News Release: Emory Healthcare
Oct. 29, 2008
Emory Eye Center Ranks in Top 10 in All Categories of Ophthalmology Times Annual Survey
Emory Eye Center has ranked in all four of the Top Ten slots with other distinguished U.S. academic eye institutions in the annual survey of ophthalmology programs conducted by Ophthalmology Times.
Reported in the Oct. 15, 2008 issue, Emory Eye Center placed in all four of the ranking designations, the first time Emory has ranked in every surveyed category.
The categories and Emory Eye Center's 2008 placements include:
- Best Overall Program (tied at 8th)
- Best Research Program (9th)
- Best Residency Program (10th)
- Best Clinical (Patient Care) Program (6th).
Ophthalmology Times, a news publication written by and for physicians, regularly ranks eye centers across the country. The ranking is a result of surveys of U.S. chairs and directors of residency programs. The awards recognize excellence in the teaching and development of residents, quality patient care and aggressive research pursuits. Emory Eye Center has ranked in the Top Ten of several categories in the past decade.
"We are so pleased that our programs are recognized favorably by our peers," says Timothy W. Olsen, F. Phinizy Calhoun Sr. Professor of Ophthalmology, chair of the Department of Ophthalmology, and director, Emory Eye Center. "Emory is a unique place. Patient care, innovative research and quality physician training are the heart of what we do. It is certainly gratifying that these efforts are recognized on a national level. We have an extraordinary team of talented and dedicated faculty who make a difference in the lives of many people every day."
Emory Eye Center's faculty comprises 42 clinicians and 10 basic scientists (researchers). Among the clinicians, six serve at the Veterans Administration Medical Center (VAMC).
The three-year residency program trains six new residents each year for a total of 18 dedicated physicians working side-by-side with Emory Eye Center faculty. Additionally, Emory attracts highly qualified applicants into its fellowship subspecialty training including retina, glaucoma, neuro-ophthalmology, cornea, pediatrics, ophthalmic pathology and oculoplastics. There are approximately six to seven new physicians each year.
In addition to the Emory Eye Center's main campus, physicians and residents may serve at Grady Memorial Hospital and its clinics, the VAMC, Emory Vision (Emory Eye Center's refractive surgery center at the Perimeter Clinic), Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, and Crawford Long Hospital.
Currently, $5.5 million in funding provides for more than 77 research awards. A $2 million 2006 core grant enables Emory Eye Center to continue that research for five years. A $694,000 NIH Training Grant supports four pre-doctoral and one post-doctoral fellow.
Funding at Emory Eye Center includes 12 endowed chairs and professorships and 16 other named endowments. It is one of the few departments in the Emory School of Medicine that funds its annual expenses through endowments, grants, contributions and patient-care income.
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About Emory Eye Center
The Department of Ophthalmology and Emory Eye Center have a mission to conduct pioneering research into blinding eye diseases, to educate and train eye professionals, and to provide excellent patient care. The Department includes 35 ophthalmologists, seven optometrists, nine basic scientists, 11 post-doctoral fellows, and nine researchers in other Emory departments who hold joint appointments in the Department of Ophthalmology. Ophthalmology research is supported by $6 million in NIH funding. The Department remains in the top rankings (#9 -- 2008) by U.S. News & World Report for the 12 years the magazine has held a ranking for Ophthalmology. It also ranks in the Top Ten in all four categories surveyed by Ophthalmology Times annual report.
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The Robert W. Woodruff Health Sciences Center of Emory University is an academic health science and service center focused on missions of teaching, research, health care and public service. Its components include schools of medicine, nursing, and public health; Yerkes National Primate Research Center; the Emory Winship Cancer Institute; and Emory Healthcare, the largest, most comprehensive health system in Georgia. The Woodruff Health Sciences Center has a $2.3 billion budget, 17,000 employees, 2,300 full-time and 1,900 affiliated faculty, 4,300 students and trainees, and a $4.9 billion economic impact on metro Atlanta.
Learn more about Emory’s health sciences:
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Web: http://emoryhealthsciences.org
