American Academy of Ophthalmology Hosts COVID-19 Leadership Webinar
The COVID-19 pandemic has pushed the healthcare community into an unprecedented landscape, rife with unique challenges that impact all levels of medicine. From practices to institutions to academia, these challenges call for leaders in the healthcare community to reassess the systems and routines that shape patient and staff experiences and make adjustments accordingly.
To this end, the American Academy of Ophthalmology recently hosted a panel discussion entitled “COVID-19: Leadership During a Crisis,” which was moderated by Retina Consultants of Houston’s very own Dr. Christopher R. Henry, board-certified medical and surgical retina specialist.
The webinar, which took place on June 12th, 2020, brought together prominent leaders in the ophthalmology industry, each of whom represented a different facet of healthcare. They each gave a presentation detailing how they specifically handled new challenges brought on by COVID-19 and offered advice to other medical professionals on how these strategies could be integrated into their own practices.
The panel consisted of:
David W. Parke II, M.D., CEO of the American Academy of Ophthalmology. Dr. Parke opened the panel by discussing leadership as a concept and identifying the most critical characteristics that healthcare leaders should have, with a strong focus on the ability to make difficult decisions and communicate effectively.
Elizabeth Yeu, M.D., Assistant Professor at Eastern Virginia Medical School and cornea specialist at Virginia Eye Consultants. Dr. Yeu’s presentation focused on handling a crisis from the perspective of a medical practice. Covering topics such as reopening protocols and patient communication, her presentation used Virginia Eye Consultants’ actions throughout the COVID-19 pandemic as a model.
Daniel Martin, M.D., Chair of the Cleveland Clinic Cole Eye Institute, the Barbara and A. Malachi Mixon III Institute Chair in Ophthalmology, and Professor of Ophthalmology in the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University. Dr. Martin’s presentation focused on navigating economic and personnel challenges from an institutional level, using the Cleveland Clinic Cole Eye Institute as an example.
Stephen D. McLeod, M.D, Chair of the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) and Editor-in-Chief of “Ophthalmology” – the peer-reviewed journal of the American Academy of Ophthalmology. Dr. McLeod’s presentation focused on the impact COVID-19 has had on academia, specifically on clinics, research, and education, and offered solutions for mitigating crisis-related challenges.
After the presentations, there was a Q&A portion in which the participants discussed topics such as the future of COVID-19, the unique risks that ophthalmologists face with highly infectious diseases, and managing pandemic-related anxieties amongst staff members.
To watch the full panel discussion, click here.
Learn more about Retina Consultants of Houston’s COVID-19 protocols.
