Departmental News

American Academy of Ophthalmology

Our faculty are looking forward to the 2024 AAO meeting in Chicago, IL. To all Alumni, Dr. Kimberly Crowder and the Faculty of U.M.M.C. Department of Ophthalmology Cordinally Invites You and Your Guest to a Reception and Dinner on the evening of Sunday, October 20th. 

Please RSVP by Oct. 14th to Dr. Kimberly Crowder or Ophthalmology Department

Graduation Celebration

Graduating senior residents were recognized in June 2024 with a celebration at River Hills Club. Our staff, faculty and residents were able to celebrate with this year's graduates. Dr. Brian Bowden pursued a Glaucoma Fellowship, Emory in Atlanta, GA, Dr. John Dehnel joined a private practice in Minneapolis, MN, Dr. Daniel McClung joined a private practice in McComb, MS, and Dr. Caleb Senn joined a private practice in Greenville, SC. 

Drs. Ching-Jygh and Lin Chen Endowed Chair

The Ching-Jygh and Lin Chen Endowed Chair for Excellence in Ophthalmology is established to honor the dedication and contributions of Drs. C.J. and Lin Chen to the field of Ophthalmology. A native of Taiwan, Dr. Chen arrived at UMMC in 1979 as an assistant professor of surgery. Since that time, the department has been the beneficiary of his passion for research to improve treatment and patient outcomes and his commitment to raising the bar of standards of care. His enthusiasm for education has been evident throughout his tenure at UMMC. 

To honor Dr. C.J. and Lin Chen's commitment to the department and ophthalmological disease research, this professorship will support advancing the field of Ophthalmology research and education. On August 21, 2021, Dr. C.J. Chen recognized Dr. Kimberly Crowder as the first Ching-Jygh and Lin Chen Endowed Chair for Excellence in Ophthalmology.

Update Conference

On Aug. 19, 2023, the department successfully hosted ophthalmologist and ophthalmic technicians from all over Mississippi for the 2023 Ophthalmology Update and Ching J. Chen Lecture.  The full day session was held at the Sheraton Flowood The Refuge Hotel & Conference Center in Flowood, MS. It consisted of lectures and training by the department faculty and staff, as well as guest lecturers Dr. Shannon Wong, Dr. Audina Berrocal, and Matthew Baugh.  Dr. Wong gave two lectures on IOL Selection and After Recieving a Premium IOL, and Baugh addressed E/M documentation guidelines and coding for 2023.  Dr. Audina Berrocal presented the 2023 Ching J. Chen Lecture on "Highlights in Pediatric Retina."   Pictured are Dr. CJ Chen, Dr. Kimberly Crowder, and Dr. Royce Chen.

UMMC Faculty Senate

The UMMC Department of Ophthalmology was not surprised to learn that our very own Dr. Albert Lin was elected to the UMMC Faculty Senate.  The Faculty Senate has the power to act in an advisory capacity to the administration on policies affecting UMMC, to make the general faculty aware of ongoing activities an projects currently being discussed by the Senate, and to keep the general faculty informed of its recommendations.

Congratulations, Dr. Lin!!!!

Walk participants

Members of the Department of Ophthalmology participated in the 2023 walk and fundraiser benefiting Mississippi Diabetes Foundation. People with diabetes have a higher risk of blindness than people without the disease, according to the American Diabetes Association.

Pictured are the Ophthalmology Faculty, Residents, Staff and family members that participated.

Faculty mission trips

In September 2022, Dr. John Green traveled to San Lorenzo, Ecuador for a week-longmission trip to provide cataract surgery to those in poverty.  No phacoemulsification units are available in the region, so all cataract surgeries were done by MSICS (manual small incision cataract surgery).  Many pterygium excisions were also performed during the week.  Dr. Green intended to return to Ecuador in September 2023 but civil unrest prevented travel into that region of Ecuador.  He hopes to return in 2024. 

Our ophthalmology team is no stranger to giving back.  Below are a few of the mission trips our faculty and residents have taken.  Unfortunately, COVID has affected any possible mission trips for 2020 or 2021.

2019:  In July of 2019, Dr. John Green journeyed to Saint Ann's Bay, Jamaica.  He traveled with a Christian mission group from Dublin, Georgia who has been giving back to Jamaica for 40 years by spreading the gospel and bringing sight to the blind.  Dr. Green was accompanied by 5 other MDs, 1 optometrist, 1 optician, 3 surgical scrub techs, 1 RN, and 20 support team members.  They held clinic for 5 days while simultaneously doing surgery for 6 days.  Within those 6 days, they saw 1000 patients in clinic and performed 134 surgeries.  For those who speak "eye doctor," 120 of the surgeries were extracapsular cataract extractions and 14 were pterygium excisions.  It's also worth noting that many of the cataract surgery patients were functionally blind prior to having surgery.  The clinical team served to diagnose sight-threatening conditions, such as glaucoma, and to find candidates for surgery.  They were also able to refit hundreds of pairs of donated glasses and refer patients with chronic diseases to the local ophthalmologist.

2018: Similar to Dr. Green's story, Dr. William Watkins trekked to Saint Ann's Bay, Jamaica, the previous year.  His team performed surgery, diagnosed, and treated all who needed it.  They were also able to match donated glasses to patients.  A tertiary goal for Dr. Watkins was to get to know the group who organizes the trip and the area they serve.  His hope is to build a good rapport for all who wish to help on future trips.

2017:  Drs. Kyle and Andrea Lewis, along with ophthalmology resident Jonathan Carrere and ENT resident Lauren Buck, journeyed to Montellano, Guatemala, in November 2017 as part of a surgical mission. The weeklong trip was coordinated through Health Talents International, a ministry with a long-standing presence in Guatemala.

Together with two other comprehensive ophthalmologists, the team performed over 100 oculoplastic, cataract, pterygium, and ENT cases. Memorable cases included watching vision be restored to a 2-year-old who was blind from congenital cataracts, hearing being restored to a woman who could not hear for many years, and an 8-month-old with orbital extension of a large dacryocystocele that was treated and binocular vision restored. This last case will be submitted to a medical journal due to its rarity.