Eyeworld

28 | EYEWORLD | DECEMBER 2021 ASCRS NEWS continued from page 26 Dr. Farid has been a member of ASCRS since she was a fellow. "I was introduced to ASCRS by Roger Steinert, MD. I was his fellow at the time I became a member. He was a previous president of ASCRS, the program director, and very active in the leadership," she said. "He was my mentor, and I went to the ASCRS Annual Meeting with him for many years and saw the amount of dedication there is to education, and how fun it is to meet and learn from colleagues and learn about the latest in technology and advancement for anterior segment surgeons." ASCRS comes up with interesting ways to educate and offers diverse ways to reach out to people, she added. As far as getting involved, Dr. Farid said you have to be excited to give back. "I think there's a buzz in this next generation of young ophthal- mologists who are interested in leadership," she said. Dr. Farid's advice is to get involved with an attitude of gratitude and service to improve your skills and help patients, but she added that it's important to give back and help with the broader community and ophthalmic education. Dr. Farid said she is excited to delve further into her position as chair of the Cornea Clinical Committee, noting that she is honored to be in this role and is following in the big footsteps of previous chairs such as Ed Holland, MD, Terry Kim, MD, and Francis Mah, MD. "I have learned so much from these people and continue to call on them for guidance," she said. "I've been on [the committee] for many years as a member, and it's an amazing com- mittee that's dedicated to increasing corneal education for the ASCRS membership," she said. "This committee is active in putting togeth- er white papers, educational webinars, cornea skills transfer labs, and leading the program for Cornea Day as well as multiple symposia. "I'm proud to be serving in this role, espe- cially now when there is a big push to involve more women and diversity in the leadership. We're bringing many different perspectives to the table, and I think this is a step toward ad- vancing and moving the needle on our society, so I'm proud to be a part of that," Dr. Farid said. Dr. McCabe began attending the ASCRS Annual Meeting as a resident. "I love the ses- sions with challenging cataract surgeries and seeing innovative ways of solving problems surgically," she said. For Dr. McCabe, "the more you become in- volved in the process of education and learning, the more you understand that you might have something to share as well." If you want to get involved, Dr. McCabe said the most important thing to do is to express interest. "Find people who are participating in symposia, skills trans- fer classes, and instruction courses. The easiest way to get involved to begin with is to submit a case, an interesting video, or find someone who is teaching a course and ask if you can be on the faculty," she said. Before becoming chair of the Refractive Surgery Clinical Committee, Dr. McCabe was a member of the Cataract Clinical Committee. "That was a great experience to see how the members of a Clinical Committee get things done and how effective you can be when you have a lot of engaged and excited members," she said. Dr. McCabe described her experience so far on the Refractive Surgery Clinical Committee as a pleasure. "I've never been involved in a group of people who more readily jump up to say, "What can I do to help?' I feel fortunate to be leading this committee where we have dedicat- ed and passionate people who are eager to give their time and energy." Though she's been leading the committee for a short time, Dr. McCabe said they are al- ready looking at future opportunities, including a series of educational opportunities that begin virtually and culminate at a live meeting. "I'm honored to be a part of the leadership and am so excited to have the role with col- leagues and friends Zaina, Marjan, Elizabeth, and Christina," Dr. McCabe said. "I think we're excited to make some positive changes in the future and keep offering better service to our members." Cathleen McCabe, MD Chair Refractive Surgery Clinical Committee Marjan Farid, MD Chair Cornea Clinical Committee

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