhoefer has performed thousands of microsurgical eye procedures in addition to thousands of refractive surgeries (LASIK, PRK, LASEK).
Dr. Eric is board certified by the American Board of Ophthalmology since 1999 with updated certification completed in 2009. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, a member of the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery and the Society of Military Ophthalmologists. He is an active staff member of Firelands Regional Medical Center, Sandusky, and Fremont Memorial Hospital.
Dr. Dudenhoefer has led and participated in many medical and surgical humanitarian missions in Central and South America as Mobile Ophthalmic Surgical Team Director, USAF, and with the Christian Medical Society. A dedicated husband and father of five, Dr. Eric’s personal time is devoted to family life. He is active as a member of Sts. Peter and Paul Parish, Sandusky and within the Sandusky Central Catholic School System. He coaches travel league soccer through the Bay Area Soccer League, enjoys guitar playing, woodworking, running and mountain biking.
Dr. Alexander Kosmidis was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, and is a board-certified Ophthalmologist and fellowship trained Glaucoma specialist serving the greater Cleveland area, with emphasis on the West side community. Dr. Kosmidis graduated from Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) School of Medicine and completed his internship at Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus, Ohio. He completed his Ophthalmology residency at CWRU/University Hospitals and his Glaucoma fellowship at the Ochsner Clinic Foundation in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Dr. Kosmidis has extensive clinical and surgical experience across the greater New Orleans and Cleveland areas. Prior to medical school, Alex was an acclaimed competitive concert pianist. Today in his spare time, he enjoys performing free piano concerts in his home for an appreciative (and unbiased) jury consisting of his wife, Aryn, and children.
Kristina V. Thomas is a board-certified ophthalmologist and a fellowship-trained Cornea Specialist, who specializes in cataract, refractive, and corneal surgeries. She completed her undergraduate degree at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, PA, earning a 3.94 GPA, and then received her medical degree from Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia, PA, where she received Honors in her clinical rotations and was elected into Alpha Omega alpha Honor Medical Society in her third year of medical school. She then completed her internship in Internal Medicine at MetroHealth Medical Center and Residency in Ophthalmology at Case Western Reserve University. Dr. Thomas completed her Fellowship in Cornea, External Ocular Diseases, and Refractive Surgery at the University of Chicago at Illinois.
Dr. Thomas was the Director of Cornea and Refractive Surgery at University Hospitals Eye Institute, an Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology at Case Western Reserve University, and a surgical consultant at Louis StokesVA Medical Center. Dr. Thomas then spent four years working in a private practice in Pittsburgh, PA. In her free time, Dr. Thomas enjoys spending time with her daughter, Josie, and her family and friends. She is an avid dog lover and enjoys vacationing at the beach.
She is proud of her many achievements in the field of ophthalmology, including performing the first keratoprosthesis surgery at University Hospitals of Cleveland and developing the Boston Keratoprosthesis surgical protocol for the hospital. In 2012, Dr. Thomas re-established the Refractive Surgery program at University Hospitals, while also developing the Refractive Surgery resident curriculum at Case Western Reserve University.
Throughout her career she has been very active in educating future ophthalmologists, as she helped to develop the resident microsurgical training curriculum and refine the cornea basic science curriculum at Case Western University. In addition, Dr. Thomas has presented and lectured on numerous topics in the field of Cornea and Refractive Surgery, including teaching courses a the American Academy of Ophthalmology and lecturing at the EastWest Eye Conference. She also has been involved as a primary investigator and co-investigator in several national clinical studies.
A native of the greater Cleveland area, Dr. Prendes joins us from University Hospitals Eye Institute where he spent the last 5 years serving the Greater Cleveland and surrounding areas as the Director of Oculoplastic and Orbital Surgery Service.
Dr. Prendes earned his medical degree from Indiana University School of Medicine. He completed his ophthalmology residency at the University of Washington in Seattle. He then completed a two-year fellowship in Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the University of Louisville and Oculofacial Plastic and Orbital Surgery, LLC accredited by the American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons (ASOPRS).
Dr. Prendes is an assistant professor in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences at Case Western University School of Medicine where is a course instructor for surgical anatomy of the head and neck. He has been involved in the training of resident surgeons and medical students through clinic, surgery, and lectures. He is active in research having published numerous peer-reviewed publications, and has given many presentations and posters at national meetings. He also authored a book chapter on eyelid reconstruction. His specialties include:
Dr. Prendes enjoys spending his free time with his wife and four children.
Dr. Prendes is accepting new patients at our Independence, Youngstown, Howland, and Sandusky locations.
Dr. Walker is an optometrist who joined the Parschauer Eye Center in 1998. Born and raised in Sandusky, he completed his undergraduate course work at The Ohio State University and went on to graduate from The Ohio State University College of Optometry in 1996.
He received further training completing an elective postdoctoral fellowship in ocular disease at the Ohio Eye Alliance, a large subspecialty ocular referral center in Alliance, Ohio.
He is a member of both the American and Ohio Optometric Associations. Dr. Walker works full-time at the Parschauer Eye Center and is the Refractive Surgery Consultant for the practice.
He and his family currently live in Milan, Ohio and are active members of Norwalk St. Paul Catholic Church. In his free time he enjoys playing golf.
Note: Dr. Drossman will also be seeing patients at our new location at Firelands Regional Medical Center now! She will be performing Routine Eye Exams, Emergencies, Contact Lens Fittings, Optical there.
Dr. Drossman joined the Parschauer Eye Center in 2015. Born and raised in Sandusky, she completed her undergraduate studies at Ashland University. She received her Doctor of Optometry degree from Illinois College of Optometry in Chicago.
Dr. Drossman is a member of the American and Ohio Optometry Associations. She currently resides in Amherst with her husband and two children. She enjoys reading and traveling in her free time.
Dr. Corrie Lesher is an licensed optometrist specializing in ocular disease , contact lenses, and primary eye care for adults and children. She grew up in Elyria, Ohio and received her Bachelors of Science at University of Mount Union. During her time at University of Mount Union, she interned within an ophthalmology based practice at the Cleveland Clinic Lakeland Eye Surgeons. She then went on to The Ohio State University, where she graduated with honors in a Doctorate of Optometry degree.
Dr. Lesher completed external rotations at Southern Arizona VA Health Care System in Tucson, AZ, following with several sites within Ohio including Erdey Searcy Eye Group, Ohio Eye Associates, Lower Lights Christian Health Center, and Galloway Eye Care Professionals. During this time, she focused on advanced ocular disease, along with management of post-surgical corneal transplants, cataract extractions, and specialized glaucoma surgical procedures. She also focused on managing pediatrics, vision therapy, low vision, and comprehensive primary care.
Dr. Lesher holds memberships with the Ohio Optometric Association and the American Optometric Association.
Away from the office, she enjoys spending time with her husband, family, traveling, hiking, boating, golfing, and any outdoor activity. She also enjoys missionary work through her church or fellow optometry colleagues.
Dr. Patricia Heilman joined the Parschauer Eye Center in 2014. She attended the University of Cincinnati for undergraduate course work and graduated from The Ohio State University, Bachelor of Science 1986 and Doctorate of Optometry 1987. Post graduate studies include a residency with the Columbus and Chillicothe Veterans Administration in 1988.
Following her residency, Dr. Heilman, native of Lorain Ohio, came to the Sandusky area and has worked in various modalities of practice including a 13 years career in private practice in Clyde Ohio. She is a member of the American Optometric Association, Ohio Optometric Association and past Zone Governor of the north central area of Ohio.
Dr. Heilman resides in Huron with her family, husband John P. Heilman D.C. and twins Gretchen and John Jr. She is a member of St. Peters Catholic Church and active with the Sandusky Central Catholic School Band Boosters. She enjoys a lifelong passion for golf, sailing, and running.
Dr. Ruch joined the Parschauer Eye Center in 1995. She attended the Ohio State University for her undergraduate studies and graduated from the Ohio State University College of Optometry in 1994. Her studies included training at the Dayton Veterans Administration Medical Center. Dr. Ruch is a member of the American and Ohio Optometric Associations.
Dr. Ruch and her family live in Toledo, Ohio. She enjoys watching and participating in sports, including ice hockey and golf; and spending time with her family.
Dr. Brooke Elavsky joined Parschauer Eye Center in July, 2019. She enjoys many aspects of optometry, including contact lenses, pediatrics, and primary eye care. She was born and raised in Norwalk, and obtained her Bachelors of Science with Honors from Otterbein University. In college, she focused on microbial genetics research, community service, and orchestra. After graduation, she started working at Northwest EyeCare Professionals in Upper Arlington, where she worked throughout optometry school. She is a graduate of The Ohio State University College of Optometry.
She has experienced many clinical settings including: The Chillicothe Ohio VA Medical Center, Family Eye Care Centers, Lower Lights Christian Health Center, Midwest Retina Specialists, Columbus Laser and Cataract Center, and Professional VisionCare (Columbus). She also trained in the Ohio State University’s specialty clinics including: pediatrics and binocular vision, contact lenses, low vision, student health center, and primary care.
Dr. Elavsky is a member of the American and Ohio Optometric Associations. She is married to Cameron Elavsky, and currently resides in Norwalk. She is a lifelong member of the First Presbyterian Church of Norwalk. Some of her hobbies include boating, spending time with family, reading, and playing the viola.
Dr. Balthaser joined Parschauer Eye Center in 2023. He grew up in Fleetwood, Pennsylvania and received his Bachelors of Science in premedicine, with a minor in psychology, from The Pennsylvania State University. He went on to to graduate from the Pennsylvania College of Optometry in 2003. His externship rotations included low vision, retina, pediatrics, primary care, and the Allentown VA hospital. He has practiced in Sandusky, as a primary care optometrist, for the past twenty years.
Dr. Eric, as his patients know him, is married to a fellow optometrist, Dr. Carrie Balthaser and has two children. He is an avid ice hockey and football fan, and enjoys playing tennis, fishing, reading, and spending time with his family.
