One on One with William Tasman, MD

AAO President recalls recent legislative successes, announces new Academy initiatives.

Issue: November 1, 1999

You could say William S. Tasman, MD, was the man most likely to be president of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Before becoming Academy president he served as chairman of the American Board of Ophthalmology. As ophthalmologist-in-chief at Wills Eye Hospital, the first hospital dedicated solely to eyes in the United States, Dr. Tasman represents the rich history of ophthalmology in this country. It is a history he has studied and expounded upon in one of his 19 books – a history of Wills, where he did his residency and served as chief resident in 1960 and 1961.

His connection with his home town of Philadelphia is also strong. He obtained his undergraduate education, medical degree and postgraduate medical training in and around the city.

Ocular Surgery News spoke with Dr. Tasman as he was coming to the end of his term as AAO president.

Ocular Surgery News: What have been some of the highlights of your term in office?

William S. Tasman, MD: The Academy has been very effective in advocacy and legislative issues. We have worked hard in that arena. The Academy has always been active in education, and it continues to expand its role in that regard.

OSN: I know that in the area of advocacy there has been a lot of activity regarding CPT coding.

Dr. Tasman: That’s right. Our representatives had to interact with the AMA to get an agreement for what we wanted, and I think that was accomplished.

OSN: It seems like the Academy, for being relatively small specialty, has a disproportionately large presence in the AMA House of Delegates.

Dr. Tasman: Ophthalmologists by nature are passionate and committed, so they want to do what’s best for patients. That sometimes does come through in our representation in even a large organization, but we still have only a very small overall presence in the AMA House of Delegates.

OSN: With the rise of refractive surgery, the Academy is being quoted in the lay press a lot more. I just saw something on MSNBC about Laser in situ keratomileusis, and at the conclusion of the news the reporter quoted the Academy’s recommendations on how to choose a good surgeon and get high-quality surgery.

Dr. Tasman: Well, the patient should be careful about who they are approaching to have refractive surgery done. The patient really needs to make sure that they are dealing with a reputable and well trained LASIK surgeon.

OSN: Does the Academy have a lot of traffic on its web site with people trying to find out about refractive surgery?

Dr. Tasman: Yes. I can’t tell you how exactly many hits we get, but I know that there is great interest.

OSN: The Academy posts a lot of information for patients on its Web site. Is that something you’ll be expanding?

Dr. Tasman: Actually, this year at the Academy Resource Center we are going to be offering individual ophthalmologists an opportunity to get help to start up their own Web sites. For example, if they are a cornea surgeon, they will be able to go to the Academy’s Web site and download what ever information might be pertinent to their practice. I think that is exciting and something the membership will enjoy.

OSN: What else does the Academy have in store for the future?

Dr. Tasman: We’re going to continue to push and publicize the Eye-MD program. That has grown immensely and we’re hoping that even more ophthalmologists will join up this year.

OSN: The pre-Academy subspecialty programs are becoming very popular. How did they get started?

Dr. Tasman: When I became secretary for the program, many societies were holding private meetings in advance of the Academy. After discussions with some of these groups, who were kind enough to agree to work with the Academy, those meetings became part of the Academy program.

OSN: This year’s Academy meeting is being held jointly with the Pan-American Academy of Ophthalmology, and the AAO certainly seems to work closely with the PAAO.

Dr. Tasman: We have always had great representation from members of the Pan-American Association. I think the largest contingent that comes to the annual meeting from outside the United States is from South America and from Brazil in particular. We will continue this close relationship and every few years we will hold a jointly sponsored meeting.

OSN: A few years ago, the Academy announced an initiative to increase its international membership. How is that developing?

Dr. Tasman: When Dr. Stephen Obstbaum was president, his theme was “one world, one vision, one voice.” I think it’s fair to say that the American Academy of Ophthalmology meeting truly is an international meeting. We have tried to involve more and more international members in the program, and they have participated. We now have about 5,000 ophthalmologists from outside the United States who attend the annual meeting.

OSN: It might be a little bit outside your role as a Academy president, but I know our reporters have talked to you about the articles we are doing on eye hospitals and resident education. Is the Academy active there?

Dr. Tasman: The Academy does have an interest in that, as indicated by the fact that we have a member category for young ophthalmologists, residents and fellows in training. We put out the 12-volume Basic and Clinical Science Course on ophthalmology that just about every residency program uses. So we are involved with the resident and younger ophthalmologist.

One of the key things that we’re starting this year is promoting the need for advocacy within the residency programs. We think that if we start to educate the younger ophthalmologist about the importance of advocacy, they will continue it when they get into their private practice careers. Our program has been developed by Dr. Mike Brennen, who is the head of the AAO state affairs division. The Association of University Professors in Ophthalmology is helping with that, and I think it’s a great new initiative. That program is actually happening now within some residency programs and will be rolled out in several more states soon.

OSN: What do you think you learned as president of the Academy?

Dr. Tasman: It has been a great opportunity for me personally to learn what’s going on in other parts of the country by visiting various state societies. The issues and problems are not that dissimilar. Finally, my wife and I have learned that as President, you get great hotel rooms. I’m sure that will not be the case next year.