VOLUNTEERISM IN DOMESTIC HUMANITARIAN EYECARE: BE THE CHANGE YOU WISH TO SEE
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the patients who successfully navigate
through this system, Dr. Park said.
Dr. Park said she asks patients,
"Who is coming with you on the
surgery day?" and she's surprised at
the number of people who don't have
someone. Dr. Al-Mohtaseb said it's
more common than you might think,
and she was also shocked at this at
first.
Panelists discussed some of the
barriers that they encounter when
helping patients in need and how
they've addressed them.
When people call my office, Dr.
Levenson said, the first thing my
staff used to say was, "What's your
insurance?" But not everyone has
insurance. Sometimes, we don't even
realize we're limiting access, he said.
Ms. Duval previously worked in a
practice as a cataract surgery sched-
uler. Now, she said working for the
ASCRS Foundation's Operation Sight
program has been eye opening and
connected her with patients across the
country. "Sometimes I think I might
be the only person this person talks to
There are multiple steps for a
patient to reach surgery—the referral,
the exam by an eye doctor, diagnos-
tic testing, surgical scheduling, and
transportation to surgery. Dropoffs
occur at each stage, but surgeons often
do not see the problem because we see
Zaina Al-Mohtaseb, MD
Whitsett Vision Group
Houston, Texas
Hayley Boling, MBA, COE
CEO
Boling Vision Center
CEO
INSIGHT Surgery Center
Elkhart, Indiana
Sarah Duval, COE, COA
Operation Sight Program
Manager and
Communications Liaison
ASCRS Foundation
Nikki Fedoravicius, MPH
Executive Director
Vision Health International
St. Louis, Missouri
Jeffrey Levenson, MD
Levenson Eye Associates
Jacksonville, Florida
Susan MacDonald, MD
Associate Clinical Professor
of Ophthalmology
Tufts University School
of Medicine
CEO
Eye Corps
Concord, Massachusetts
Cathleen McCabe, MD
Medical Director
The Eye Associates
Chief Medical Officer
Eye Health America
Bradenton, Florida
Lori McCoy, COA
Global Outreach Director
John A. Moran Eye Center
Salt Lake City, Utah
Lisa Park, MD
Board Chair
Vision Care USA
Professor
Department of
Ophthalmology
Division Director
Comprehensive
Ophthalmology
Columbia University
Medical Center
New York, New York
Rajesh Rajpal, MD
Founder and Medical
Director
See Clearly Vision Group
Clinical Professor of
Ophthalmology
George Washington
University School of
Medicine and Health
Sciences
Washington, D.C.
Omar Shakir, MD, MBA
Founder
Coastal Eye
Greenwich, Connecticut
Vance Thompson, MD
Founder
Vance Thompson Vision
Sioux Falls, South Dakota
about the speakers
Al-Mohtaseb: zaina1225@gmail.com
Boling: h.boling@bolingvisioncenter.com
Duval: sduval@ascrs.org
Fedoravicius: nikkif@visionhealth.org
Levenson: jeffrey.levenson@gmail.com
MacDonald: susan@eyecorps.org
McCabe: cmccabe13@hotmail.com
McCoy: lori.mccoy@utah.edu
Park: Lisa.Park@Columbia.edu
Rajpal: rrajpal@seeclearly.com
Shakir: omar.shakir@gmail.com
Thompson: vance.thompson
@vancethompsonvision.com
contact
all day," she said. It highlights the fact
that some of these people are truly
alone.
Ms. Boling said that one thing
providers, practices, and organiza-
tions can do is try to identify areas of
friction that exist in their processes.
Ms. McCoy stressed the importance of developing a
personal relationship with patients and learning about
their needs.
Source: ASCRS
Dr. Park noted some of the obstacles to care, including
transportation limitations, inability to take off time
from work, postop escort requirements, health literacy
challenges, and language barriers.
Source: ASCRS
