A downside of retirement is losing track of many of our colleagues with whom we established friendships throughout our careers. One of the things I looked forward to when going to medical meetings was being with those friends and hearing what new and exciting activities they were enjoying. In retirement, we keep up with some friends, but eventually lose track of others, and that is a sad loss. I often wonder what they are doing today in the new chapter of their lives.
We know that many of our friends have found interesting and rewarding avocations in their retirement, and it occurred to us at Scope that we might share some of those activities with our readers in a new, ongoing column titled “What We Are Doing Today.”
The nidus for this idea came when I received a correspondence from one of our colleagues, Robert E. Kellan, MD. His history is like so many distinguished members of our profession. He graduated magna cum laude from Boston College, obtained his medical degree at Tufts Medical School and completed his residency at New York Eye and Ear Infirmary. After more than 40 years as a fellow of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, during which time he enjoyed a busy practice and designed several surgical instruments and intraocular lenses, including the Tetraflex IOL, Dr. Kellan moved on to the next chapter of his life by becoming a writer, with several plays and novellas to his credit.
One of his recent novellas, titled "Implant," shows what a creative mind he has by combining the science of cataract surgery with international espionage. An “internationally acclaimed eye surgeon” is called upon by the State Department to create and assist in the implantation of an “information-gathering” IOL in the eye of a Russian ambassador, which brings the ophthalmologist into unexpected and frightening contact with the CIA and Russia’s Federal Security Service. It is a clever plot and a good read. More recently, he has published another novel, titled "C.A.G.E.," and both books are available on Amazon.
This is just one example of what our colleagues are doing today, and we hope to share more such stories in the coming issues of Scope. To be successful, however, we need the help of our readers. If you have an interesting hobby or second career, or know of a colleague who does, we hope you will share that with us by contacting our assistant editor, Neeshah Azam, at scope@aao.org.
We very much hope to hear from you and begin learning more about what we are doing today.