Curriculum
The Harvard Ophthalmology curriculum combines a strong didactic curriculum with diverse clinical and surgical training. You will graduate fully equipped to begin a career in general ophthalmology or to pursue fellowship training.
Harvard Ophthalmology Grand Rounds
During Grand Rounds on Thursday mornings, residents and fellows present thought-provoking case studies, which are moderated by diverse faculty across all disciplines. The interactive nature of the rounds allows attendings, trainees, nursing staff, and social workers to discuss clinical cases from multiple perspectives. Additionally, renowned guest lecturers, both within and outside our field, are regularly invited to augment these didactic sessions.
Chief Resident's Rounds
Led by the chief resident for one and a half hours, three days per week, these morning rounds are an opportunity for PGY-1 and PGY-2 residents to review the fundamental scientific and clinical principles in the field of ophthalmology, and to learn from interesting case presentations of patients seen by the residents. These rounds are tailored to cover the national curriculum of the American Academy of Ophthalmology’s Basic and Clinical Science Course (BCSC).
Ophthalmology Lecture Series
On Friday mornings, faculty present two, one-hour lectures for residents as part of a two-year over-arching didactic curriculum that covers all subspecialties.
Surgical Morbidity and Mortality (M&M) Rounds
Every quarter, the residents present and discuss complications of surgical cases to colleagues, the chief resident, and the faculty of the Comprehensive Ophthalmology Service.
Subspecialty Rounds
The cornea, glaucoma, and pediatrics services sponsor regular journal clubs that are open to all interested residents. There are also many subspecialty visiting lecturers throughout the year.
Retina Service Conference
This weekly conference is led by senior faculty from the Retina Service. PGY-2 residents present retina cases to retina fellows and the fellows discuss the evaluation and management of retinal diseases.
Neuro-Ophthalmology Case Conference
This weekly conference is led by faculty from the Neuro-Ophthalmology Service. PGY-2 and PGY-3 residents present neuro-ophthalmology cases to faculty and discuss the evaluation and management of neuro-ophthalmic diseases.
Regular Surgical Teaching Sessions
Innovation and Interaction (I&I) Sessions: Each month, residents come together for a three-hour protected wet lab session, designed by the chief resident with faculty volunteers. Instructional sessions are divided by residency year and geared toward hands-on teaching of surgical techniques across all subspecialties. Past sessions have included a refraction bootcamp, a scleral buckle lab, and a minimally invasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS) workshop, to name a few. Read our Program Brochure [PDF]
One-on-one Surgical Training: In addition, residents have one-on-one wet lab sessions with faculty that are built into the weekly rotation schedules.
Surgical Retina Conference
This twice monthly conference is led by faculty from the Retina Service. Second-year retina fellows present cases, with a focus on the surgical management of retinal diseases. Faculty, fellows, residents, and community surgeons are invited to attend and participate.
Resident-Centered Conferences
Chandler Course: The annual Chandler Professorship is a one-day course, in which residents invite a distinguished visiting professor to whom they present unknown clinical cases. This course is resident-led and allows residents to engage a visitor of their choice in interesting clinical conversations. The course is followed by a dinner with the visiting professor and select faculty.
Residents’ Course: This annual course is moderated by a visiting professor. Each PGY-3 resident chooses a clinically relevant question within that year’s theme, explores the literature, and prepares a review paper to present. These papers are published in a special edition of International Ophthalmology Clinics.
Resident-Centered Surgical Training Courses
Harvard Intensive Cataract Course: PGY-3 ophthalmology residents and faculty from around the country gather at Mass Eye and Ear for the annual Harvard Medical School (HMS) Cataract Course. During this two-day, weekend event, residents participate in a seminar covering all aspects of cataract surgery, with didactic and wet lab components.
Introduction to Strabismus Surgery Course for Intermediate Year Residents: This one-day intensive seminar covers all aspects of strabismus surgery with didactic and wet lab components. It is attended by PGY-3 ophthalmology residents from HMS and Boston University, and faculty from Mass Eye and Ear, Boston University, and Boston Children’s Hospital.
Orbital Fracture and Orbital Dissection Courses: These one-day seminars led by the oculoplastics faculty cover the nuances of orbital anatomy and fracture management through didactics and hands-on practical sessions with cadaveric dissection. These sessions bring together trainees from ophthalmology, otolaryngology, and plastic surgery across Harvard Ophthalmology affiliate hospitals for multi-disciplinary training.
Interns rotate through Mass Eye and Ear for a total of 3 months, split across their intern year. These rotations includes a variety of introductory exposures to ophthalmology in the clinical, surgical, anatomic pathology, and emergency department settings. View the Newton Wellesley schedule. PGY-1 rotations include:
Ophthalmic Pathology
The Eye Pathology Service at Mass Eye and Ear is among the best in the country. Each PGY-1 resident spends a clinical rotation in the Eye Pathology Laboratory, examining and reporting on the large volume of specimens daily. The residents learn to make clinical-pathologic correlations and work closely with the Eye Pathology fellow to prepare cases for daily review with the attending. This provides extensive one-on-one training and discussion of cases. Residents are given increasing independence as their skills expand.
Retina
PGY-1 residents will gain introductory exposure to common and rare retinal pathologies. Residents will spend time in retina clinics and the OR and will have dedicated one-on-one wetlab teaching sessions with our senior retina faculty.
Comprehensive Ophthalmology
In the comprehensive ophthalmology service, residents learn the basics of ophthalmology by evaluating adult patients in the comprehensive clinics and assisting with cataract surgeries in the OR.
Cornea and Refractive Surgery
PGY-1 residents will gain introductory exposure to common and rare corneal pathologies in the clinic and OR settings.
Emergency Department
PGY-1 residents gain introductory exposure to triaging, examining, diagnosing, and managing acute ophthalmic presentations through the Mass Eye and Ear Emergency Department under the supervision of ophthalmic hospitalists and clinical fellows.
Optometry
PGY-1 residents will rotate through the optometry clinics learning the fundamentals of vision testing, refraction, and the slit lamp exam.
Vision Rehabilitation
PGY-1 residents will rotate through the vision rehabilitation clinic learning the fundamentals of how to evaluate patients with low vision and the resources available for vision rehabilitation.
Junior residents learn through lectures, a series of core ophthalmology clinical rotations, and experience in the Mass Eye and Ear Emergency Department. Residents are introduced to ophthalmic surgery by assisting in the operating room and begin performing a variety of operative cases as primary surgeon, namely during their oculoplastics rotation. PGY-2 rotations include:
Emergency Department
Under the supervision of Mass Eye and Ear faculty and fellows, PGY-2 residents staff the Mass Eye and Ear Emergency Department and are responsible for triaging all eye-related emergencies. These cases cover the entire spectrum of ophthalmology (e.g., vision loss related to trauma, infection, oncology, vascular disease, and others).
Residents learn to function independently and manage a wide variety of ocular pathology and ocular trauma. Junior residents work the day shifts in the Mass Eye and Ear Emergency Department. They do not take overnight call. Instead, they rotate through a night float system, covering night shifts in the Emergency Department.
Ophthalmic Plastic, Orbit, and Cosmetic Surgery
In the Ophthalmic Plastic Surgery Service, junior residents learn to manage a variety of oculoplastic conditions, including lid disease, facial fracture, lid and orbital tumors, lacrimal drainage problems, and cosmesis. Each resident also spends about 1.5 days per week in the operating room, participating in blepharoplasties, ptosis repairs, excisional biopsies, orbitotomies, facial fracture repairs, and enucleations. Residents take a portion of home call, with back-up supplied by the oculoplastics fellow and attending.
Retina
PGY-2 residents will become familiar with fundus pathology and learn to manage retinal conditions, including diabetic retinopathy, macular degeneration, ocular infections, uveitis, and retinal tears and detachment. Residents interpret fluorescein angiograms with supervised review of retinal imaging studies on a weekly basis. Residents are also responsible for preparing cases for the macula conference each week. About one-half to one full day per week is spent in the operating room.
Comprehensive Ophthalmology
PGY-2 residents learn the basics of ophthalmology by evaluating adult patients in the comprehensive clinics. About one full day per week is spent in the operating room.
Glaucoma
PGY-2 residents learn basic skills in managing patients with glaucoma, including examination and evaluation of the optic nerve, interpretation of visual fields, and gonioscopy. Teaching rounds with the faculty provide valuable guidance. One full day per week is spent in the operating room.
Cornea and Refractive Surgery
Residents help manage a high volume of patients with corneal, anterior segment, and external disease problems, as well as those interested in refractive surgery. Residents learn to manage a wide variety of corneal diseases, including corneal dystrophies, ocular surface disease, infections, burns, and ocular surface tumors. They also gain valuable experience in standard corneal transplants. One-half to one full day a week is spent in the operating room.
Neuro-Ophthalmology
PGY-2 residents are introduced to Neuro-Ophthalmology on a combined Neuro-Ophthalmology and Adult strabismus rotation. On this rotation, they will learn to manage neuro-ophthalmic presentations, while gaining exposure to strabismus surgery in the operating room.
Trauma
Attending: Chief Resident
Each year, one Harvard Ophthalmology resident is selected to remain as a junior faculty member after graduation. This person plays a large administrative and teaching role in the program and also serves as Director of the Mass Eye and Ear Ocular Trauma Service. PGY-2 residents work with the chief resident to care for patients with open-globe injuries, hyphema, lacerations, traumatic cataracts, and traumatic glaucoma. They perform pterygium surgeries under the supervision of the Chief Resident.
Boston VA Hospital
For each year of training, there is one rotation at the Boston VA Hospital. Residents see both general and subspecialty patients and participate in surgery and lasers appropriate for their training levels.
PGY-3 residents refine their exam, diagnostic, and surgical skills by rotating through subspecialty clinics and functioning as independent consultants (with appropriate attending supervision) for hospitals affiliated with Harvard Ophthalmology.
During each rotation, a significant amount of time is spent performing oculoplastics, strabismus, vitreoretinal, and cataract surgeries. Residents also perform intravitreal injections, and retina and glaucoma laser procedures.
Residents work closely with leading figures in each subspecialty and see patients from around the world. They also see patients with rare hereditary retinal degenerations at both the Berman-Gund Laboratory for Retinal Degenerations and at Boston Children’s Hospital.
Most attending ophthalmologists perform chart rounds at the end of subspecialty clinics to discuss interesting clinical cases and review salient teaching points. This helps residents understand clinical management decisions.
Neuro-Ophthalmology at Mass Eye and Ear
Residents evaluate and manage patients with complex neuro-ophthalmic diseases. Weekly teaching conferences promote discussion and review of the diverse patient population cared for in this clinic.
Boston Children's Hospital
Residents work closely with the ophthalmology faculty at Boston Children’s Hospital—one of the country’s top pediatric hospitals—to gain experience performing exams and work-ups and managing routine and complicated pediatric ophthalmology patients.
Residents spend one to two days per week in the operating room, performing primary strabismus surgeries and assisting in oculoplastic and anterior segment surgeries.
Ophthalmic Plastic, Orbit, and Cosmetic Surgery at Mass Eye and Ear
During PGY-3, residents play a more active role in the operating room and participate in more complex surgeries. At least two full days a week are spent operating.
Boston VA Medical Center
PGY-3 residents participate more heavily in subspecialty clinics, including retina, glaucoma, cornea, and eye plastics.
Residents perform most of the intravitreal injections and glaucoma and retinal laser procedures. They are in the oculoplastics and strabismus operating rooms one-half day every other week or more.
Comprehensive Ophthalmology/Brigham and Women's Hospital
Residents are taken through cataract surgery in a stepwise fashion with a new step performed and perfected each week. By the end of the rotation, residents should be performing complete phaco surgeries under the supervision of the attendings. This stepwise introduction allows residents to gain confidence and prepares them for a busy surgical experience during their PGY-4 year. Residents also provide inpatient ophthalmic consultations to Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
The PGY-4 year is divided into rotation blocks, each lasting about six weeks. During this intensive training, residents build on the surgical skills they acquired in their first two years of training by performing cataract, glaucoma, anterior segment, open-globe, and retina surgeries. Each operative case is staffed by an attending surgeon.
Residents examine patients in clinic, participate in the preoperative evaluation, perform the patient's surgery, and see the patient in the immediate postoperative period. Through these experiences, the residents become excellent surgeons and clinicians. Additionally, PGY-4 residents work with and teach the PGY-2 residents during the first few months of their training (“buddy call season”) while they train in the Emergency Department.
Comprehensive Ophthalmology Service
Senior residents perform cataract surgeries as primary surgeons with each of the attendings. They should already be experienced cataract surgeons because of the stepwise introduction to surgery during their PGY-3 year. Residents become comfortable with superior and temporal approaches and clear corneal and scleral tunnel incisions. They gain expertise in complex cataract surgery techniques, including using trypan blue, capsular tension rings, iris hooks, and Malyugin rings.
Glaucoma Service
Senior residents perform trabeculectomies, insert tube shunts, and use lasers under faculty supervision. They also refine their medical management skills.
Boston VA Medical Center
This is a cataract-intensive rotation, where senior residents play an active role in the pre-, intra-, and postoperative management of patients and assist in the general ophthalmology and subspecialty clinics at the Boston VA. Residents also gain experience with premium lenses such as toric IOLs. For eligible patients, senior residents perform the preoperative workup, lens calculations, and surgery. Residents are in the operating room every other day, serving as primary surgeons for cataract and glaucoma surgeries.
Retina Service
Senior residents gain experience in the surgical management of retinal disease and spend 1-2 days in retina operating rooms.
Cornea Service
Senior residents refine their medical and surgical management of corneal disease. They spend 1-2 days in the operating room and laser suite.
Elective
Senior residents have the opportunity to design their own elective to gain experiences in global ophthalmology, finish research projects, or dive deeper into clinical interests.
Eye Trauma
Teaching Attending: Chief Resident
The senior residents perform all open-globe repairs under the supervision of the chief resident and supervise the PGY-2 residents in minor procedures, such as simple eyelid laceration repairs. On average, each senior resident performs 15 open-globe repairs as primary surgeon.