Message from the Chair & Residency Program Director
David A. DiLoreto, Jr., M.D., Ph.D.
Professor & Chair of Ophthalmology
Rachel Wozniak, M.D., Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Ophthalmology & Residency Program Director
Thank you for your interest in the ophthalmology residency at the University of Rochester, a fully accredited 4-year training program—with your first-year internal medicine internship spent with the University of Rochester School of Medicine's Department of Internal Medicine. We have the pleasure of introducing ourselves to you as the Chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, and Program Director of the Flaum Eye Institute's residency program.
The Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Rochester continues to undergo many exciting changes that will dramatically enhance your residency training experience. The Flaum Eye Institute at the University of Rochester combines broad clinical experience with an increased emphasis on research and technology. With more than 40 full-time faculty – across all the subspecialties – we have outstanding scope and depth throughout our program.
Residents can expect close interactions with the Flaum Eye Institute's clinical faculty. Rotations are structured for in-depth immersion in all aspects of Ophthalmologic care including Comprehensive, Retina, Cornea and External Disease, Refractive Surgery, Oculoplastics, Uveitis, Glaucoma, Neuro-ophthalmology, Ocular Genetics, and Ocular Oncology. In addition, you will work
closely with our Optometric faculty in areas of Low Vision and medical contact lens. Our residents also spend time in our Urgent Eye Care to manage same-day emergent ophthalmic issues and hospital consultations.
The surgical experience of the residency program is also outstanding. You will learn a wide variety of techniques from a world class team of instructors in our state-of-the-art surgical suites at Strong Memorial Hospital and our ambulatory surgical center. As a PGY2, surgical training begins with extra-ocular surgery, and exposure to intraocular surgery commences during the second year. All residents receive access to our surgical skills laboratory, featuring operating microscopes, phacoemulsification machines, and surgical simulation systems.
In addition, residents may work with the basic science faculty of the University's internationally renowned Center for Visual Science (CVS), the top-rated Institute of Optics and Department of Biomedical Engineering, as well as other programs at the University. For example, there are active inter-disciplinary collaborations related to new innovations in refractive surgery and retinal imaging at the cellular level. As a resident, you are encouraged to enrich your clinical training with participation in new as well as on-going clinical and basic research projects. You are also encouraged to present your research at national meetings such as ARVO and the American Academy of Ophthalmology; funds are provided to pay for travel expenses related to your presentation.
Other learning opportunities at the Flaum Eye Institute include a comprehensive didactic program, case-based rounds, journal clubs, and our visiting professorship series that brings nationally recognized leaders in ophthalmology to lecture each month. For those interested in global ophthalmology, there is even an opportunity to travel to the LV Prasad Eye Institute in Hyderabad India.
Overall, our comprehensive training program has set our graduates up for success in a variety of career paths including fellowship training, academic medicine and private practice all across the country. We invite you to learn more about our current residents and all we have to offer in our residency program!
David A. DiLoreto, Jr., M.D., Ph.D.
Professor of Ophthalmology,
University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry
Flaum Eye Institute
Rachel. Wozniak, M.D., Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology,
University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry
Flaum Eye Institute