The department of Ophthalmology has expanded over the last few years to include the following subspecialty disciplines: Medical Retina, Vitreoretinal surgery, Uveitis and ocular immunology, retinal electrophysiology, cornea and anterior segment diseases, refractive surgery, pediatric ophthalmology, and glaucoma. Of these disciplines, Retina is the most represented with four fellowship-trained full time and busy faculty members and one American board certified part time faculty member. Being a tertiary referral center with multiple retina faculty and diverse interests, gives the medical retina fellow the unique experience of tapping into a large patient base with diverse pathology. The fellow is also exposed to a variety of treatment philosophies. The fellowship program is a continuation of the educational mission of the department of Ophthalmology to train future medical retina specialists for Lebanon and the region.
Description of the Training Program:
The goal of the medical retina fellowship is to provide comprehensive training in vitreoretinal and uveal diseases for physicians that have completed their training in Ophthalmology. The program conforms with the general guidelines approved by the Macula Society and Retina Society in the United States of America, June, 1989. A period of one year of clinical experience will be required to provide subspecialty fellows with a good knowledge base enabling them to provide optimal assessment and management to patients with vitreoretinal diseases.
The fellow’s primary responsibilities during the day will be in the vitreoretinal clinics at the Ophthalmology department at AUBMC where he/she will participate in the care of patients under the direct supervision of the retina specialist in order to receive direct feedback on the clinical evaluation of patients so as to enhance and clarify findings on the examination, and to assist in formulation of the proper diagnosis and management. New patients will be thoroughly examined by the fellow; patients who have been previously seen will be given an in-depth evaluation that will help direct ongoing management. The fellow will be responsible for the preoperative evaluation of patients that are to be admitted to the operating room. He/She will also be responsible for assisting in the postoperative management and care of these patients, as well as any other patients hospitalized on the vitreoretinal service. The fellow will also assist in retina surgery keeping in mind that this is a medical retina fellowship and surgical training is not an objective.
The fellowship will offer comprehensive training in the medical assessment and management of a wide variety of vitreoretinal diseases, including retinal vascular disease, macular disease, intraocular tumors, uveitis, proliferative vitreoretinopathy, trauma, retinal detachment, and pediatric retinal disorders. Through progressively increasing participation, the fellow will gain autonomy in clinical decision-making and treatment.
Faculty
Currently, there are five vitreoretinal diseases specialists in the department; A board certified Professor (AM), three associate professors (ZB, HS and RNH) and one clinical instructor (SA).In addition, there is one pediatric ophthalmologist (CH) at the rank of associate professor who handles pediatric retinal diseases and tumors.