Eyeworld

DECEMBER 2021 | EYEWORLD | 29 Dr. Yeu first got involved with ASCRS during residency. "I was fortunate enough to submit a poster that was accepted," she said. After finishing residency and fellowship, Dr. Yeu was invited to be on what was then called the Young Physicians and Residents Clinical Committee, now the Young Eye Surgeons (YES) Clinical Committee. "It was incredible to be able to give back to the field that I love at such a young age and get involved in helping with the training of other young surgeons," Dr. Yeu said. "It was eye opening when we did our first resident survey among our committee and demonstrated that a significant number—more than half of residents—were not getting ex- posure to a lot of advanced technologies and techniques," Dr. Yeu said. She found it empowering to get involved in skills transfer, educational courses, and lectures so that other surgeons could learn from peers and experts through ASCRS. After several years, Dr. Yeu became the chair of the YES Clinical Committee, which un- derwent a rebranding effort that saw increased offerings at the ASCRS Annual Meeting and the creation of a regional meeting, a YES column in EyeWorld, and other new YES-specific content. "That was a wonderful experience serving as the YES Clinical Committee chair for 4 years," she said. Dr. Yeu then became a member of the Cornea Clinical Committee. She currently hosts the Ophthalmology Quicksand Chronicles podcast with Nicole Fram, MD, in addition to being treasurer of ASCRS. "I love being able to know that the efforts that we commit to this volunteer organization allow me the ability to have an impact more than a 1:1 ratio as I do with clinical practice, which is also very fulfilling; this allows me to potentially help patients in other parts of the U.S. as well as internationally," she said. For those interested in getting involved, Dr. Yeu said to reach out and let it be known that you want to be involved. "Whatever they ask, no matter how small or large, if you're avail- able to do so, say yes and give 150%," she said. "When other opportunities and positions open up, your name will rise to the top of the list." Dr. Weng first became involved with the ASCRS through her work on the Retina Clin- ical Committee (RCC). "A few years ago, my friend and colleague Steve Charles, MD—for- mer RCC chair who still serves in an advisory position—invited me to participate in the retina symposium at the ASCRS Annual Meeting," Dr. Weng said. "I enjoyed this cross-collaboration among anterior segment and posterior segment surgeons and think these types of exchanges are beneficial to ophthalmologists as well as to our patients." Dr. Weng said she was "truly humbled and honored" when Dr. Charles and the ASCRS Executive Committee asked her to assume the position of the RCC chair in 2019. For those hoping to become more involved, Dr. Weng said it's important to let others know of your interest and take advantage of opportu- nities that arise. "One of the great things about ASCRS is that there is a niche for everyone," she said. "The society is always looking for eager volunteers, whether that be for their educa- tional initiatives, clinical mission, or advocacy efforts. Oftentimes, once you get involved with one thing, doors open to other opportunities." As chair of this committee, Dr. Weng said that one of her responsibilities is to organize the retina symposium at the ASCRS Annual Meeting. "This is a terrific part of the program because it gathers world-class vitreoretinal specialists to speak on various retina topics that are carefully curated for our anterior segment colleagues." In her position, Dr. Weng hopes to continue to grow the presence and integration of retina- focused activities in ASCRS programming. Christina Y. Weng, MD, MBA Chair Retina Clinical Committee Elizabeth Yeu, MD Treasurer Advisor, YES Clinical Committee

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