Message: Looking Forward

Message from Incoming Vice Chair of Education Rachel G. Simpson, MD

What Moran’s education program achieved under the leadership of Jeff Pettey, MD, MBA, and his predecessors is nothing short of astonishing. Moran has grown to be a Top 5 residency program, earning national and international recognition for our educational programs. My first goal as I assume the vice chair of education position is to ensure we continue the amazing growth trajectory of the past decade.

When I look forward to the next 5-10 years, I am most excited about the growing number of new faculty who are passionate about education. In the past few years, we have added several outstanding faculty members whose primary interest is residency education and training. I hope to develop this core group into an educational team, with each focused on a specific critical aspect of residency training, including things like clinical care, surgical training, community outreach, advocacy, and research.

Another major focus will be additions to our surgical curriculum. Our residents already enjoy one of the most robust surgical residencies in the country, but with the growth of our faculty, we are hoping to develop an advanced microsurgical curriculum that goes beyond the fundamentals. Through this, our residents will gain advanced surgical skills during their training.

Finally, with Salt Lake City’s tremendous growth over the last few years, we have an eye to expand our program by an additional resident in the years to come. Expanding the program will allow us to better serve our patient population and allow our residents more opportunities to serve our community, with a particular focus on those underserved areas where access to care is currently a challenge.

Moran Eye Center at a Glance

July 1, 2021 — June 30, 2022

Patient Visits: 153,369

Surgeries: 7,999

Research Grants: $9.57 Million

Clinical Trials/Studies: 90+

Publications: 270 +

Exceptional Training

- In a typical three-year period, one Moran resident, on average, performs about 740 surgeries and procedures. More than 300 are cataract surgeries — 86 is the national requirement.

- 57 presentations and 39 publications by Moran trainees in 2022.

- 340+ Moran-trained ophthalmologists practicing in 45 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and 2 countries.