Eyeworld Daily News

MAY 6, 2023 | EYEWORLD DAILY NEWS | 3 ASCRS ANNUAL MEETING DAILY NEWS research, Dr. Holland said. She was instrumental in the development of epikeratophakia, synthetic kerato- phakia, epi-LASIK, and conductive keratoplasty (CK). She is known for performing the first excimer laser procedure in humans. Dr. McDonald thanked her friends and collaborators throughout her career and pledged to continue to "push the ball forward for the betterment of our patients." ASCRS Executive Director Steve Speares took the stage during the session. These meetings come down to the work of these volunteers and the desire for colleagues to help and learn from each other, Mr. Speares said. That's what makes this such a special society, and that's what makes ophthalmology so precious to all of us. Mr. Speares continued by honoring Dr. Holland, who he said exemplifies the volunteer spirit. Dr. Holland is stepping down as ASCRS program chair, a role he's held for over a decade. Dr. Holland said when he first went to the ASCRS meeting, he was a faculty member at University of Minnesota, and Stephen Lane, MD, encouraged him to come to the meeting. "I was hooked from day 1," he said. "I saw the brilliance of teaching anterior segment surgery." He thanked all the physicians who have taken the time to put together content for the meeting year after year and those who were involved with producing the meeting. Editors' note: The participants in the session have no relevant financial interests. Illinois, later doing her fellowship at Baylor in Houston, Texas. Dr. Yeu said that "ASCRS is like home." Early on, she joined the Young Physicians and Residents Com- mittee (now YES) when coming out of fellowship training. It has allowed me to give back to a field that has given so much to me, she said. Dr. Yeu added that ophthalmology isn't just work to her; it's a hobby. In terms of her goals as presi- dent, Dr. Yeu said she wants to serve the ASCRS membership. ASCRS is about providing opportunities to meet members where they are, at whatever stage in their career and whatever they want to do, she said. The session also featured the presentation of the ASCRS Educator Award to Emmett Carpel, MD. Dr. Yeu introduced Dr. Carpel noting his unquenchable thirst to do right by his patients and the ophthalmology profession. We all stand on the shoul- ders of women and men who came before us, Dr. Carpel said, adding that he always wanted to educate with kindness. The ASCRS Foundation Chang-Crandall Humanitarian Award was presented to Helena Ndume, MD. David Chang, MD, took the stage with Dr. Ndume for a Q&A. Dr. Ndume grew up in Namibia, which was occupied by South Africa, and she became involved in student protests. Because of the likelihood that she could be imprisoned for her involvement, she made the difficult decision to flee to Angola when she was 15, finally making it to Zambia. Dr. Ndume was able to receive an education, becoming fluent in German and getting a scholarship to medical school in Germany. Dr. Chang asked about her decision to become an ophthalmologist. Dr. Ndume mentioned seeing blind pa- tients coming for medical treatment for other conditions, while not com- plaining about their blindness, and the impact it had on her. She initially wanted to specialize in occupational health, but her mentor recommend- ed that she pursue ophthalmology. Dr. Ndume's Namibian Blindness Prevention Project (with the help of SEE International, Alcon, and the Namibian government) has helped to restore sight to over 60,000 people. Closing out the discussion, Dr. Chang said he was thinking about the tens of thousands of blind people in Namibia whose fate depended on Dr. Ndume, and the nearly 100 mil- lion people today in refugee camps who might follow in her footsteps. The ASCRS Foundation's Op- eration Sight program was also highlighted during the session. The program serves uninsured patients who cannot afford cataract surgery, with a network of volunteer sur- geons. This year's inductees of the ASCRS Ophthalmology Hall of Fame were also recognized. The ASCRS Ophthalmology Hall of Fame was created in 1999 to honor the pioneers and innovators in ophthal- mology. This year's inductees were Marguerite McDonald, MD, and R. Townley Paton, MD. Dr. Paton was a pioneer in corneal transplantation and founder of modern eye banking, Dr. Holland said. He also founded the first eye bank in the United States and the Eye Bank Association of America (EBAA). He published extensively in transplant surgery and authored many medical textbooks. Dr. McDonald is a past presi- dent of ASCRS, a founding editor of EyeWorld, and has had a career in continued from page 1

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