POSITIVE FEEDBACK FOR ESCRS OBSERVERSHIP PROGRAMME

In 2010, in a major new initiative, the ESCRS decided to set up an Observership Programme for young ophthalmologists. The programme is designed for ophthalmologists who are starting their surgical training, or already in surgical training, and is under the direction of Oliver Findl MD, MBA, chairman of the ESCRS Young Ophthalmologists’ Forum.

A number of the young ophthalmologists who have taken part in the programme say their experiences have been very positive and following the completion of their observerships, they sent their feedback on the programme to ESCRS.

An excellent experience

Romanian ophthalmologist Corinna Cracium who did her observership with Prof Jorge Alio at the Vissum Institute in Alicante, Spain, said her visit was very enjoyable and she enjoyed a valuable learning experience.

“At Vissum, I met an extraordinary team led by Prof Alio,†Dr Cracium said. “He and everyone else there were very nice to me, very kind and helpful and responded to every question that I had. I had the opportunity to observe refractive and cataract surgeries and also to participate in consultations. The team in Vissum are also involved in research and do a lot of clinical studies, which is very important for a good practice. Prof Alio is an excellent teacher and his clinic is a very good choice for anyone who wants to learn practical and theoretical ophthalmology,†she said

Research and trials

Another young ophthalmologist who visited the Vissum Institute was Constantin Mihai.

“There is a very well organised team at Vissum, including medical and administrative personnel,†said Dr Mihai. “I observed several cases and surgeries in the areas I am most interested in which are refractive surgery, corneal transplantation and cataract surgery. What impressed me a lot is the fact that there is huge amount of effort and time allocated for research and clinical trials. I think this is very important,†said Dr Mihai.

Practice skills

Jasna Pavicic-Astalos from Croatia worked under the supervision of Prof Marko Hawlina at the Ophthalmology Clinic, University Medical Centre Ljubljana, Slovenia.

“Prof Hawlina and all his colleagues were very helpful and kind,†said Dr Pavicic-Astalos. “They are used to foreign students coming to take part in the Observership Programme because at the time I was there, a few more young ophthalmologists from Lithuania and Cuba were working on their projects. Every morning we had a meeting discussing patients and interesting cases. After that, I went to surgery and followed a current day programme. I was able to talk with my colleagues about cataract surgery or other fields of ophthalmology. I also spent three days observing plastic surgery and I learned a few new surgical approaches for eyelid problems,†he said.

Observing surgeries

Olesya Ziyatdinova from Russia did an observership at the Institute of Vision and Optics, University of Crete, Greece, under the supervision of Prof Ioannis Pallikaris and Prof George Kymionis.

“I observed surgeries like PRK with mitomycin, t-PTK-PRK, femtosecond LASIK and corneal collagen crosslinking with Riboflavin,†said Dr Ziyatdinova. “In the near future, I am going to start refractive surgery at our clinic in Kazan.

“This was great a learning experience and this programme has also enriched my life with the wonderful experience of visiting Crete. The ESCRS Young Ophthalmologists’ Observership Programme is a perfect way of increasing the exposure levels of young doctors,†she said.

Variety of approaches

Greek ophthalmologist Dimitrios Kardaras was an observer at the Hanusch Hospital, Vienna under the supervision of Dr Oliver Findl.

“There were two operation rooms with a constant flow of surgical cases that I had the chance to observe,†said Dr Kardaras. “I observed a variety of scientific approaches in cataract surgery, as well as alternative strategies. The opportunity to make comparisons between different techniques, styles and instruments will help me in the future to make more informed decisions about my own procedures.

“In addition, I became familiar with modern IOL, like Toric IOLs and Multifocal IOLs, and I was delighted to be introduced to procedures that I had never observed, like cornea endothelium transplantation and techniques that Prof Findl uses in complicated cases like IOL iris-fixation,†he said.

For information on the ESCRS Observership Programme, visit http://www.escrs.org/Youngophthalmologist/grant-information.asp