Global Ophthalmology

Magnify your impact. “Given the cataract backlog in the world today, we are more than 100 years from eradicating this cause of blindness if we simply rely on delivery of care,” said Jeff H. Pettey, MD, at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. “Yes, performing cataract surgeries will impact individuals, but it pales in comparison to the overall impact you’ll have if you build capacity in an individu­al, a practice, and a country.”

Build local partnerships. How is this done? By partnering with individuals and groups to improve education and training. By procuring equipment and connect­ing communities to local resources. By bringing local physicians to international meetings and uniting them with their ophthalmic societies. “It’s about substitut­ing single-episode surgical care with impact that functions 365 days a year,” said Dr. Pettey. “We as volunteers transfer our skills to a community and empower a population because it’s the members of that community who are best able to care for one another.”

Magnify your impact. “Given the cataract backlog in the world today, we are more than 100 years from eradicating this cause of blindness if we simply rely on delivery of care,” said Jeff H. Pettey, MD, at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. “Yes, performing cataract surgeries will impact individuals, but it pales in comparison to the overall impact you’ll have if you build capacity in an individu­al, a practice, and a country.”

Build local partnerships. How is this done? By partnering with individuals and groups to improve education and training. By procuring equipment and connect­ing communities to local resources. By bringing local physicians to international meetings and uniting them with their ophthalmic societies. “It’s about substitut­ing single-episode surgical care with impact that functions 365 days a year,” said Dr. Pettey. “We as volunteers transfer our skills to a community and empower a population because it’s the members of that community who are best able to care for one another.”

Sharpen your skills. “There might not be a better way to hone your skills as an ophthalmologist,” said Dr. Pettey. “You’ll be faced with the most complicated cases and forced to make important decisions in incredibly difficult environments. Afterwards, little will faze you. You return more focused and more capable of making difficult decisions on the fly. When done right, you return a better surgeon.”

You’ll also see the natural progression of diseases in a way that’s just not part of most ophthalmologists’ day-to-day experience in the United States. During his travels, Dr. Safran has witnessed child after child with advanced strabismus, which could have been easily corrected if eyeglasses were available. “Seeing the natural path of uncorrected disease gives you a genuine appreciation of its true nature and severity,” he said. “Whether it’s amblyopia, congenital cataract, or ptosis, I’ve gained a better appreciation for biology in a way that’s not possible in the normal U.S. clinic, where we have more early interventions

Deepen connections with patients. Not only can volunteering abroad make you a better surgeon, but it also will teach you how to build better physician-pa­tient relationships. “By having the opportunity to work with people from different cultures and backgrounds, I’m building a skill set that translates to a lot of differ­ent scenarios domestically,” said resident Travis Redd, MD, MPH, at the Casey Eye Institute.

Andreas K. Lauer, MD, also at the Casey Eye Insti­tute, agreed. “In my experience, it’s been really helpful to learn more about other cultures firsthand so that when I return home, I can interact more meaningfully with patients from diverse backgrounds. If I can tell a patient, ‘Hey, I recently visited your country,’ there’s automatically a better connection.”

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