In this episode, we finish our conversation with Dr. Al-khersan by asking him to help us learn indirect ophthalmoscopy and how to use a 90D lens.

In this episode Dr. Kevin Schneider, a resident at University of Wisconsin, walks us through Thyroid Eye Disease. There are many great pearls for medical students who are rotating in oculoplastics clinics or preparing for ophthalmology rotations in general!

Time Stamps:

1:25: Presenting symptoms of TED

2:59: Physical exam

6:39: Clinical scoring systems

7:50: Oculoplastic-specific exam 

13:50: Labs? 

15:45: Imaging? 

18:30: Course of TED

20:38: Counseling patients with TED

23:30: Surgical intervention

32:30: BCSC rapid fire

In this episode we walk through a case of diabetic retinopathy (DR) with Dr. Al-khersan. This episode focuses less on the granular details of grading DR and more on how to interpret relevant information from a diabetic eye exam. 

Learning points from this episode:

Common causes for decreased vision in diabetes

Common causes of decreased vision in ANYONE

A framework for taking a solid ocular history for EVERY patient

Follow-up questions for the patient:

Ocular Vitals:

Slit Lamp findings associated with diabetes

Imaging modalities 

The Lens Pod is a podcast intended for educational uses only and reflects the opinions of the hosts and guests.

This month we spoke with Dr. Jessica Randolph, Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology at Virginia Commonwealth University about Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in ophthalmology and how medical students can get involved.

Time Stamps:

7:00- Definitions; why DEI in ophthalmology important

20:30- Socioeconomic status and opportunities; Affirmative Action

27:27- Implications for patient care

34:10- Implicit Bias

43:42- Pipeline Programs for Underrepresented Students

Minority Ophthalmology Mentoring Program: https://www.aao.org/minority-mentoring

Rabb-Venable Excellence in Ophthalmology Program: https://www.rabbvenable.com/

This month we spoke with Dr. Jacquelyn O’Banion, MD, MSc, director of Emory Eye Center's Global Ophthalmology-Emory program (GO-Emory), about global ophthalmology and how medical students can get involved.

Time Stamps:

0:56- Defining global ophthalmology

6:40- Looking for a residency program with global ophthalmology? Ask follow-up questions!

10:30- What is “sustainable global ophthalmology?”

19:00- A lost skill and its relevance to global work

25:00- How foreign strategy can inspire domestic change

29:25- Did you know you could do a global ophthalmology fellowship? Explained here!

34:05- Dr. O’Banion’s advice for medical students looking to get involved in global ophthalmology

40:30- An AAO resource dedicated to looping trainees into global ophthalmology opportunities 

This week we sit down with Dr. Grace Sun to learn about Women in Ophthalmology, the many ways students can contribute to this important organization, and valuable lessons about stepping outside of your comfort zone. Dr. Sun is the president of Women in Ophthalmology and an Associate Professor of Ophthalmology at Weill Cornell Medical College where she practices as a comprehensive ophthalmologist and cataract surgeon. She received her MD at Weill Cornell Medical College and completed her ophthalmology residency at New York Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center. She served as the Program Director of Ophthalmology Residency at Weill Cornell Medicine for 10 years and currently serves as the Director of Ophthalmology Clinical Practice at Weill Cornell in Lower Manhattan. 

Time Stamps:

4:24- What is Women in Ophthalmology? What is their mission?

7:41 - Mastering the "nice 'no'”

10:00- The power of women in leadership and their ability to bring attention to structural issues preventing gender equity in ophthalmology 

11:02- How medical students/trainees can serve as allies to their female colleagues 

17:00- Why representation matters

18:00- What ways are medical students involved in WIO?

21:24- Dr. Sun’s advice on overcoming awkward conference encounters

26:35- Why are fewer women comfortable mentioning their partner’s application status during residency interviews, despite the SF Match offering no couples match option? 

Citation: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsurg.2022.07.026

29:30- Rethinking the residency training model as a potential solution for dealing with gender equity issues

32:05- Research as an advocacy tool and an investigative tool… we have to ask "why"

36:00- The importance of normalizing conversations about relationships and family planning 

39:43- Dr. Sun’s parting message on preserving female representation in ophthalmology and its impact on the field 

This week we speak with Dr. Evan Waxman about community outreach in ophthalmology. Dr. Waxman is a comprehensive ophthalmologist at the University of Pittsburgh. He serves as a professor of Ophthalmology, Vice Chair of Medical & Resident Education, and Director of both the UPMC Eye Center Mercy and the comprehensive ophthalmology division. In this episode he teaches us about the Guerilla Eye Service, a community eye clinic that he founded over 15 years ago, in addition to providing helpful advice for getting involved in community efforts to improve vision health.

In this episode, we speak with Dr. Katherine Hu to learn how medical students and trainees can get involved in ophthalmology advocacy. Dr. Hu attended medical school at Saint Louis University School of Medicine, then completed her ophthalmology residency at the John A. Moran Eye Center at the University of Utah where she is currently completing a cornea fellowship.

Listen now to learn about current legislative policies impacting the field of ophthalmology, improving your confidence in public speaking, and the power of storytelling in advocacy!

Time stamps:

2:00- Check out Moran Eye Center’s “Moran Core” for foundational ophthalmology learning!

3:00- How do physicians, specifically ophthalmologists, contribute to advocacy?

4:00- The optometry scope expansion bill explained.

10:55- An avenue for medical students to get involved in ophthalmology advocacy.

15:00- Public speaking and how to feel more confident.

23:00- Advocacy reimagined.

27:00- The cardinal rule for being involved in advocacy work.

27:45- Believe in the power of your voice– especially as a trainee.

In this episode, we speak with Dr. Ben Szirth, PhD to learn about the utility of teleophthalmology in clinical practice and its relationship to artificial intelligence and community outreach in ophthalmology. Dr. Ben is the director of the TeleHealth Program at the New Jersey Medical School and leads the Vision Threatening Diseases screening community-based program at the Institute of Ophthalmology and Visual Science in Newark, NJ where he works with current medical students every week.

Episode Timestamps

0:20- Introduction

2:18- Learning about EyeNuk, Inc.’s EyeArt® and its ability to screen for vision threatening diseases 

3:24- Another interesting ophthalmology podcast recommendation!

5:40- Explaining how teleophthalmology in partnership with artificial intelligence allows us to bring advanced ocular care to disadvantaged communities

9:17- What is teleophthalmology? – Summarized.

10:00- A novel approach to monitoring Type 1 DM eye disease progression– at Disney World!

12:10- Dr. Ben’s open space model for his Vision Threatening Diseases Screening Program

15:20- Leveraging community leaders and peer advocates to establish and maintain lasting relationships within a community

17:30- Teleophthalmology offers a unique solution to improving access to care

18:31- Artificial intelligence research offers a system to validate the impact of teleophthalmology in ocular health and facilitates funding

22:20- Artificial intelligence and telehealth trend analysis

28:00- The surprising disadvantage of portable screening equipment

31:50- What does artificial intelligence research look like?

35:00- Deep learning explained

40:30- How medical students make a difference in community health

46:00- How teleophthalmology breeds innovation

*No participants of this podcast have any financial disclosures pertaining to research, products, or equipment discussed in this episode.

Description: 

In this episode, we speak with Dr. Jay Sridhar to learn what students should know before (or after) their first research project. Dr. Sridhar is an associate professor of clinical ophthalmology and the assistant residency program director at Bascom Palmer Eye Institute. During this episode he imparts meaningful advice for all students and provides helpful tips for the research beginner.

Episode Goals:

-After this episode, medical students will understand the value of finding the right research mentor.

-After this episode, students will learn the importance of time management, setting expectations early, and having a peer mentor or colleague proofread your work.

-After this episode, students will learn simple questions to consider when preparing to write a manuscript.

Time stamps:

Part I: Intro, Icebreaker, & Life Advice

1:48- Dr. Sridhar’s hang-gliding excursion

4:28- Discussing our inner voice and Dr. Sridhar’s podcast recommendation

6:00- Dr. Sridhar’s non-ophthalmology book recommendations

7:15- Seize the day and the additions of small moments

Part II: The Research Basics

10:20- The value of finding the right research mentor

13:20- Set expectations early, articulate how much time you can give, NEVER ghost

14:40- Early skills that any student can contribute

15:30- Have a peer mentor double check your work BEFORE sending to your PI

17:35- Don’t put all your research eggs in one basket/PI

18:20- Three branches of research: basic science, translational, clinical

20:55- Authorship order

Part III: Navigating your First Project

22:35- Start with one project

24:40- Sending a “cold” email of interest to a potential PI

26:00- Case reports

26:38- What’s my target journal?

29:05- What’s my backup plan

Part IV: Research as it applies to my residency application

31:28- How many publications do I need to be a competitive ophthalmology applicant?

34:00- Don’t participate in research at the expense of other medical student responsibilities

37:20- “Good medical students = good residents”

40:13- Helpful tips

46:00- Parting advice