Ophthalmology Leaders Beyond Borders

Ophthalmology Leaders

Beyond Borders by Olawale Salami

The International Council of Ophthalmology (ICO) in collaboration with the All India Ophthalmological Society (AIOS) held a 2-day virtual meeting of the World Ophthalmology Leaders Program. This year’s edition, titled Leadership Beyond Borders in Ophthalmology witnessed numerous participants from all over the world.

Dr. Neeru Gupta, the interim president of the ICO kicked off the meeting with her opening message which stressed the importance of a virtual event, especially at a pivotal time of global uncertainty. Dr. Gupta emphasized: “The ICO cares a lot about leadership and especially around this pandemic ,which has greatly impacted our personal and professional lives . . . so the ICO is supporting colleagues around the globe with resources that are provided through our eye societies.”

“We all face risks and we salute those who continue to take risks that are needed to help our patients preserve their sight,” said Dr. Gupta. She reminded the conference attendees that “It was only about 6 weeks ago that the ICO held its first ever world congress, and today, we are gathered here today to support one another as one global family.”

The opening remarks were followed by wonderful moments of spiritual connection and meditation, led by Didi Krishna Kumari.

Anyone can be a great public speaker

coach, shared exciting insights about how public speaking can inspire teams and urged conference attendees to develop their public speaking skills. She provided tips on good public speaking techniques that can help engage the audience, noting that “Public speaking is not about you, it’s about the people you’re talking to. So, the first thing you have to decide is the purpose. What do you want your listener to do, think or feel after you communicate? That’s your purpose and all of your speech is going to be geared to that purpose.”

Furthermore, she emphasized on content: “People want to know if you’re worth listening to in the first 30 seconds. So what I recommend is lead with the needs of the audience that you’re addressing, provide answers to those needs and highlight why you are so passionate about what you do.”

The AAO Leadership Program: The making of super leaders

In his presentation titled Excellence in Leadership, CEO of the African Ophthalmology Council (AOC) Sidney Gichuru provided a set of tips on leadership, based on his experiences and learnings from the leadership development program. “Firstly, to be a good leader, the most important thing is to provide a clear vision with goals that is shared by your team members. Vision building is key to leadership,” he said.

Furthermore, Dr. Gichuru stressed the importance of communication in leadership. “Leaders are master communicators. To reach your vision, you need to be able to communicate effectively with your team, customers and stakeholders,” he explained.

Selecting the right team members is crucial to reaching set objectives. Dr Gichuru echoed this, noting that a true leader recruits well for their team and delegates to the right team members.

A great team needs a great atmosphere that can bring out the best in them, and creating a team-oriented atmosphere is one of the key attributes of a leader. According to Dr. Gichuru, a leader should create an atmosphere where each member is valued, and embrace the principle that every member is important and failure of one team member equals failure of the whole team.

How can leaders promote innovative thinking? Dr. Gichuru provided answers to this question: “A true leader fosters an atmosphere where thoughts, ideas and innovation are required — and invited — by encouraging team members to think outside the box.”

Leadership in a pandemic: Drawing lessons from KungFu Panda

“The COVID-19 pandemic has had a major impact on all of us, including our patients,” said Prof. S Natarajan, a board member of the International Council of Ophthalmologists and previous president of the All India Ophthalmological Society (AIOS). In his presentation, Prof. Natarajan shared important leadership lessons from his own life, adding some inspiring excerpts from the movie Kung-Fu Panda.

“Like the turtle character in Kung-Fu panda, Master Oogway said that to be happy, you must believe because you have the power to choose how to react to your predicament.” Throughout the movie, according to Prof. Natarajan, the Panda continued in his quest for the secret recipe of success, he never gave up. “So I encourage all you young ophthalmologists to adopt this mindset, of not giving up,” he pointed out.

He encouraged ophthalmologists to push the boundaries of the field, referring to another quote from KungFu panda: “If you only do what you can do now, you will never be more than what you are now.” Prof. Natarajan encouraged colleagues to think outside the box by daring to be different.” If you do what most people do, you will get what most people get. Hence, dare to think outside the box,” he noted.

Finally, reflecting on the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Prof. Natarajan gave, probably his most important piece of advice: “In these times of uncertainty, one needs to focus on growing from challenges, and turning stumbling blocks into stepping stones.”

Impossible dreams: Mount Everest and eradicating world blindness

Dr. Jeoff Tabin is a professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences and the director of international ophthalmology at the John A. Moran Eye Center at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City (USA). He is regarded as one of the world’s leading figures in global ophthalmology. In addition, he is an avid mountain climber.

“Rock climbing is very similar to cataract surgery, and practice makes perfect. You need to practice and practice to perfect your art,” said Dr. Tabin. As a young mountain climber, Dr. Tabin first went to Nepal, an experience he considers life-changing. “However, while I was in Africa and Asia, the disparity in medical care and need between the developing world and the United States became obvious to me,” he recalled. “The Himalayan Cataract Project was something I never thought I would do. However, my accidental encounter with preventable blindness was inspired by people I met and that has remained with me today,” shared Dr. Tabin. To young ophthalmologists, Dr. Tabin advised them to take advantage of opportunities and to pursue their dreams.

After completing medical school at Harvard Medical School (Boston, USA) and an internship at the University of Colorado Hospital in Denver, Dr. Tabin returned to Nepal and worked as a general doctor at a remote hospital in Eastern Nepal. “Many of the problems that I saw were public health issues due to lack of clean water, poor diet and poor living conditions,” Dr. Tabin recalled. “However, the one miracle I witnessed was cataract surgery. In the village where we worked, people accepted that as one gets old their hair turns white, their eyes turn white, and then they die,” he shared.

Dr. Tabin’s work was greatly facilitated by those he met along the way. He shared fond memories about those experiences: “I was fortunate to meet my partner, Dr. Sanduk Ruit, an ophthalmologist who was the first Nepali surgeon to implant IOLs and who later developed a fantastic delivery system for high-quality, high-volume, low-cost cataract surgery.”

“My experiences working in the Himalayas and in Sub-Saharan Africa have greatly influenced my work as an ophthalmologist in the United States,” he added.

In 1998, Dr. Tabin made it to the summit of Mount Everest. “It was a perfect day with clear skies and I could see all the peaks of Nepal. I could see four of the next six highest peaks,” Dr. Tabi shared. He has since climbed the highest mountains on all seven continents.

Furthermore, Dr. Tabin emphasized the importance of resilience: “Five years earlier, I had been with a team that made the first ascent of the East Face of Everest. I did not make the ascent and turned back 800 meters to the summit. But I never gave up.”

“I’ve been very fortunate in my life’s journey and I remain grateful to all the brilliant people I’ve met,” he concluded.

Leadership in ophthalmology: Fostering patient-doctor relationships

Feedback about patient experiences is important in ensuring that doctors understand patient needs. How does leadership in the ophthalmology practice affect patients? A key session on the second day of the conference was an open forum where patients expressed their thoughts on their experiences in eye surgery, and the impact of those experiences on their lives today.

One patient who spoke, Priyanka Sathe, noted: “The patient-doctor connection is very important. Once a doctor speaks to a patient, there is a sense of relief at that moment because of the preexisting anxiety in many patients.

“A heart-to-heart talk with a patient undergoing surgery is very important, and this made a huge difference in my experience as a patient of Prof. Natajaran,” shared Ms. Sathe. “Maintaining good patient communication, even amidst the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak, goes a long way in allaying patient fears,” she added.

Meanwhile, another patient who is a practicing solicitor, shared her lifelong experience with ophthalmologists: “I started my life with congenital cataract and I’ve had a mixed experience, both good and bad. I wish doctors would be more open to patients and tell them how or when complications may occur after surgery.”

Editor’s Note:

The World Ophthalmology Leaders Program, Leadership Beyond Borders in Ophthalmology (presented by ICO in collaboration with AIOS), was held on 15-16 August 2020. Reporting for this story also took place during the event.