EyeWorld is the official news magazine of the American Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgery.
Issue link: https://digital.eyeworld.org/i/1109716
62 | EYEWORLD | MAY 2019 O UTSIDE THE OR INSIGHTS by J.C. Noreika, MD, MBA Contact information Noreika: JCNEYEMD@gmail.com peal. Many shared perspectives on their nations' ophthalmic care. But unlike game-changing re- search, writing essays, as my friend Reay Brown, MD, reminded me, is an ephemeral pursuit. Even brilliant thought-leaders such as Christo- pher Hitchens and David Foster Wallace are too soon consigned to culture's dustbin. I harbor no delusions of any lasting impact of "Insights" on my profession, organization, and peers. The revitalized EyeWorld offers news of ASCRS' contributions to our profession and the activities of its leadership. The sections on news, cataract, refractive, cornea, glaucoma, practice management, and so on are acutely defined and conveniently delineated. Contri- butions are shorter, more concise, and cut- ting- edge. For eye surgeons who enjoy printed words in the epoch of talking heads, it is the ideal way to stay current. I'm not done yet. A renamed rendition of "Insights" will come to you on a quarterly basis. True to Dave Karcher's charge and Steve Speares' support, the column will provoke and, hopefully, compel. Topics will be timely and relevant to eye surgeons gleaned from fertile terrain for innovative ideas and procedures such as the ASCRS ASOA Annual Meeting. Future themes will explore devel- opments in ocular gene therapy and look to the upcoming 2020 presidential election, to which all physicians best pay attention. I will continue to rely on wisdom of those far swifter of thought than I. Author and journalist Anna Quindlen ob- served, "fact is different from truth and truth is different from insight." Acknowledging this prin- ciple, I encourage readers to draw their own distinc- tions, and conclusions. For surgeons, for you. V aledictories evoke past and future, nostalgia and expectation. They pres- ent opportunities for reinvention. EyeWorld's metamorphosis into this polished publication affords such a moment. The creativity that spawned the new EyeWorld is striking. The internet has revolutionized the dissemi- nation of information. EyeWorld responded by creating a resource that is impeccably organized, easy to read, and pertinent to the eye surgeon. Its tradition of intellectual rigor endures while deferring to the constraints of contemporary practice. "Insights" has been a monthly feature of EyeWorld for 9 years. Its 1,000-word es- says could fill a 400-page book. But it wasn't my idea. Many years ago, Dave Karcher, then ASCRS executive director, proposed it during breakfast at an ASCRS ASOA Annual Meeting. He directed that I write on topics germane to medicine and ophthalmology. The objective was to produce a commentary stimulating thought and provoking reaction. Except for editorials in journals and periodicals, this was unique to ophthalmic literature. The unstructured man- date offered great latitude to experi- ment. "Insights" embraced styles of short stories, one-act plays, book reviews, and interviews to expound on subjects such as marijua- na, bioresearch, scope of practice, millennials in medicine, and most recently, physician burnout. Obamacare was interpreted with assistance from Lewis Carroll and his Alice. Many colleagues have offered support, en- couragement, and criticism. Most gratifying were those digital and hardcopy com- muniqués sent from overseas, a clear signal of ASCRS' broad ap- You say goodbye, I say hello About the doctors J.C. Noreika, MD, MBA Philadelphia An engaged ASCRS member for almost 40 years