Eyeworld

UPDATE 11 by Natalie Zundel ASCRS Foundation Development Director tion Medical Group. She has been a member of the ASCRS Foundation International Committee for several years and is uniquely suited to this new role given her commitment to charitable eye care. During her career, Dr. Erny has volunteered with the Himalayan Cataract Project, SEE International, The Flying Doctors, International Aid, Amazon Promise, and others, teaching and providing surgical care in South and Central America, Africa, and Asia. She has twice made extended visits to Ethiopia where she has taught and mentored local ophthalmologists at the ASCRS Foundation's Robert Sinskey Eye Institute. Dr. Erny's work will focus on helping the Foundation and its partners address the root cause of increasing global cataract blind- ness—the shortage of eye surgeons. Together, they are committed to long-term solutions that build local surgeon capacity in developing countries, such as the Ethiopian Residency Coordinator Initiative, launched with the Himalayan Cata- ract Project 2 years ago. The program supports residency coordinators at each of Ethiopia's five teaching hospitals, coordinating clinical rotations, providing travel support to African and U.S. meetings, and working to standardize the educa- tional curriculum country-wide. To learn more about the ASCRS Foundation's international work, visit: www.ascrsfoundation.org/ international. EW Contact information Erny: berny@ascrs.org Zundel: nzundel@ascrs.org Dr. Erny will focus on international humanitarian eye care T he ASCRS Foundation is pleased to welcome Barbara Erny, MD, to the team. Dr. Erny joins as the ASCRS Foundation medical liaison for international programs, a new volunteer position created to support the expanding scope of the Foundation's international work, which now includes a diverse and growing network of nonprofit partners including DigiSight, Global Sight Alliance, Himalayan Cataract Project, Moran Eye Institute, Seva Foundation, and Vision Care. Dr. Erny will foster collaboration and coordinate efforts with partner organizations committed to elim- inating curable cataract blindness in the developing world. An active humanitarian volunteer surgeon, Dr. Erny recently retired from her private practice in Silicon Valley to devote more time advancing ophthalmology and cataract surgery in countries where it's needed the most. Dr. Erny earned her medical degree from Stanford University School of Medicine, where she also completed her ophthalmology res- idency. Before transitioning to her medical liaison role, Dr. Erny spent 26 years with the Palo Alto Founda- Barbara Erny, MD, takes on new Foundation role Insightful news from the ASCRS Foundation Barbara Erny, MD Dr. Erny (front row, fourth from right) with Ethiopian residency coordinators and skills lab trainers at the 2018 ASCRS•ASOA Annual Meeting. The program brings each residency coordinator to the U.S. annually for specialized training at the ASCRS•ASOA Annual Meeting. Source: ASCRS

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