What was your inspiration for pursuing ophthalmology as a career?
I always knew I wanted to be a doctor and help patients, but had no idea beyond that. It’s fair to say that I didn’t love my junior house officer jobs in general medicine. Disruptive weeks of night shifts, with limited continuity of patient care made me question if I really wanted to be a doctor.
One day, a senior medic asked me what I wanted to do with my life and I replied “not this!” He asked what I enjoyed at university and, as I had completed a special study module in ophthalmology, I replied that I seemed to be able to see the optic disc. He offered to hold my bleep for a few afternoons to enable me to observe in the ophthalmology clinic, providing my first proper exposure. So, I owe Dr Ernie Hunter a huge amount, including the blueprint of how to treat juniors well. Seeing how eye surgery can revolutionise a patient’s life was transformational, and still excites me to this day.
Tell us what your experience was like as Simulation Lead for the College, and what that role entails?
Frequent practice on simulators, such as the state-of-the-art EyeSi surgical simulators, is a great way to enable trainees to become familiar with surgical techniques in a safe environment. As the College’s Simulation Lead over the past four years, my role has involved developing evidence and encouraging best practice, delivering the College’s simulation strategy and acting as an ambassador for simulation at all levels of medical education. Through the College, we now have a network of regional simulation leads and trainee simulation champions to help deliver local training events throughout the UK to help trainees build their confidence simulating real surgery techniques.
There are now many bespoke simulation resources including subspecialty model eyes and computerised simulators. Raising awareness has helped to improved integration into training programmes; one example is running vitreous loss fire drills. However, due to a lack of dedicated time and resources, overall engagement can be infrequent and variable. Taking the time to engage with simulation results in safer surgical experiences for the trainee, trainer and, most importantly, the patient. We can’t afford not to invest in simulation!
Tell us why you feel it’s important to become a member of the College.
Engagement with the College provides an opportunity for expressing your creativity and unleashing your potential to be a positive influence for the future of ophthalmology. Networking with other like-minded individuals around the country helps give perspective to your local situation, and solutions achieved elsewhere in the UK can be shared to benefit others. Ultimately, the best way to improve something is to get involved!
