Boothe Eye Care: In Ocular Surgery, Patient Care is Essential

NEW YORK, NY, July 30, 2012 (Press-News.org) It is common knowledge that before a person can become a physician, he or she must first attend medical school; completion of medical school, meanwhile, is contingent on various residencies and a multitude of training experiences. At some point, an aspiring medical provider must perform surgical procedures for the very first time, under the close scrutiny of a senior physician. This is the case in all areas of medicine, including ocular care. According to a recent Reuters report, however, eye surgeons have wildly differing standards on when trainees should be permitted to perform procedures--and when patients should be made aware of it. The Reuters report has drawn the attention of Dr. William Boothe, cornea specialist and head of the Texas-based Boothe Eye Care.

According to Reuters, a new survey of eye surgeons reveals a slight discrepancy in attitudes and behavior concerning surgical trainees. The vast majority of eye surgeons surveyed say that if a trainee is going to be performing a surgical procedure, the patient deserves to be informed, and offered the chance to decline. Despite this finding, only one in four eye surgeons actually have a policy to inform their patients when procedures are performed by trainees.

The discrepancy in this study has warranted a comment from Dr. William Boothe, an eye surgeon who has performed over 99,000 LASIK procedures to date. Boothe Eye Care is known for its high standards of service and patient care, in addition to Dr. Boothe's own surgical expertise. Boothe Eye Care has issued a new statement in response to the Reuters report.

"This level if discrepancy is, on one level, understandable," says Dr. Boothe. "Trainees have to start somewhere, and typically they start at surgical centers. There is nothing wrong with this, and really no way around it."

With that said, Dr. Boothe also says that keeping patients informed about their procedures is a basic component of care. "While the need to train young doctors is important, so is the need for maintaining rigorous standards of patent care," he says. "While there is nothing wrong with having trainees perform surgeries, it is probably a good policy to provide patients with this knowledge, and to give them the opportunity to decline, if they feel uncomfortable with it."

Ultimately, Boothe says that keeping patients informed is the medically ethical thing to do. "Residents and trainees should absolutely be given opportunities to learn and to develop, but it ultimately falls on the senior doctor of the practice to keep patients in the loop about the treatment they are receiving," he concludes.

ABOUT:

Boothe Eye Care is an ophthalmology practice led by cornea specialist Dr. William Boothe. Through the expertise of Dr. Boothe, Boothe Eye Care has performed over 131,000 LASIK laser vision correction procedures. Additionally, Boothe Eye Care is known for its friendly, knowledgeable staff and its commitment to quality patient care. Located in Plano, Texas, Boothe Eye Care was founded on the principle of providing best-in-class medical care with a high premium on service, values it upholds even today.