University Hospitals Eye Institute and the Case Western Reserve University Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences has a diverse didactic program consisting of basic science and clinically related lectures, guest lectures, specialty conferences, and a surgical training program including semi-annual surgical wet lab courses, an established in-house surgical wet lab, and a surgical simulator.
Residents, full-time and part-time faculty, and visiting professors all contribute to lectures throughout the year.
Didactic Lectures and Basic Science Course
The Basic Science Course is attended by first and second year residents on a weekly basis. Here, the residents review the entire Basic Science Course developed by the American Academy of Ophthalmology with ample time for independent studying prior to the OKAPs. The Basic Science Course is led by a community ophthalmologist.
Didactic lectures are given every Wednesday morning for a four hour block that includes Grand Rounds. Lectures span all subspecialties with the goal of covering a wide range of topics in preparation for the Ophthalmic Knowledge Assessment (OKAP) exam and ultimately the American Board of Ophthalmology written and oral examinations.
Also, the Administrative Chief Resident provides an “Ophthalmology Unknowns” conference every Wednesday morning to develop skills necessary for the oral boards while expanding the fund of knowledge of the residents. Senior residents also conduct monthly OKAP review sessions on topics covered that month in the Basic Science Course.
Additional Educational Events
Second year residents are sent to the Wills Eye Board Review Course or comparable review course, if so desired in the first year and timed to occur prior to the OKAP examination each year.
Chief residents attend either the annual Academy of American Ophthalmology conference or another major conference of their choice (CLAO, ASCRS, ASOPRS, APOS, AGS, ASRS) as well as a surgical wet lab course in Ft. Worth, Texas focusing on phacoemulsification.
Any resident presenting a paper or poster as first author at a major national conference (e.g. ARVO, AAO) receive departmental support.
There are also community outreach programs the residents are invited to participate in, such as Prevent Blindness Ohio vision screenings, an Annual MedWorks Cleveland vision screening, and the Cleveland Free Clinic monthly eye clinic in conjunction with Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine Ophthalmology Interest Group.
Education Conferences
In addition to the resident didactic lectures, there are other scheduled conferences on fluorescein angiography, ethics, cornea, and neuro-ophthalmology. Every spring, the Eye Institute sponsors an annual CME meeting with two named lectures (Purnell and Bruner), an oculoplastics conference with the Levine lectureship, and a Resident and Medical Student Research Day with the Purnell Visiting Professor lecture. At the Research Day the best resident research project is awarded a cash prize and subsequent presentation at the Visual Sciences Research Center retreat the subsequent month for all the vision researchers at UH and Case. Finally, all the area residents and ophthalmologists convene for the Cleveland Ophthalmology Society (COS) quarterly conference covering all the specialty areas and including the Department sponsored Lorand Johnson Lecture. This conference is attended by the majority of ophthalmologists in Northeast Ohio with active participation from the UH and Cleveland Clinic faculty as well as ophthalmologists from the community.
Additionally, there are seven Joint Conferences for the UH Eye Institute and Cleveland Clinic faculty and residents. These conferences cover all major subspecialties and feature in-depth discussions of major studies, treatment and management, and the latest research.
Grand Rounds
Residents, faculty, and community ophthalmologists attend weekly Grand Rounds every Wednesday morning at 8 a.m. from September to June. Grand Rounds speakers are drawn from the local, regional, and national ophthalmology scene Residents also participate in Grand Rounds, presenting interesting cases from each of the affiliated hospitals. Over the course of the year, there is a comprehensive review of topics in all the clinical specialties and cutting edge research.
Microsurgical Curriculum—EyeSi Simulator and Wet Lab
The newly renovated microsurgical wetlab at University Hospitals and the recent purchase of the EyeSi eye surgical simulator at the VA has enabled the development of a comprehensive microsurgical curriculum to be implemented starting in July 2010.
The simulator located conveniently in the expanded clinic at the VA with readily available access has four microsurgical modules provided for residents to complete, with one being completed every six months. Each module has progressively more complex microsurgical information, skills, and techniques for mastery. Concurrently, an EyeSi curriculum allows residents to hone their intraocular skills at their own pace in preparation for intraocular surgery.
Joint Clinical and Basic Science Conference
A monthly joint conference between the clinical and basic science faculty is held to help support the research requirement in the second and third years and promote the translational research mission of the Eye Institute.