Continuing this season’s theme of surgical horror stories, Neda Shamie, MD, joins Gary Wörtz, MD, to share an experience from early in her career when she faced an unexpected complication. While performing penetrating keratoplasty on a well-known patient, Dr. Shamie encountered an expulsive hemorrhage. She highlights the value of mentorship in these situations and having a trusted colleague to help shape one’s approach to stressful complications during surgery. She also emphasizes the importance of learning from these situations and gaining new surgical skills.

William Trattler, MD, joins Blake Williamson, MD, MPH, and Gary Wörtz, MD, to share a story in which a referring optometrist’s family member presented with dark brunescent cataracts in both eyes. He describes his initial approach and technique for managing these advanced cataracts, including the unexpected complication of a dropped lens and capsular bag tear in the first eye. Weeks after referring the patient to a retina specialist for an eventual good outcome, Dr. Trattler began surgery on the second eye, only to encounter a similar complication.

Paul Walton, MD, continues the discussion with Blake Williamson, MD, MPH, and Gary Wörtz, MD, on approaches to anesthesia and nuances to manage potentially difficult patients during cataract and refractive surgery. Dr. Walton shares pearls to ensure a smooth day in the operating room, mitigating potential ophthalmology ‘horror stories.’

Paul Walton, MD, joins Blake Williamson, MD, MPH, and Gary Wörtz, MD, to share concepts to help cataract and refractive surgeons avoid horror stories in the OR. He says the goal should always be to have a “boring” day, emphasizing the importance of communication and understanding with patients. The surgeons also detail their approaches to anesthesia and how to best comfort patients before, during, or after surgery.

Nathan M. Radcliffe, MD, joins Blake Williamson, MD, MPH, and Gary Wörtz, MD, to share his experiences managing complex patients with advanced-stage glaucoma. He shares a specific case of an 83-year-old man with a cataract and exfoliation glaucoma with an IOP of 56 mm Hg. Dr. Radcliffe walks through how he managed complications he encountered during the combined cataract and glaucoma surgery, including vitreous prolapse and suprachoroidal hemorrhage. The surgeons also discuss how to educate and counsel patients with advanced-stage disease to help them understand realistic surgical outcomes.

John Doane, MD, joins Blake Williamson, MD, MPH, and Gary Wörtz, MD, to share his experiences for this season’s theme of “Horror Stories” in cataract and refractive surgery. Dr. Doane reviews a few examples from his career in which he had to manage uniquely challenging situations and discusses what he learned from them. Listen to gain insights into his experiences using early surgical technology and how he approached challenges with observers fainting in the OR.

Blake Williamson, MD, MPH, and Gary Wörtz, MD, kick off the latest season of Ophthalmology off the Grid. This season focuses on the subject of ‘Horror Stories,’ where surgeons will highlight their toughest, most complicated surgical cases and how they managed them. In this episode, Drs. Williamson and Wörtz start the discussion by sharing their own uniquely challenging cases. Learn how Dr. Williamson managed an inflammatory complication following ICL implantation, and how Dr. Wörtz approached a challenging case of suspected horror fusionis.

Blake Williamson, MD, MPH, and Gary Wörtz, MD, invite Matt Jensen to round out the year of episodes dedicated to building a business and brand in ophthalmology. Jensen shares insights he gained early in his marketing career, highlighting how he adapted to variabilities in different markets and learned to grow the business at home. The trio also discusses the value of having strong, trusted partners in business when expanding into new markets, and Jensen emphasizes the importance of maintaining a consistent company culture during that expansion.

To learn more about Matt Jensen's expertise, visit https://mattjensenmarketing.com/ or https://matt-jensen.com/.

Cathleen McCabe, MD, joins Blake Williamson, MD, MPH, and Gary Wörtz, MD, to discuss the challenges of moving across the country from an existing practice and referral network and starting in a new state. She shares insights into the dynamics of changing ownership and having a clear outline for the type of practice to join. Drs. McCabe, Williamson, and Wörtz further discuss the pros and cons of different business models and pearls for making decisions and taking risks with business in ophthalmology.

Eric D. Donnenfeld, MD, joins this episode to speak with Gary Wörtz, MD, and Blake Williamson, MD, MPH, about his experience building his practice and working with industry. He shares insights into how he grew from a small private practice by constantly adapting to a dynamic specialty. Dr. Donnenfeld stresses the value of resisting stagnation, and he explains why it is crucial to incorporate new technologies and treatments as one’s business expands. He also shares successes and failures from throughout his career and his predictions for the future of ophthalmology.