December 8, 2021

Episode 15: Dr. William Myers, MD

A discussion on

“Global Ophthalmology in Haiti”

Dr. William Myers, MD

In this episode we are traveling to Haiti with Dr. William Myers who is an incredible global ophthalmologist as we will come to hear of his exemplary service work. He obtained his MD from Dartmouth Medical School and did his ophthalmology residency at Northwestern University where he is also faculty. Dr. Myers then did an orbit and oculoplastics fellowship at Medical College Wisconsin and since then he has performed over 30,000 cataract surgeries. Among his many contributions to the field of ophthalmology which include co-developing dropless cataract surgery in 2006, he is the co- instructor of the annual ASCRS and AAO courses on intracameral (inside the eye) agents for anterior segment surgery, featuring leading international ophthalmic researchers from 4 continents. Dr. Myers also serves on the ASCRS Foundation’s International Division committee and is on the board of FOCUS (1focus.org).

Key discussion points:

  • Interest in Ophthalmology and the journey to global ophthalmology

  • Appeal of cataract surgery

    • Working with a pioneer in the field

    • Evolution

      • intracapsular cataract surgery (no implant) to extracapsular cataract surgery (nonphaco/phaco)

        • Advantage in global ophthalmology: MSICS

  • Transition from private practice to hospital system

  • Work with Northwestern

    • VA experience

  • Pursuing global ophthalmology post-retirement

    • Finding networks that could enable access to global initiatives

  • Haiti

    • Working at ‘Double Harvest’

      • Medical clinic

      • Help ~100 people over 5-day period

      • Dr. Matt Thompson from FOCUS

    • Self-Sustainable solution to address ophthalmic disparities in the country

      • Matt Thompson and Dr. Daniel Alter on their trip to HUEH (Hôpital d l'Universite d'Etat d'Haiti)

      • Method of residency selection

      • Process of attracting the brightest minds for Ophthalmology residency

        • Process of building an Ophthalmology residency program: better equipment

        • Real-time monitoring of surgery

        • Development of a wet lab

          • Silicone model eyes from Orbis and SEE International in places where refrigeration of animal eyes is not practical

  • Ophthalmology residency in Haiti

    • Length of training: designed after the US system

    • Working around obstacles

    • Dr. Ana Bastos de Carvalho to help with communication/learning in didactic setting

      • Close captioning for lecture series

    • ICO exams for certifications (like the OKAPs)

    • Wet lab

    • Development of ophthalmology fellowships

    • 1 USAID grant: ROP

      • screening program

    • Active work with Dr. RV Paul Chan, Dr. David Chan & many more

    • Plan to get graduates set up practice outside of Port-au-Prince

  • Partners in Health

    • Building a surgery center

  • Connecting with Aravind Eye Center

  • Description of Haiti

    • Geopolitical

    • Safety

    • What is the general eye health in Haiti like?

  • Continuation of medical education training programs currently

    • Telemedicine

    • Monitoring surgical cases

  • On the topic of global ophthalmology: “If you have these periods of respite where you are using your skills to the maximum…that can make you a much better person and a much happier person!”

Episode-based Resources:

Resources — Open Globe Talk with Rizul (openglobetk.com)

 
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Episode 16: Dr. Jenny Yu, MD

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Episode 14: Dr. Emily Cole, MD MPH