Wills Eye Residency Program Curriculum - PGY2

Pre-Residency Course (3 weeks)
Your first three weeks at Wills Eye focus on learning the basics of ophthalmology through lectures and practical skills sessions, including an introduction to microsurgery.

Wills Emergency Room
(One 6 week block: 4 full ER Days, 1 full CPEC day)
(One 6 week block: Half day pathology, half day ER)
Residents see a high clinical volume and an extensive variety of ophthalmic pathologies: acute, chronic, and ocular trauma. We provide 24/7 support for patients from upper level residents, fellows, subspecialty attending staff, and ER personnel.

Cataract and Primary Eye Care (8 weeks)
This is our comprehensive eye clinic. Visits include well-vision exams, ER follow ups, cataract evaluations, and new patient referrals to the Wills Eye network. Residents have their own exam room, complete attending coverage by rotating teaching attendings and Wills Eye staff attendings, optometrists, and fully-trained technical staff.

Cornea (6 weeks)
Residents see a wide variety of anterior segment pathology including infectious and non-infectious ulcers, hereditary dystrophies, viral keratitis, complex surgical sign-ups, and more. You will perform in-office procedures including corneal cultures, epithelial keratectomy with diamond burr, stromal micropuncture, and EDTA chelation and participate in our multidisciplinary Pemphigoid Clinic.

Glaucoma (6 weeks)
Residents will see patients who are referred to the Glaucoma Service by CPEC if acute or surgical intervention is required. You will become adept at reading and interpreting OCTs and visual fields to monitor progression of glaucoma and perform 8 to 14 Selective Laser Trabeculoplasty (SLT) or Laser Peripheral Iridotomies (LPIs) during the Laser Clinic on Fridays.

Neuro-Ophthalmology (6 weeks)
You will spend a significant amount of time learning the finer aspects of neuro-ophthalmology including learning how to perform a detailed neuro-ophthalmic exam, and interpreting OCT
and visual fields.

Oculoplastics (6 weeks)
Residents see patients with external ocular disease such as orbital tumors, ptosis, ectropion, thyroid eye disease and more. You will learn to evaluate orbital imaging. In the OR, you work closely with Dr. Jacqueline Carrasco and Dr. Alison Watson doing lid based procedures weekly.
In addition to acting as the surgeon on many OR cases, you will also have the opportunity to do some in office procedures including injections, chalazion I+D’s, temporary and permanent tarsorrhaphies.

Pediatric Ophthalmology & Strabismus (6 weeks)
In clinic, you will see a wide variety of pediatric pathology, from routine well exams to complex children’s eye problems. You will participate in strabismus surgery one to two days a week.

Ocular Oncology (1 week)
This is the highest volume ocular oncology center in the world, and you will routinely see melanoma, nevus, metastasis, hemangioma, retinoblastoma, astrocytoma, lymphoma, squamous and basal cell carcinoma.

Ocular Pathology (6 weeks)
Half of a day on an entire rotation is dedicated to learning ophthalmic pathology with Drs. Ralph C. Eagle Jr. and Tatyana Milman. You will see the majority of cases that come through Wills Eye and start building your pathology knowledge base. This experience is a highlight!

Retina (6 weeks)
Initially you will start with didactic teaching rounds with Dr. William Benson, discussing retinal imaging and challenging cases to build your knowledge base. You will also begin seeing private patients with the Retina attendings and uveitis patients with Dr. James P. Dunn.