Israel Cornea Society Meeting 2023
A warm invitation to speak at the Israeli Corneal Society Meeting this year albeit virtually - next year perhaps!
Dr Michael Mimouni, Chair of the Israeli Cornea Society.
Thankyou to the Chair of the Israeli Cornea Society, Michael Mimouni, and Commitee Organiser Eyal Cohen for the kind invitation to present on “Middle Segment Surgery - A New Horizon” - and special thanks to my mentors in complex anterior segment surgery - Professors and Drs David Rootman, Sadeer Hannush, Joshua Teichman, Ike Ahmed, Dean Ouano, and Steven Safran.
We are extremely fortunate in Australia to have great collaboration between our retina and anterior segment surgeons to provide comprehensive services for our patients with dislocated and subluxated intraocular lenses - and the beauty of each subspecialty being able to add their own niche set of skills to address each patient’s unique needs.
While there will always be cases that sit firmly in either domain, there will also be many, many cases that would benefit from combined complex surgery that focuses on:
- best visual and structural outcomes with the best longevity
- minimization of complications through collaborative and safe/supportive surgical practice and training, and in doing so,
- reduce financial stress, recovery times, and opportunity costs for both patients and their carers.
Interesting and lively discussions ensued about approaches to managing vitreous in the hands of the anterior segment surgeon and I look forward to robust progress in this area as we all strive to be better surgeons than we were.
Until next time, xo
University of Toronto Cornea Rounds
I was extremely fortunate to have completed my Cornea, Refractive and External Diseases Fellowship at the University of Toronto which has an incredible academic program that supplements its high volume surgical component. One of the amazing things about training in an institution like this, is the collaboration and camaraderie between various different ophthalmic subspecialties - all with a singular interest of improving patient care and outcomes.
During the last few months of my fellowship we were caught out by the COVID-19 pandemic - and I was stranded for nearly another year as flights shut down between Canada and Australia.
Despite this, there were some truly meaningful educational initiatives born out of necessity and it's encouraging to see that they are continuing in strong form today and enjoyed by a strong worldwide viewership. Thank you to my supervisors for creating a position for a research fellowship and allowing me to help shape some of the formal teaching components of the fellowship program where I had learned so much.
If you are a Cornea team resident, registrar or fellow, or perhaps a general opthamologist looking for an update in Cornea, or a even Cornea specialist looking for a refresher in any particular area, you may find the full collection of Cornea Rounds and lectures here.
The weekly Cornea Rounds, spearheaded by Professor David Rootman (one of the Fellowship directors) focuses on any cornea or refractive topic with an emphasis on case based teaching presented by residents and fellows with input of the expertise of University of Toronto staff and ex-fellows, so it is like attending the rounds in person. The target audience is at the level of the general ophthalmologist or resident although not uncommonly we deep dive into specific niches.
Enjoy x
What’s in a Name?
Thankyou to Cataract and Refractive Surgery Today for publishing some work that we had done earlier in the year on Standardisation of Terminology via the Refractive Surgery Terminology Committee (RTSC) - a subcommittee of the Refractive Surgical Alliance.
In the words of Dan Durrie - Words matter.
Clear and concise communication serves our patients best and allows them to best make choices about what technologies might be best suited to them, without unnecessary confusion. Avoidance of terms that are subject to industry manipulation is the ethical thing to do.
You may access the article here as the link :
Thankyou also to my dear colleague Balamurali Ambati, MD, PhD, MBA (Professor and Director of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of Oregon) who spearheaded this article based on the work of the RTSC.
Or as the PDF file here.
Or read on:
Middle Segment Surgery - A Paradigm Shift
Exciting to see our piece in print - “Is it Time For Middle Segment Surgery?” in the May 2023 edition of Review of Ophthalmology.
Middle Segment Surgery has been a special interest of mine - it is a unique intersection of subspecialties where the skills of interested surgeons from the world of cornea, glaucoma and vitreo-retinal surgery coalesce. We have so much to learn from each other and ultimately we hope this movement will lead to improved patient experience and outcomes.
I remain eternally grateful to Dr Lawrence Lee (Brisbane, QLD) for teaching me the art of vitrectomy during my registrar training, little did I know at the time I would one day regularly be relying on those skills to be able to perform this kind of work.
Many thanks to my co-authors Professor Sadeer Hannush, Drs Christos Infantides and Scott Oliver for their wise insights.
“We truly believe this is the wave of the future. The population is aging and the incidence of displaced IOLs is on the rise. We need more specialists, coming from both anterior and posterior segment surgery backgrounds, interested in middle segment surgery, to handle these cases. This special interest group will be driven mostly by one factor: patient outcomes.”
American Academy of Ophthalmology 2022
AAO 2022 in - a few personal highlights for me.
Invited to be part of the faculty of AAO 2022 Retina Subspecialty Day was a special moment for me, especially as surgical retina has some of the least female representation amongst the various subspecialties of ophthalmology. I have to admit that staring out at the audience of mostly male members was daunting to say the least, but I was so moved to see the engagement and earnest openness of our retina colleagues in this area. In one of my other talks I speak about the need for male and female Champions of Change - and found one indeed in Retina Subspecialty Day Chair Srinivas R Sadda MD - thankyou for your very kind invitation to be part of the Day and also for your support of Women in Ophthalmology by putting this issue front and centre stage at such a prominent meeting of retinal minds.
Retina Subspecialty Day, AAO 2022
2. Excited to host an AAO Learning Lounge with Professor Sadeer Hannush about “Vitrectomy for the Anterior Segment Surgeon”. The need for support and education in the area of middle segment surgery is significant. Whether one comes from cornea, glaucoma, or vitreo-retinal backgrounds, being equipped with the right skills and knowhow to perform these complex manoeuvres requires a respectful collaboration between these subspecialties - there is so much to be shared and learned for the benefit of our patients.
One of the leaders of the Middle Segment Surgery movement, Prof Hannush of Wills Eye Hospital.
Prof Sadeer Hannush addressing the audience members at the Learning Lounge.
3. Meeting Dr Glauckomflecken. Enough said. I was supposed to present alongside him at the Walter Wright Meeting at the University of Toronto a year prior, but could not leave the country due to COVID restrictions - so it was lovely to be able to finally meet him in person! Such a lovely, kind and inspiring individual.
4. And of course catching up with some special and cherished friends and colleagues.
Catching up with my Canadian “other half” Dr Greg Moloney.
Dr Guy Kezirian’s keynote lecture at the ISRS meeting.
Dr Ashiyana Nariani at Refractive Subspecialty Day addressing ways to tackle the increasing global burden of refractive error.
European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery 2022
I am….somewhat notorious for not contemporaneously posting compared to my contemporaries - not that I don’t greatly appreciate the wonderful opportunities I have with the direction of my career, but more out of simply (1) being busy and (2) wanting to be intentionally a bit more present in the moment, rather than rushing to document every moment. (This isn’t to say I don’t love the barrage of photos that e-fly everywhere as the excitement winds down in the aftermath - I do! After all, I am very much part of that generation, haha. ) I do, however, deeply treasure the memories made with the people I meet, connect or reconnect with and these meetings are no exception - keeping those memories in one place here I guess is my way of slow but savoured reflection.
Drs Radhika Rampat, Dan Reinstein, Andrea Russo, and Guy Kezirian.
ESCRS, the European equivalent of the ASCRS (American) and AUSCRS (Australasian), is the conference I usually reserve for learning and absorbing rather than necessarily rushing about being “onstage” necessarily. Being in a European city is always a plus and I truly love having the pressure-less environment to soak up the local culture and learn, question and test out technologies that have yet to become available for my patients in Australia.
The only 3 hours of sightseeing I managed on this trip - note to self - next time, do better. And find a better photographer who can frame properly :/.
Held in Milan, Italy, one of the highlights of ESCRS was visiting the practice of Dr Francesco Carones and Amanda Carones who have built an incredible laser, cataract and aesthetic practice in the heart of the city. Both Physician CEOs themselves, the practice has also expanded into dentistry, gynaecology, orthopaedics and plastic surgery and their primary focus, in their words, is “commitment to guaranteeing excellent and cutting-edge healthcare services, which promote and improve the quality of life of each patient, while guaranteeing each one an extraordinary medical experience.” This resonates so much with the way I love to practice, with the focus on the extraordinary experience for my patients as part of their healthcare journey.
Dr Francesco Carones and Amanda Carones hosting a Practice Reception for their clinic Advalia - thankyou x.
Other activities I managed to pack into the very busy few days was the opportunity to meet with the Global Educational and Research Society of Ophthalmologist’s (GERSO) Young Ophthalmologist Committee - meeting Drs Ankur Barua and Lena Beckers face to face (after having worked with them for two years online only since the pandemic) - was such a rewarding experience after only e-knowing them. I am grateful to have been a part of the GERSO’s formative years and look forward to the amazing things I have no doubts they will achieve as a group.
Me (Australia), Dr Lena Beckers (Germany) and Dr Ankur Barua (UK) as the GERSO Young Ophthalmology Committee members.
The CorNeat team were out in force to evaluate their new technologies under the leadership of Dr Gilad Litvin and it was so exciting to hear about their developments in the artifical cornea realm. I also had the privilege of meeting Drs Alja Crnej and Roberto Pineda who ran the Boston KPro session - their experience with the device is incredible.
Dr Gilad Litvin - Innovator and Creator of the CorNeat
Testing out new technologies in this space - looking forward to seeing the outcomes in patients!
Dr Alja Crnej and the Boston KPro Workshop.
Catching up in the 30C heat with one of my very first cornea fellows - Dr Blanca Benito, based in Spain. It’s still hard to believe I have fellows now! And onto my sixth, how time flies.
Dr Blanca Benito, Cornea Specialist, Spain.
All in all, a wonderful meeting in a beautiful area of the world. Hard to believe I hopped back to Australia for 48 hours to return to Chicago a mere three days later.
“Surgical Temporary Ocular Discomfort Syndrome” or STODS
Early start to the morning (0600!) as I gave a talk to a group of Israeli Ophthalmologists on “Surgical Temporary Ocular Discomfort Syndrome” or STODS at the Dry Eye Clinic of Israel.
Thankyou so much to Dr Michael Mimouni, President of the Israeli Cornea Society, in inviting me to give this talk.
Surgical Temporary Ocular Discomfort Syndrome, or STODS, describes the transient irritation experienced by the patient as part of the normal process of healing after any surgical intervention on the eye.
It should not be confused with “dry eye syndrome”, although the sensation of dry eyes can be part of the post-operative course. The pathophysiology and biomarkers are a fascinating area of study and are found to be quite distinct.
It is also not a unique experience, but quite commonly temporarily experienced by many patients after their eye surgery of any type. It usually takes a few weeks to a few months to returns back to normal as the eye heals.
Dr Suphi Taneri and Dr Teresa Tsai are leading the way with their research into this distinct entity which is likely to have an enormous influence on the way we think about the dry eye symptoms that patients can get after eye surgeries. This is a significant paradigm shift in the way we think about this entity and will have an impact on the way we pre-operatively detect and post-operatively manage these experiences to have positive outcomes for patients.
For those of you interested in reading more about this, you can find more details in this paper here:
Tsai T, Alwees M, Rost A, Theile J, Dick HB, Joachim SC, Taneri S. Changes of Subjective Symptoms and Tear Film Biomarkers following Femto-LASIK. Int J Mol Sci. 2022 Jul 6;23(14):7512. doi: 10.3390/ijms23147512. PMID: 35886858; PMCID: PMC9320097.
I am really looking forward to seeing what this research group finds - and how this helps us help our patients.
You can find out more about the Israeli Dry Eye Clinic here: https://dryeye.co.il.
38th Annual ANZ Cornea Society and Eye Bank Meeting
Honoured to be invited to present at my first ANZ Cornea Society and Eye Bank Meeting, not held in person since the pandemic.
It was so very lovely to meet some of the faces I have looked up to for years and make their acquaintance and learn from their wealth of experience. We are really so lucky to have such a lovely, generous and sharing culture in Cornea and Eye Banking in Australia and New Zealand.
Thankyou to Dr Andrea Ang for the kind invitation to speak to share in the innovations of the Australian Keratoprothesis Service and raise awareness of the unit.
Catching up with Dr Nicholas Toalster, one of the original Ophthalmic Wolfpack Members.
The key message is that the Service is open and available for all patients with severe bilateral corneal blindness where corneal transplantation is not a viable option. We offer the Boston Kerato-Prosthesis (Type 1) and the modified Oseto-Odonto-Keratoprosthesis depending on the severity and involvement of the disease processes.
Special thanks to Drs Greg Moloney (founder) who would have loved to have been there and to Dr Konrad Hille (Dusseldorf, Germany) who was instrumental in flying out and helping Australia set up this program in 2014.
Dr Andrew Apel (Brisbane) to my right and Dr Rob Paul (Perth) to my left.
Excited to catch up with some old ex-Toronto Cornea Fellowship fellows from all over Australia. Until next year!
The World of Veterinary Ophthalmology
A couple of weeks ago I was invited to attend a workshop hosted by Drs Cameron Whittaker, Gladys Boo and Kelly Caruso to share in teaching veterinarians about eye surgery in animals. This trio, as well as this gentleman to my right (your left) below, have been absolute trailblazers in the treatment of eye diseases in animals.
Rajnesh Devasahayam to the left, and Dr Cameron Whittaker to the right.
This workshop, which hosts veterinarian ophthalmic surgeons from all over the world, was originally scheduled for March 2020 when the pandemic broke out, so it was such a special occasion to be able to hold this together as a live group in 2023.
I was so impressed by the warmth and eagerness of the team to share their knowledge and the earnest desire from veterinarians all over the world who had travelled to learn and to help these animals.
Fascinated also to learn about the similarities and differences between animal and human eyes; for example, the canine eye is so much more robust to infection that its inflammatory response actually needs to be extremely well controlled post operatively, or that some animal eyes’ anterior chambers are so big that it may influence the types of procedure veterinarians may choose to heal it.
Looking forward to sharing more excellent teaching times, sharing what we can from the human world and wishing this dynamic team all of the absolute very best.
Fellow of the World College of Refractive Surgery and Vision Sciences WCRSVS
Woke up on the January 21st 2023 to this unexpected honour - incredibly grateful to the Refractive Surgical Alliance and Drs Arthur Cummings, Guy Kezirian and Francesco Carones for the very kind nomination to be Board Certified in Refractive Surgery and become an inaugural Fellow of the World College of Refractive Surgery and Visual Sciences.
I remember attending my first AUSCRS ever as a junior resident, led by then president Professor Graham Barrett . At that point I was completely naive to refractive surgery as there wasn't any exposure to it in the public training system. From that led to seeing my first refractive surgeries ever in Paris with Professor Damien Gatinel , followed by my first forays into refractive surgery in Toronto, Canada under the expert supervision of Professor David Rootman and the TLC team of superstar staff, optometrists, technicians and admin. How I miss those faces .
Since then, I have been fortunate to have met and worked alongside some incredible mentors, some listed above and many others, who have been instrumental to developing this side of my skillset alongside my love for cornea, complex anterior segment and ocular surface surgery.
It's been a truly wonderful world of learning, teaching and innovation alongside a group of passionate, supportive, ethical and kind individuals whose mission is to establish a standard of qualifications and quality of care in Refractive Surgery and address preventable blindness for social impact globally and I hope to continue contributing in some small way to these goals.
Finally, thank you to all of my supportive staff who allow me to undertake this work from my (relatively new) home in Sydney, Australia - we will have our work cut out for us
If you’d like to learn more about the World College of Refractive Surgery and Vision Sciences, have a little read of this taken from their website which you may peruse here: www.wcrsvs.org.
“The World College of Refractive Surgery and Visual Sciences (WCRS) was founded to represent Refractive Surgery as a standalone ophthalmic specialty.
The WCRS functions both as a Specialty Board and an Umbrella Organization supporting both education, training, and credentialing in Refractive Surgery as well as helping add value to ophthalmic organizations, courses, programs, and selected residency programs for the promotion, and expansion of refractive surgery on a global level.
The benefit for refractive surgeons is to enhance their career and qualifications by enriching their knowledge and skills while providing a required standard of credentials that will be recognized by patients, peers, and the general public.
The World College of Refractive Surgery & Visual Sciences (WCRS) is structured as a Public Benefit Corporation working with our independent, affiliated, charitable Visual Freedom Foundation (VFF) for social impact. Our mission will be directed towards addressing the leading global causes of preventable blindness for disadvantaged populations worldwide. According to the World Health Organization over 90% of global preventable blindness is from unaddressed refractive error and cataract.”
Podthalmology
Honoured to be a guest on Dr Lana Del Porto’s Ophthalmology podcast “Podthalmology” , and sincere thanks to Alcon for commissioning the series from “Bench to Bedside” - Podcasts for Australian Medical Specialists, where leading experts from different fields share their experiences and insights into their specialties.
Dr Del Porto and I met for the first time online in July/August 2022 and deep dived into an incredible session about unconscious gender bias and our own personal experiences, dipping in and out of the literature as we spoke. I was struck by her insight, inquisitiveness and also by the similarity of our experiences despite us not having actually even physically met. She is a gifted surgeon, with her passion for teaching and mentorship really shining in her podcast - generated by doctors, for doctors - that delves into topics such as “Training next generation eye surgeons” with Dr Jacqueline Beltz, “New intraocular lens technology and its impact on patients” with Clinical Associate Professor Smita Agarwal, and “Audits in Ophthalmology” with Dr Ben Connell. You can learn more about her at www.lanadelporto.com.
Note that this podcast is only accessible to Australian doctors through your online registration and AHPRA number and can be accessed here: https://benchtobedside.com.au/
(If you’ve heard some of my work in this area, please skip to around about 6:19 mins where we really get into the nitty gritty of the talk and share openly and intimately about our thoughts in this area.)
One fact that I was particularly startled by, was the fact that the percentage of fully qualified female surgeons in ophthalmology is about 30% in Australia and New Zealand, despite the percentage of trainees being approximately 50%. I wasn’t aware that we still have so far to go.
Thanks for listening x
For people wanting references to some of the studies we quote in the talk, please feel welcome to find them here:
Wenneras C, Wold A. Nepotism and sexism in peer-review. Nature. 1997 May 22;387(6631):341-3. doi: 10.1038/387341a0. PMID: 9163412.
Gill HK, Niederer RL, Danesh-Meyer HV. Gender differences in surgical case volume among ophthalmology trainees. Clin Exp Ophthalmol. 2021 Sep;49(7):664-671. doi: 10.1111/ceo.13969. Epub 2021 Jul 24. PMID: 34218497.
Khan S, Kirubarajan A, Shamsheri T, Clayton A, Mehta G. Gender bias in reference letters for residency and academic medicine: a systematic review. Postgrad Med J. 2021 Jun 2:postgradmedj-2021-140045. doi: 10.1136/postgradmedj-2021-140045. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 34083370.
Lin F, Oh SK, Gordon LK, Pineles SL, Rosenberg JB, Tsui I. Gender-based differences in letters of recommendation written for ophthalmology residency applicants. BMC Med Educ. 2019 Dec 30;19(1):476. doi: 10.1186/s12909-019-1910-6. PMID: 31888607; PMCID: PMC6937988.
Trix, F., & Psenka, C. (2003). Exploring the color of glass: Letters of recommendation for female and male medical faculty. Discourse & Society, 14(2), 191–220. https://doi.org/10.1177/0957926503014002277
Duma N, Durani U, Woods CB, Kankeu Fonkoua LA, Cook JM, Wee C, Fuentes HE, Gonzalez-Velez M, Murphy MC, Jain S, Marshall AL, Graff SL, Knoll MA. Evaluating Unconscious Bias: Speaker Introductions at an International Oncology Conference. J Clin Oncol. 2019 Dec 20;37(36):3538-3545. doi: 10.1200/JCO.19.01608. Epub 2019 Oct 11. PMID: 31603705.
Files JA, Mayer AP, Ko MG, Friedrich P, Jenkins M, Bryan MJ, Vegunta S, Wittich CM, Lyle MA, Melikian R, Duston T, Chang YH, Hayes SN. Speaker Introductions at Internal Medicine Grand Rounds: Forms of Address Reveal Gender Bias. J Womens Health (Larchmt). 2017 May;26(5):413-419. doi: 10.1089/jwh.2016.6044. Epub 2017 Feb 16. PMID: 28437214.
Halawa OA, Sekimitsu S, Boland MV, Zebardast N. Sex-Based Differences in Medicare Reimbursements among Ophthalmologists Persist across Time. Ophthalmology. 2022 Sep;129(9):1056-1063. doi: 10.1016/j.ophtha.2022.05.006. Epub 2022 May 17. PMID: 35588946; PMCID: PMC9730864.
Physician CEO 2022
Proud to be the first Australian graduate of the Physician CEO Program at Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University... joining my 2022 colleagues hailing from Italy, Egypt, South Korea, Brazil, South Africa, India, UK and the USA.
It has been an incredible experience learning from some of the best faculty in the world -Professors Harry Kramer, Brian Uzzi, Leigh Thomson, Gina Fong, Ed Zajac, Robert E Grant - to name but a few.
To have the chance to speak with and engage with these brilliant minds who so generously gave of their time to make us better clinicians, leaders and entrepreneurs, challenging us to think about how we might be able to broaden the scope of our influence and care for our patients has been nothing short of life changing.
I was also incredibly lucky to have been part of a joint class - the Class of 2020, interrupted by COVID, who joined my cohort in 2022 - making double the exposure to some 42 incredible minds and hearts that I am so honoured to call colleagues, friends and continue to be inspired by every day. These individuals range from clinician owners of ophthalmic Hospitals to doctors setting up charities in Uganda and India, to those navigating the clinician entrepreneurship space and those answering the call to cure the global burden of refractive error, with a focus on the underserved. Thank you for the shared insights, insane laughter, voiced hardships, late late night conversations and early morning walks around the lake that only enriched the experience so much more. I have learnt so much from each of you personally.
None of this would have been possible without the foresight and vision of the force that is Guy Kezirian MD, MBA, FACS, Mary O'Keefe, Thomas Turmell, Zoe Alves and the wonderful team at the James Allen Centre for their steadfast support and making this work. This is a program designed specifically by doctors, for doctors, in order that we might do bigger and better for the patients that we serve. Thankyou Dr Guy Kezirian and Dr Arthur Cummings for encouraging me to take part in what has been a truly transformative experience.
It's been a tough slog flying back and forth from Australia another four times this year to complete this, but absolutely worth it.
Just ....don't ask me what day or time it is.
@drbrettmueller @drnedanikpoor @ghtanaka @ramizioeg @sandro.soldati @drphilipphatudi @fala.doutores @suravision @destinymedicalcentre @ashiyananariani @bobharrismd @southeast_urogyn @ovation_wellness @norehealth #graduation #alumni @kelloggschool @northwesternu #classof2022
Cornea Surgical Video Learning Series February 2022
Grateful for the opportunity to co-host The Cornea Surgical Video Learning Series with Professor Sadeer Hannush (Wills Eye Hospital) and Professor Allan Slomovic (University of Toronto).
We were honoured to have Professor Ellen Koo MD of Bascom Palmer Eye Institute at the University of Miami present a keynote lecture on Indications for Penetrating Keratoplasty in 2022.
Thankyou to guest panelists Clara Chan MD FRCSC and Stephan Ong Tone MD FRCSC of University of Toronto and Christopher Rapuano MD and Aditya Kanesa-Thasan MD of Wills Eye Hospital for their expertise.
Thankyou also to the surgical case presentations from Yishay Weill MD (University of Toronto) and Christopher Barron MD (Wills Eye Hospital) for sharing their experiences.
You may find the link available here:
https://play.library.utoronto.ca/watch/54ef9aa4a7b8558a8931ff0bf56aed82
Sydney Winter CPD Festival For General Practitioners 2022
Grateful to Gary Smith of ArmChair Medical TV to give a talk to Sydney based General Practitioners about the dangers of eye rubbing and Keratoconus - a highly under-appreciated form of vision impairment.
Keratoconus is a distortion of the cornea (the clear, collagenous front window of the eye), gives rise to progressive vision impairment, and is not reversible. Concerningly, highest risk patients are usually in their adolescence or early twenties and certain ethnicities are also at higher risk.
Key take home facts:
Eye rubbing, especially frequently and vigorously, is dangerous and every effort should be made to curb its behaviour.
It is often under-recognised as it is seen as an innocent, innocuous habit.
Prevention is key. Treatment of atopy (“allergic eyes”), dry eye and habits should be aggressively pursued.
American-European Congress of Ophthalmic Surgery 2022
A month or so ago I was honoured to be invited to give a keynote lecture at the American European Congress of Ophthalmic Surgery 2022 on "Unconscious Gender Bias - How can we change our outlook?, in Antwerp, Belgium.
I am deeply grateful to the organising committee for the very kind invitation to present on something close to my heart, and for placing issues like these at the front and centre of the current conversation.
In this lecture I was able to speak to existing Champions of Change and dissected some of the evidence for those who might also become agents of change in their spheres of influence, many of those in senior gatekeeping roles themselves.
What touched me especially were the stories of women who came forward and shared their very real experiences in the aftermath of the talk. Women from very junior to very senior roles, from over Europe and abroad. Stories that were raw and recent, echoing the evidence presented.
What also struck me were the young male ophthalmologists who also were able to share onstage and provide insights into the experiences of their partners in medicine and ophthalmology. They too could see, understand and feel what was was being voiced.
And also encouragingly, the senior men who came to learn, ask questions and engage from a place of deep earnestness.
Thankyou immensely to Prof Sheraz Daya, Drs Radika Rampat, Davit Shaznarayan and the organising committee for the opportunity, and for showing such leadership in this area. Looking forward to more open conversations as we all grow.
Xx
#womeninmedicine #womeninsurgery #ilooklikeasurgeon #ophthalmology #womeninophthalmology
American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery - Cornea Day 2022
ASCRS 2022 Cornea Day
A few weeks ago now, I had the honour of being invited to present at ASCRS Cornea Day on "Endothelial Keratoplasty in Vitrectomized Eyes - aphakic/aniridic and post-scleral fixated IOLs" at the American Cataract and Refractive Society 2022 in Washington DC.
It was a surreal moment to be onstage with some of the panelists I have idolized for quite some time. It was especially nice to be sharing the panel with Dr Nir Sorkin, my senior co-fellow...and in particular, I remembered Dr Soosan Jacob giving me a one hour DMEK tutorial at the Canadian meeting in 2018 just before I became a fellow, so to be onstage presenting alongside her was a special circular moment to me. Seems like just yesterday.
None of this would be possible without the teaching and mentorship of my fellowship co-directors Professors David Rootman and Allan Slomovic and Dr Joshua Teichman, and the entire Cornea Department at the University of Toronto - Professor Hall Chew, Associate Professor Clara Chan, and Dr Neera Singal - the skills I have learnt truly carry me through all of the work that I do here in Australia.
I was also excited to present some of the research published by the team of cornea fellows and residents at the University of Toronto - we are so very lucky to have such a cohesive department working towards a common goal. I am sure I will forget someone here but to recognize and thank you properly - Drs Sara Al-Shaker, Larissa Gouvêa, Nizar Din, Michael Mimouni, Eyal Cohen, Gisella Santaserra, Nir Sorkin, Alex Telli, Zale Mednick, Tanguy Boutin, Mohammed Kreimei, Adi Lifshitz, Mahmood Showail, Armand Borovik, Yishay Weill, Shai Gendler, Eli Kisilevsky, Yelin Yang, and Hatim Batawi and our medical students.
I am deeply grateful to Drs Naveen Rao and William Lee for the very kind invitation and putting together a fantastic and engaging program for the day - thankyou again, and it was so very lovely to make your acquaintances xx Until 2023!
Cornea Day ASCRS 2022 - “Endothelial Keratoplasty in Vitrectomized Eyes - aphakic/aniridic and post-scleral fixated IOLs”
Cornea Fellows and Department Reunion Dinner
Thankyou for the invitation to present at one of the Instructional Courses from the University of Toronto Cornea Dept.
Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmology 2022 Symposium: Optimising the Management of Common Corneal Conditions
Corneal Symposium (Virtual)
A busy weekend start to the academic year with registrar cataract teaching, the GERSO Refractive Imaging meeting and the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmology’s (RANZCO) 52nd Annual Meeting, held virtually (luckily, given the torrential rains and floods around the east coast of Australia).
Excited to be able present alongside Professors Stephanie Watson and Richard Mills and Drs Maria Cabrera Aguas, Andrew Apel and Elsie Chan in the Corneal Symposium today, covering corneal transplantation, ocular surface neoplasia, social media, post transplant refractive optimization and more.
Thankyou kindly to Professor Stephanie Watson for the invitation to present amongst a stellar cast of Australian ophthalmologists.
Hoping the borders relax enough safely that we might be able to enjoy the company of talent outside of Australia in Brisbane RANZCO 2022 later this year. Xx
2021 Inaugural Walter Wright Lecture
Deeply honoured to have been invited back to the University of Toronto in December last year to give my very first keynote lecture - the 2021 Walter Wright Lecture entitled "In Gendered Lenses We Trust: The Quest For Clarity."
This is the second iteration of my thoughts in this area which takes a much deeper dive into the evidence around the lived experience of unconscious gender bias - specific to the fields of Medicine and Ophthalmology.
For the new listener, put simply, it explores the way both genders inadvertently contribute to implicit gender bias – the lenses in which we view medical and ophthalmologist women.
For the returned learner, building on some of my previous reflections in this area, it also shifts away the focus on women being expected to solely fix the system on their own, as this burden may only be lifted through the shared empowerment of men and women tackling their unconscious bias.
Importantly, it addresses the very real need for female and male “Champions of Change” –highlighting examples of those, male and female, who have already begun to take up this mantle, demonstrating it through their leadership.
Thank you to those who lent their support “behind the scenes” - and permission to share their significant actions, however seemingly incremental; it is through these small actions that we simultaneously invite all individuals to become more empowered to listen, understand, and change. You were key opinion leaders, residency program directors, fellowship supervisors, heads of departments, and much much more in these gatekeeping roles.
Unfortunately derailed by Omicron Variant just hours before flight departure, it had to be delivered by electronic means... but I am grateful to have received a recording of it and hope to share it with you today. Again, I am so deeply appreciative of the opportunity to learn and share in this space.
I would love to know how this resonates out there with other women and men in medicine and elsewhere, and to hear about your experiences too. Please feel free to DM me and I’d love to listen and learn.
#genderbias #womeninmedicine #womeninsurgery #impostorsyndrome #surgery #ascrs #women #womeninophthalmology #WIO #ophthalmology #ophthalmologist #youngophthalmologist #fellow #eyesurgery #residency #education #womensurgeons
An Australian-Canadian Collaboration
This week I had the unique privilege of operating on an osteo-odonto-keratoprosthesis revision with the oculoplastics input of Dr Peter Martin and A/Prof Greg Moloney’s real-time surgical advisory input from Vancouver, Canada using the new @microrecbr surgical microscope camera adapter.
To give some context, these operations are incredibly rare - few surgeons around the world have expertise in this surgical niche, hence the immense benefit of being able to rely on experienced opinion on the other side of the world.
An Australian-Canadian first, this technology allowed us to live-stream the surgical view seen down the microscope (my operating view) from Sydney, Australia to Vancouver, Canada – and permitted us to brainstorm a surgical solution between the three surgeons in response to the situation as it evolved under our hands.
A four hour long surgical journey later (and a new use for the Melles dissectors), we were incredibly impressed by the quality of the live-streamed surgical view under the microscope – in A/Prof Moloney’s own words: “…honestly an amazing experience…it was like I was in the room”.
Thankyou to my co-surgeon Dr Peter Martin and virtual co-surgeon A/Prof Moloney, to the Sydney Eye Hospital staff (who moved heaven and earth at short notice to provide the logistical, surgical instrument and staffing support that made all of this possible), to the Keratoprosthesis team Dr Colin Clement (glaucoma) and Dr Mark Gorbatov (vitreo-retinal) who have welcomed me onto the team, and to my registrars and fellows who co-ordinated so much of the logistics to make this happen. Thankyou also to Dr Ike Ahmed (@ikeahmed) for linking us with the MicroRec team.
(Apologies for the strange taped-up looking photo , the suction of the phone slipped a little before we started, so we had to rapidly reinforce it at a pinch – the new camera adapter should fix this moving forward and we are looking forward to trialing this out. #Innovation)
No financial interest, just incredibly grateful for the technological advances that made this possible.
Here’s to continuing the keratoprosthesis program in Australia xo
#cornea #keratoprosthesis #kpro #ookp #toothineye #microrec #microrecBR #ophthalmology Microrec Brasil
10 Minutes of Science - Women in Ophthalmology Podcast
It all begins with an idea.
The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists (RANZCO)'s WIO committee has created a new podcast entitled "Women In Ophthalmology - 10 Minutes of Science".
Excited to have been invited to lead an episode based on a recent EJO paper "Laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis long term outcomes in late adolescence" authored by Dr Jorge Alió del Barrio, a fascinating piece of work and just the start of the conversation about the actual evidence basis around how we approach refractive surgery in young patients and its potential role in management of the myopia epidemic.
Thankyou to Professor Helen Danesh-Meyer and Dr Robyn Troutbeck for the kind invitation and to Alex Aranciaba for her tireless efforts at making this possible.
The selected papers for discussion cover the whole gamut of Ophthalmology so you'll find topics on rituximab for non infectious uveitis and scleritis, the PIVOT trial, Selective Laser Trabeculoplasty - A Review and many more.
You can catch these episodes on most podcasting platforms (Spotify, Apple, Overcast etc).
Also a humble reminder that I may need to purchase a better microphone.