I studied at Leeds Medical School and intercalated in chemical pathology. During my medical training I spent time in Cheltenham, Cambridge and then came back to Yorkshire where I was the first person in the area to train in medical ophthalmology. I also spent a year as a clinical fellow in London – at Moorfields Eye Hospital and the Medical Eye Unit at St Thomas’. Eventually I became involved in setting up the Yorkshire medical ophthalmology training programme.
Medical Ophthalmology has a good balance between general medicine and being a specialist in eye disease. It is a fascinating specialty as many diseases affect the eye; diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and bowel disease. What I like about it is that it’s easy to see the pathology, for example you can see inflammation in the blood vessels of the eye. Treatments are at the fore front of medicine with the use of biologic agents and the technology for imaging and laser is very progressive. The work is often quite predictable in its nature with a limited amount of out of hours work.
Ophthalmology is a fascinating area and although it is a niche specialty, in addition there is a general medical feel to the role. Medical Ophthalmology is also at the forefront of technology in terms of the new techniques and laser technology and advances in medicines. You also have a good level of life/work balance. I would thoroughly recommend the specialty.