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Vitreoretinal Surgery Fellowship
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About Our Vitreoretinal Surgery Fellowship
Thank you for your interest in the Beth Israel Lahey Health (BILH) Vitreoretinal Surgery Fellowship. We are an AUPO-compliant, two-year surgical program that offers excellent training in the latest treatments for surgical and medical retinal diseases.
What To Expect
We are a destination for referrals from Massachusetts and New Hampshire, as well national and international referrals. The fellows evaluate and treat patients in the clinic with the latest diagnostic and therapeutic equipment. Equipment for laser and pneumatic retinopexy is readily available. Our operating rooms are fully equipped with state-of-the-art vitreoretinal surgery instrumentation including the latest small-gauge instruments, wide-field viewing systems, 3-D heads-up display, and endoscopy.
The fellows have extensive training in the treatment of epiretinal membranes, macular holes, diabetic retinopathy, dislocated IOLs, and retinal detachments. In addition, the fellows become adept in the use of perfluorocarbon liquids, silicone oil, endoscopic vitrectomy, and bimanual instrumentation for the repair of complex retinal detachments and proliferative diabetic retinopathy. Training is one-on-one with faculty ensuring rapid learning and a high-quality experience.
Our Retina Services are active in several research protocols, and the fellows are involved in these. Resources and support are available for research designed by the fellows and for attending/presenting at regional and national meetings. Educational "Retina Rounds" are held regularly. Local/regional retina meetings throughout the year offer opportunities for the fellows to present cases/research.
How To Apply
Applications for our fellowship are through SFMatch. If you have any questions, please email Jan Menovich or Greg Blaha. We regret that we are unable to sponsor international visas.
Fellowship Details
Learn more about our fellowship below.
Rotations
Surgical experience for the two fellows is equivalent during both years of training, allowing for high-volume surgical numbers for both fellows as well as early surgical experience. This allows the first-year fellow to be involved immediately and allows a full two years to work on complex procedures. Non-OR time is spent in our busy retina clinic, or in our uveitis clinic twice a month.
Call Schedule
The fellows make their own call schedule. Call is on a weekly basis (averaging 1 in 2) and is always with retina attending backup. There is also always a resident and general ophthalmology attending on-call. Unless medically necessary, surgeries are not usually performed after-hours or on weekends.
Benefits
- Salary is PGY-5 and -6
- Vacation is 15 days/year (plus 4 “float” holidays)
- $500 educational stipend/year
- Support for attending conferences/research
Life Outside of Work
Boston and the Northshore region are beautiful and interesting places to live and work.
- 20-30 minutes between the cultural, culinary and sports offerings of Boston and the Northshore
- 5-30 minutes to local beaches, farms, parks
- 1-2 hours to mountains in NH, VT, ME for hiking, skiing/snowboarding
- 2-3 hours to Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard, Nantucket, or the Berkshires
Meet Our Faculty, Fellows, & Alumni
Faculty (Lahey Hospital and Medical Center)
Greg Blaha, MD, PhD
Director of Fellowship and Vitreoretinal Surgery
Fellowship: Lahey
Jeff Marx, MD
Chief Value Officer, Lahey
Fellowship: Doheny/USC
Fina Barouch, MD
Fellowship: MEEI
Jeff Chang, MD
Vice Chair, Ophthalmology
Fellowship: Tufts/NEEC/OCB
David Ramsey, MD, PhD, MPH
Director of Ophthalmic Research, Lahey
Fellowship: MEEI
Kendra Klein, MD (Medical Retina)
Fellowship: Tufts/NEEC
Sarkis Soukiasian, MD (Uveitis)
Fellowship: MEEI
Current Fellows
Omar Abu-Qamar, MD, MMSc
Current 1st Year Fellow
Residency: Tufts/NEEC
Email Dr. Abu-Qamar
Justin Pennington, MD
Current 2nd Year Fellow
Residency: Brown
Email Dr. Pennington
Past Fellows
2006
Gregory Blaha, MD/PHD
Residency: Tufts University/NEEC
Practice: Academic - Beth Israel Lahey Health, Fellowship Director, Chair of Vitreoretinal Surgery
2008
Patricia Pahk, MD
Residency: Yale University
Practice: Academic - Stony Brook, Clinical Assistant Professor
2010
Elisha Tilton, MD
Residency: University of Virginia
Practice: Private Practice - Eye Care Center of Northern Colorado
2012
Altin Pani, MD
Residency: Albert Einstein/Bronx-Lebanon
Practice: Academic - Brown University, Clinical Assistant Professor of Surgery
2014
Nneka O. Brooks, MD
Residency: Rutgers University
Practice: Private Practice - NJRetina
2016
Adam Lipman, MD
Residency: University of Virginia
Practice: Lipman Mandell Retina Center, Virginia Beach, VA
2017
David Lazar, MD
Residency: Louisiana State University/Ochsner Clinic Foundation
Practice: Private Practice - Lazar Retina (Los Angeles, California)
2018
Steven Reinecke, MD
Residency: University of Texas- Southwestern Medical Center
Practice: Private Practice - Retina Specialists (North Texas)
2019
Michael Lewen, MD
Residency: Tufts University/NEEC
Practice: Private Practice - Allegheny Ophthalmic and Orbital Associates, Allegheny General Hospital, Pittsburgh PA
2020
Megan Nichols, MD
Residency: University of Virginia
Practice: Retina Associates, LLC, Kansas City
2021
Mona Singh, MD/MPA
Residency: University of Texas-Galveston
Practice: Private Practice - Virginia
2022
Noreen Shaikh, MD
Residency: Georgetown University
Practice: Private Practice - Vitreous Retina Macula Specialists of New Jersey
2023
Joseph Anaya, MD/MBA
Residency: Wills Eye Hospital
Practice: Academic - John Hopkins/Wilmer Eye Institute
2024
Shravan Savant, MD
Residency: New York Eye and Ear
Practice: Private Practice - New Jersey Retina
