The State of Ophthalmology Medical Student Education in the United States: An Update

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Nathaniel R. Moxon, Northwestern University; Anju Goyal, Wayne State University; JoAnn A. Giaconi, University of California Los Angeles; Jamie B. Rosenberg, Albert Einstein College of Medicine; Emily Graubart, Emory University; Evan L. Waxman, University of Pittsburgh; Daniel Knoch, University of Wisconsin; Susan H. Forster, Yale University; Privthi S. Sankar, University of Pennsylvania; Rukhsana G. Mirza, Northwestern University
• Language: English
• Date: 2020-11-01
• Publisher: Elsevier Science Inc.
• Publication Version: Final Published Version
• Copyright Statement: © 2020 by the American Academy of Ophthalmology.
• License: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ophtha.2020.05.001
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Ophthalmology
• Volume: 127
• Issue: 11
• Start Page: 1451
• End Page: 1453
• Grant/Funding Information: None declared
• Keywords: Health education; Ophthalmology; Life Sciences & Biomedicine; United States; Science & Technology; Medical student education; Eye
• Research Categories: Health Sciences, Opthamology; Health Sciences, Health Care Management; Education, Health

Abstract

Eye disease and vision loss impact quality of life, independence, mental health, social function, and mortality.1, 2, 3 Visual impairment affects 7.5% of the United States population and requires frontline providers to diagnose and manage eye conditions.4 , 5 However, the time dedicated to teaching medical students about these conditions has been on the decline for half a century.6, 7, 8 After the 1910 Flexner report, ophthalmology preserved a small but regular role in United States medical school curricula.9 Unfortunately, as undergraduate medical curricula expanded, ophthalmology saw a decline in curricular time, which may be related to the fact that the Liaison Committee on Medical Education does not provide specific guidelines on ophthalmology training.