Eyeworld Daily News

14 | EYEWORLD DAILY NEWS | APRIL 5, 2024 ASCRS ANNUAL MEETING DAILY NEWS Martin Spencer, MD, selected as recipient of ASCRS Foundation Chang-Crandall Humanitarian Award This year's recipient of the ASCRS Foun- dation Chang-Crandall Humanitarian Award is Martin Spencer, MD. For many years, Dr. Spencer has worked closely with Seva Foundation and Seva Canada in Nepal and many other countries around the world. As a board mem- ber of both organizations, he prioritizes service quality, volume, and program sustainability. Dr. Spencer finds it gratifying that others are inter- ested in similar global work. "I'm happy to see how much interest there is in global ophthalmology. When I first ASCRS Hall of Fame Inductee: Peter Choyce, BSc, MBBS, MS, FRCS, FRCOphth Peter Choyce, BSc, MBBS, MS, FRCS, FRCOphth (1919–2001), was an early pioneer, innovator, and advocate for intraocular lenses. In his own words, published in the Journal of Cataract & Refractive Surgery in 1999, the "tri- umph" of Dr. Ridley's original IOL procedure, which took place in 1949, would not be fully realized until there were subsequent improvements to technologies and techniques. 1 "I thought that he would be proved right in the long run, but it took longer than I imagined, primarily because of the negative attitude adopted by most of the profession," Dr. Choyce wrote. Nir Shoham-Hazon, MD, to receive 2024 ASCRS Educator Award The embodiment of a teacher clinician scientist, an admirable teacher and physi- cian, a close mentor to his learners: These are just a few descriptions from those nominating the recipient of this year's ASCRS Educator Award, Nir Shoham-Hazon, MD. He was described as "an approachable person who is patient and does not hesitate to take all the necessary time to allow his students to achieve the best of themselves." Dr. Shoham-Hazon has been involved in education and academics even before he got into ophthalmology. "Halfway through medical school, I developed a passion for research and teaching and stumbled across oph- thalmology," he said. Dr. Shoham-Hazon's interest in ophthalmology stemmed from a LASIK procedure that he Awards at the 2024 ASCRS Annual Meeting underwent. "I thought it was an amazing thing to go from requiring glasses from the moment I opened my eyes in the morning until I shut them at night to being completely independent of glasses for 20 years after that. That was life changing." Dr. Shoham-Hazon was interested in teach- ing and research and took an early interest in glaucoma. For Dr. Shoham-Hazon, it's an honor for ASCRS to recognize his efforts as an educator. "It's not something I was looking for or thought I would get. I'm doing it because this is what I see my mission in life to be, to edu- cate surgeons and the younger generation into loving the profession and being able to help save sight." started, there were few people doing this kind of thing. Now, there are fellowships in it, which is wonderful." He said that the two best things about receiving this award are getting more recognition for the field and the money that's going to the Seva organizations. Dr. Spencer has earmarked the financial prize to be split between Seva Canada and Seva Foundation efforts to strengthen eye pro- gram quality and sustainability. Richard Packard, MD, FRCS, FRCOphth, will be ac- cepting the award on behalf of Dr. Choyce at the ASCRS Annual Meeting. "His desire to create a lens that would defy his critics led him, ultimately as we have seen, to the Mark IX lens. This was the first IOL to receive FDA approv- al in 1982. Peter was very proud of this." Reference 1. Choyce PD. Harold Ridley's first patient. J Cataract Refract Surg. 1999;25:731. Read more about this year's ASCRS Educator Award winner in the Spring 2024 issue of EyeWorld. Read more about this year's ASCRS Foundation Chang-Crandall Humanitarian Award winner in the Spring 2024 issue of EyeWorld. Read more about this year's inductee into the ASCRS Hall of Fame in the Spring 2024 issue of EyeWorld.

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