Eyeworld

105 EW IN OTHER NEWS by Ellen Stodola EyeWorld Staff Writer ly cancelled her first weekend on campus. Dr. Frank Price, however, talked her into getting together, and according to him, it was love at first sight. Now, 41 years later, the couple has 4 children and 4 grandchildren with 2 more on the way. Why each decided to get into ophthalmology Initially, Dr. Frank Price had planned to go into family practice like his father before him, but he decided to change to ophthalmology because he found that "eyes were so amaz- ingly beautiful to look at through the slit lamp." He added that it seemed like it would be easy to learn all there was to know about eyes be- cause they are so small. His interest in ophthalmology grew when he got to see a prototype for one of the first vitrectors. Ophthalmology is actually a third career for Dr. Marianne Price. She was the first female engineer- ing undergraduate and first female valedictorian at Notre Dame. She then worked for Union Carbide in research and development for 15 years, initially full time and then Francis and Marianne Price collaborate in ophthalmology and have been married for more than 4 decades A fter working in oph- thalmology and being married for more than 40 years, Francis Price, MD, and Marianne Price, PhD, Indianapolis, shared how they got into ophthalmology, their rela- tionship, and what it's like working in the same profession. How they met Dr. Frank Price and Dr. Marianne Price have been married for 41 years. They met while attending the University of Notre Dame during the time it was converting to a co-educa- tional institution. Not only did they meet at school, but they met on a blind date. During Dr. Marianne Price's freshman year and Dr. Frank Price's sophomore year, they went on a blind date, which Marianne initial- Scientist and surgeon balance work and marriage February 2016 Dr. Frank Price fishing with his granddaughter in Canada Drs. Frank and Marianne Price when they were dating in college continued on page 106 part time, until the birth of their fourth child. Because working part time was not commonly accepted at that time, Dr. Marianne Price said she felt fortunate to be able to split her time between work and family. When their fourth child entered kindergarten, Dr. Marianne Price began to pursue her PhD in medical and molecular genetics. Upon com- pletion, she took over as executive director of the Cornea Research Foundation of America, which Dr. Frank Price founded in 1988. What it's like being married to someone in the same medical specialty The Prices said that it is both an ad- vantage and disadvantage to be able to talk about work all the time. "We can get a lot done, but sometimes it seems to be ever present when you would like to do something else," they said. However, they see it as a real plus to be able to travel together to meetings, and at U.S. meetings in particular they can divide up the events in order to cover more ground. "As a surgeon/scientist team, we have complementary personalities and synergistic skills. We're both strong willed and competitive, so it would have been difficult to work to- gether when we were younger," they said. "We've mellowed with age!" It can often be hard to choose a location for practice, but Dr. Frank Price is from Indianapolis and completed medical school, internship, and residency there. Since family is very important to them, they wanted to remain close to Dr. Frank Price's family in Indiana and Dr. Marianne Price's family in Tennessee. Research and studies The Prices work together on a num- ber of different research and study topics. They said that improving cornea transplant outcomes is their key focus, while they also partic- ipate in industry-sponsored drug and device studies and especially enjoy investigating new approach- es that may help their patients, such as slow-release drug implants,

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