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June 30, 2021
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BLOG: Mentorship in ophthalmology

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“I don’t care what you do for a living — if you do it well, I’m sure there was someone cheering you on or showing the way. A mentor.” — Denzel Washington

When I consider the mentors in my career, I realize many were not through standard “mentorship” programming. Although these set programs are amazing ways to start the process, most of my mentorship was a natural network through my training program, national meetings and sometimes even virtual dialogues. These connections gave me insight on case pearls and surgical technique, but also points to ponder on career goals, work-life balance and where I want to be in 5, 10, 15 years.

Sumitra S. Khandelwal

I also soon realized that one mentor doesn’t need to provide all the pearls you need. I recall two mentors when I was a trainee – one who taught me how to think like a clinical researcher, be a more efficient surgeon and still shares amazing pearls. The other contemplated life with me, shared work-life balance struggles and always has time for a deep, meaningful conversation at even the busiest meeting. Both shaped who I am today in not just my career but how I choose to practice medicine.

As the years have flown by, I realize some of my most valuable colleagues are my generation, who are living and learning life skills in the same world I live in. We share our conundrums, vent some of our frustrations and switch off giving excellent advice to each other. What are our goals this year? Where do we want to be in 2 years? Wait, we had this conversation before ... did we get there?

The goal for this blog is to have a forum for young ophthalmologists to provide clinical pearls, share stories and ponder life with each other. We invite anyone to reach out who has a story to tell, whether you are a trainee sharing with your peers or an established ophthalmologist looking to bestow wisdom you wish you had known when you were younger. It can be clinical pearls, tips on making the most of your current stage in training, touchy-feely stories or whatever you would like to share. Most of all, the goal is to start the process of learning from your best mentors in life – your peers.

Sources/Disclosures

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Disclosures: Khandelwal reports no relevant financial disclosures.