Dr Kelly Yates started out her career in a completely different field, prior to finding her passion for veterinary science. She initially studied a Bachelor of Design Computing at the University of Sydney. Following this she worked in corporate design and marketing, specifically focused on corporate reporting for stock exchange listed companies.
She returned to university to follow her passion, graduating from the University of Sydney with a Bachelor of Veterinary Science in 2015. Upon graduating she completed a new graduate internship program working across numerous general practice and referral centres throughout Sydney. She then worked full time at another Sydney based referral hospital, in both the general practice and emergency services.
Dr Kelly joined the SASH team in December of 2019 as part of the SASH Central Coast 24/7 Emergency department. She joined the North Ryde team the following year, completing the SASH rotating internship programme in 2020/2021. During the same time, she attained Membership of the Australian and New Zealand College of Veterinary Scientists in Small Animal Medicine, going onto to be an examiner the following year.
Dr Kelly had long had a passion for Veterinary Ophthalmology, as it allowed her to combine her interests in medical, neurological and intricate surgical aspects of case management, along with the positive impact on a patient’s quality of life. Kelly became a full-time member of the SASH ophthalmology team in June of 2021. She has completed her training in 2025 with a 1-year internship followed by a 3-year residency programme. During this time she completed training at Wisconsin University, North Caroline State University, private practice in the UK and Edinburgh University. Her specific interests include corneal surgery and ocular manifestations of systemic disease.
