Richard L. Abbott, MD

Receiving the nomination for the position of President-Elect of the American Academy of Ophthalmology for 2010 from the Board of Trustees is an extraordinary honor and a privilege. I recognize that it is a formidable responsibility to serve in this position; however I welcome the opportunity to lead an organization I have spent nearly 30 years serving as a volunteer on multiple committees, including the past 12 years on the Committee of Secretaries and the Board of Trustees. It has been one of the highlights of my career to work closely with many colleagues and friends in the areas of education, ophthalmic practice, quality care, global alliances, and ophthalmic liability insurance. This experience has provided me a distinctive insight into our unique professional needs and requirements. It has also given me an appreciation of the remarkable talent and dedication of our members and Academy staff.

The Academy, as a professional organization, represents over 93% of practicing ophthalmologists in the United States and a growing number of ophthalmologists overseas. The expanding intricacies and rising costs of our healthcare system, as well as the evolving complexities and stresses placed on us as practitioners, will require increasing demands for innovative leadership and support from our Academy. With healthcare reform now on the horizon, creative ideas, as well as practical approaches to ease the bureaucratic burden for physicians and allow them to not only survive, but prosper in the new medical environment, will continue to be a high priority for the Academy. Strong advocacy efforts for appropriate re-imbursement, continued work to achieve realistic scope of practice laws, improved tort reform legislation, and innovative educational products and support to most efficiently meet requirements for maintenance of certification and quality-based performance measures will be at the top of my list as your president. In addition, developing ophthalmic practice models that encourage efficient and cost-effective patient care, to help meet the demands of the aging baby boomers, will also be critical in assisting our members to meet the demands of a new health care environment.

James Rohack, M.D. in his inaugural address as President of the AMA to the 2009 meeting of the House of Delegates stated, “As physicians, we are blessed. And with that comes responsibility. We must hold true to our Ethics as the Evolution of the American health care system unfolds. And never forget that we as a profession exist for the patients we serve.”

If given the honor to serve as your president, I will work diligently to uphold this principle. I will be dedicated to advocate for our profession and our patients, to continue to enhance our educational products in providing up to date, clinically relevant evidence-based information, and to find new and proficient ways to reduce the burden we all face in the growing regulatory environment in which we practice. Ideally then, our limited professional time can remain focused primarily, where it should be, on the health and well-being of our patients.