Diplomate Digest - The American Board of Ophthalmology Blog

The American Board of Ophthalmology is collecting stories for an ABO-led series in the Morning Rounds section of the American Academy of Ophthalmology's EyeNet magazine. If you have a story you think would help illustrate the importance of patient safety protocols, the ABO is presently collecting anonymized cases. Each story of 1,500 words or fewer adheres to a template that includes the following elements: Case Summary Brief case description with key details, including: Expl

In the July 2019 edition of the American Academy of Ophthalmology's EyeNet magazine, American Board of Ophthalmology diplomate Tamara Fountain, MD, with co-author and ABO Emeritus Director Philip L. Custer, MD, explore the root cause of a surgical oversight (note: AAO login required). Edited by ABO Director Jane Bailey, MD, the article is part of an ABO-led series for the Morning Rounds section of the magazine. If you have a story you think would help illustrate the importanc

Prevent Blindness, the nation's oldest volunteer eye health and safety organization, has announced the appointment of new Advisory Committee Members for the Center for Vision and Population Health at Prevent Blindness (CVPH). The CVPH was established in December 2018 as a national coordinating body for effective practices, state-level technical assistance, and programmatic interventions. The American Board of Ophthalmology congratulates the following diplomates on their appoi

In 2019, the American Board of Ophthalmology introduced two new incentives for Quarterly Questions participation which offer you the opportunity to claim additional credit for meeting Maintenance of Certification (MOC) requirements in Patient Safety (Part II) and Improvement in Medical Practice (Part IV). Completion of the Quarterly Questions program already satisfies MOC Part III. Here’s how the incentive works: Step 1: Participate in the 2019 Quarterly Questions Program N

The American Board of Ophthalmology (ABO) will partner with the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME®) in 2019 to expand opportunities for ABO-Certified ophthalmologists to earn Maintenance of Certification (MOC) credit for participating in continuing medical education (CME) activities that meet ABO standards. The new collaboration is designed to increase the number and diversity of accredited CME activities that meet the requirements for ABO MOC and

American Board of Ophthalmology Emeritus Director Philip L. Custer, M.D., recently worked with colleagues at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis to co-author a piece for July's EyeNet about a memorable patient safety encounter. Edited by ABO Director Jane Bailey, M.D., Dr. Custer’s article tells the story of a patient who underwent wrong fluorescein angiogram. Dr. Custer reviewed the series of events that led to the error and discussed the practice’s respons

National Patient Safety Week may be behind us, but patient safety learning is always available online, on-demand through the American Board of Ophthalmology. Our digital Patient Safety Activity assesses quality improvement knowledge, offers new communication strategies, and promotes team-based approaches to patient care. The activity covers topics such as the cause and incidence of medical errors, the Plan-Do-Change-Act improvement cycle, and the Situation, Background, Assess

In the September issue of the Journal of Neuro-Ophthalmology, American Board of Ophthalmology Director Sophia Chung, M.D., and Emeritus Director Philip Custer, M.D., F.A.C.S., urge neuro-ophthalmologists to become “leaders in the culture of patient safety.” Drs. Chung and Custer trace the history of patient safety in the subspecialty and provide recommendations on how neuro-ophthalmologists can bridge the divide between neurology and ophthalmology to enhance safety for patien

The National Patient Safety Foundation will promote Patient Safety Awareness the week of March 12-17 by offering a number of free resources to physicians on patient safety topics. Diplomates who need to complete a patient safety activity can use the NPSF’s free March webinar, the Voice of the Patients and the Public, to count for MOC credit. The live webcast is scheduled for Wednesday, March 15th from 2-3 PM ET. To participate, you must register with the NPSF. Topics of the w

A new article on PatientEngagementHIT.com suggests a uniquely low-tech way providers can improve patient safety using a method called the "teach-back." Writer Sarah Heath notes that patients don’t always understand the after-care directions given to them by their physicians, so AHRQ developed the teach-back, in which providers ask patients to repeat in their own words—or "teach back"—important information and instructions about their care. According to AHRQ, “The goal of teac