Browse articles from EyeWorld.org related to pandemics. EyeWorld is the award-winning member publication of ASCRS. The magazine provides news and updates from the Society as well as clinical features in the areas of cataract, refractive, cornea, glaucoma, and practice management. It publishes quarterly with editorial direction from its medical editorial board and staff.
The COVID-19 pandemic hit home for our ophthalmology practices in March 2020, closing our offices and surgicenters for all but emergency patients for 10 weeks. This was the reality for many of us. There was an atmosphere of generalized concern bordering on panic in many locations due to a fear of the unknown.
For ASCRS members, and our ASCRS staff, 2020 has seen the ultimate examination of our resilience. It would be a tiresome and labored exercise to go through the process of recapping a year that we are all eager to put in the rearview mirror. “Unprecedented.” “Difficult times.” “We’re in this together.” Each word and phrase has become so ubiquitous they now trigger our brains to tune out whatever follows.
Elizabeth Yeu, MD, ASCRS Secretary, Richard Lindstrom, MD, ASCRS Member at Large, Douglas Rhee, MD, ASCRS Treasurer, Sumit “Sam” Garg, MD, Chair of ASCRS Young Eye Surgeons Committee, and Edward Holland, MD, ASCRS Program Chair, share thoughts on this unprecedented year.
When asked to write a reflection of the past year, I took a deep breath and sat down for a bit. So many emotions ran through me when I thought about this past year. It truly has been a roller coaster ride and a lesson in rapid adaptation.
After being forced to close for several months because of the COVID-19 pandemic, many ophthalmologists had to make adjustments to practices in the clinic and surgery when they reopened. EyeWorld spoke to several surgeons about what they’ve seen in terms of LASIK numbers since reopening, with many noting that they’ve actually seen an uptick in this procedure.
With the COVID-19 pandemic temporarily closing practices around the country, many ophthalmologists had to figure out how to still communicate with and treat their patients. Several physicians commented on how the pandemic has affected their dry eye patient population and trends they have seen.
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected all areas of medicine, including eye banking. While much more is known about SARS-CoV-2 and the illness it causes, there are still several unknowns that continue to be investigated as they pertain to the safety of donor tissue.
As I write this, we are in the ninth month of the COVID pandemic, and each day brings a record number of new cases in the third wave of the virus. As a glaucoma specialist in New York City, my practice has surely seen some ups and downs over the past year. We have had to adapt tremendously, and perhaps now is a good time to reflect on some of these changes.
The COVID-19 pandemic and the early shutdown of non-essential medical visits propelled innovation on the front of home monitoring, diagnostics, and treatment. Some systems are available now, some in the works, and some still on ophthalmologists’ wish list.
All surgical specialties, particularly ophthalmology, are facing steep across-the-board cuts to reimbursement—through a reduction in the conversion factor—if the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) 2021 policies for evaluation and management (E/M) go into effect without modification.