Overview
The glaucoma fellowship is a one-year AUPO FC approved training program, whose mission is to prepare our fellows to be the best glaucoma specialists, whether entering an academic career or one in private practice. Our fellows graduate with a strong armamentarium of clinical, surgical, and professional skills.
The fellowship training occurs through a one-on-one mentorship with the various glaucoma faculty in clinic and in the operating room. Glaucoma surgical procedures performed by our faculty include:
- Aqueous shunts (Clear Path, Baerveldt, Ahmed), trabeculectomy, XEN
- Angle surgery (iTrack Advance, OMNI, Kahook Dual Blade, TrabEx, Sion, Hydrus, iStent)
- Suprachoroidal surgery (Alloflo)
- Transscleral cyclophotocoagulation (G probe and micropulse)
Our surgical repertoire is constantly expanding, and the administration is supportive in ensuring we have access to the latest glaucoma surgical technology.
Our glaucoma faculty work closely with colleagues in the other divisions to coordinate both clinical and surgical care for the most complicated eye diseases. The glaucoma fellows will have ample exposure to the excellent faculty in other Cole Eye divisions while caring for conditions such as childhood syndromic glaucomas, uveitic glaucoma, neovascular glaucoma, and glaucoma secondary to scleral buckles and corneal transplants.
Cole Eye Graduate Medical Education
- 12 fellows (Two glaucoma fellows)
- Five residents per class
Teaching Faculty
Mary Qiu
Program Director
Daniel Petkovsek, MD
Associate Program Director
Jonathan Eisengart, MD
Faculty
Zane Khademi, MD
Faculty
Ang Li, MD
Faculty
Annapurna Singh, MD
Faculty
Shalini Sood, MD
Faculty
Jessie Wang, MD
Faculty
Educational Environment
The glaucoma faculty are dedicated to the training experience of the glaucoma fellow. The glaucoma fellow is considered to be not only a future colleague but also a friend - always treated with respect in a congenial and professional atmosphere.
While service is important, the faculty recognize that learning is the primary objective of the fellowship. To this end, the fellow’s schedule remains flexible so that he or she remains free to participate in important learning opportunities. For example, the fellow may leave their assigned clinic to participate in an unusual or complex surgery, or to see one of their post-op patients from the prior day.
Cole Eye Institute has an incredible breadth of experienced and talented faculty across all the ophthalmic subspecialties. The glaucoma fellow benefits immensely from working with these faculty during the patient-care process. Hearing expert opinions on a wide variety of complex diseases teaches our fellows to most efficiently handle the challenging situations they will see in their own career and allows them to serve as a valuable resource for their future colleagues.
Fellows learn how to be highly effective and efficient in clinic and how to interact and supervise ancillary personnel. Fellows will be able to personally examine and plan the management of patients in clinic. We believe these experiences are extremely important in their future clinical practice.
Surgery & Clinical Rotations
Clinical rotations
The fellow is typically in clinic two to three days weekly and in the operating room one to two days weekly. Rotations are organized so that the fellow will have an opportunity to work with each of the faculty individually in a one-on-one setting.
While a majority of the fellow experience occurs at the main campus, rotations to satellite clinics (e.g. Lorain, Beachwood) are incorporated to ensure the best educational experience for the fellow.
There is always a PGY-4 and a PGY-2 resident rotating on the glaucoma service, but the fellow and the PGY-4 resident are not assigned to the same OR simultaneously, so both the senior resident and the fellow get one-on-one time with the glaucoma faculty. The fellow and PGY-2 may operate together, allowing the fellow to develop confidence both as a primary surgeon working with a resident assistant and as a surgical educator.
Surgical experience
Glaucoma fellows at the Cole Eye Institute train with experienced surgeons and consistently graduate with a significant number of eye procedures as primary surgeon. Our numbers for tube shunt and MIGS procedures are amongst the highest in the country, and our fellows do a significant number of cataract surgeries as part of their fellowship training as well. We believe being a competent cataract surgeon is essential to being able to provide great glaucoma care.
There is now a new opportunity for the glaucoma fellows to have additional OR time for appropriate cases to help their transition into becoming an attending. Fellows are exposed to a broad range of complex cases, with abundant opportunities to perform revision procedures. Glaucoma surgeries are performed at the main campus as well as the Lorain satellite.
Benefits
Salary & benefits
Cleveland Clinic offers a strong salary and benefits package. Fellows are paid at the PGY 5 level.
Highlights include:
- Health, prescription, vision, dental benefits
- Cleveland Clinic health insurance for you and your family at 50% the cost of other Cleveland Clinic employees.
- Disability and Life insurance. Malpractice insurance that does not require the purchase of a “tail” when you leave.
- Medical license fees paid for by the Cleveland Clinic
- 15 work days of vacation (does not have to be 1 week at a time)
- Time off for board exams
- Time off for job interviews (7 days)
- Time off and reimbursements for academic conferences and courses, which fellows are encouraged to attend
- Access to Cleveland Clinic fitness facilities and pool.
- Retirement savings programs and flexible spending accounts available.
Find complete benefit information, including up-to-date salary numbers
Call Schedules
Fellows take a few weeks of general/trauma attending call as backup to the residents who take primary call. Holiday general/trauma call weeks are covered by attendings, not fellows.
One of the glaucoma fellows is expected to be available to the residents who are on primary call for advice or to evaluate a glaucoma emergency.
During business hours, the glaucoma fellows may be consulted by the “same day access clinic” or another subspecialty clinic, if an urgent glaucoma situation arises.
