Suncoast Educational Seminar - Pinellas Optometric Association

On Apr 24-25, I sponsored the annual meeting of the Suncoast Educational Seminar, held at the Hyatt Regency on Clearwater Beach, Florida. About 1/2 of the attendees of this seminar, sponsored by the Pinellas Optometric Association, hail from the Sunshine State while the other 1/2 travel here, from out of state, often from colder environs.

Sponsoring this seminar gave me the opportunity to see many friends and colleagues that I had not seen in too many years.

When I first arrived in Pinellas County all so many years ago, I made it a point to visit as many of my professional colleagues as I could to introduce myself and to explain what I do.

As my practice grew, it became more difficult to keep up with those friends I made, and to meet new colleagues as they came in to town. Hence, I really enjoyed my experience as sponsor of the Suncoast Seminar. Through the use of photos and videos, I had the opportunity to explain, and to demonstrate to the attendees the many diverse facets of oculo-facial plastic surgery.

The leaders of the Pinellas Optometric Association must also have appreciated what I explained and demonstrated. Just last week, I received an invitation to be the guest lecturer at their next annual event. They are expecting 100-120 optometrists from across the country and will be offering 12 hours of continuing education.

I gladly accepted this tremendous honor. I am already hard at work preparing the talks I wish to give at the Suncoast Seminar in April 2011. I am looking forward to it. I hope to keep you informed.

Paying It Forward in Medicine

In recent years, I have devoted more and more of my time, both in journal review and in continuing medical education courses, in order to provide the most up-to-date cosmetic services to my patients. I find that it is not difficult to be patient and compassionate to these patients, who are usually healthy, but may be quite anxious, about having something elective done to their faces and bodies. It gives me great satisfaction to help these patients, and this is why I have oriented my practice this way.

But a long time ago, during my fellowship in oculo-facial surgery and in my early years of private practice, I was heavily involved in doing extensive facial, orbital, and eyelid reconstructions for medical reasons such as birth defects, trauma, burns, and extensive cancers. This, too, at the time, I found quite gratifying.

In an effort to educate, and to inspire, young physicians, as well as to return to my earlier educational roots, I agreed to be the guest lecturer at All Children’s Hospital Grand Rounds on April 2, 2010. In the audience were medical students, residents, and attending physicians, from all over the Tampa Bay region. The topic of my lecture that day was Eyelid and Facial Reconstruction. For many, in the audience, it was their first exposure to the complicated repairs of the delicate eyelid and facial anatomy, required as a result of congenital deformities, or after trauma, burns or removal of skin cancers. Included in the talk were several interesting case studies and clinical data that I had published previously in peer-reviewed journals.

After the discussion, there was a lively question and answer period. Although it took quite a lot of work to pull together and organize the cases I used for my presentation, in the end, I discovered that I was glad to have done it. While I used to give lectures to medical audiences on a regular basis, since I have become so busy in my practice, it had been some years since my last one. I found that I enjoyed passing along the wisdom I learned from those who taught me. In addition, I added my own “pearls” gleamed from my many years of experience and thousands of surgical cases from my clinical practice. I believe that the time I spent both in preparation and giving the lecture was well spent because of the gratification I experienced in “giving back” to the next generation of physicians.

Sincerely,
Lawrence Kass M.D.

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American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery Meeting

I recently returned from the January 26th Annual Scientific meeting of the American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery, held in Orlando from January 28-31, 2010.

The A.A.C.S. is a professional medical society whose members are dedicated to patient safety and physician education in cosmetic surgery. Most members of AACS are dermatological surgeons, facial plastic surgeons, head and neck surgeons, oral and maxillofacial surgeons, general surgeons, plastic surgeons or ocular plastic surgeons — all of whom specialize in cosmetic surgery.

Unlike the vast majority of the other physician attendees and even Fellows to the A.A.C.S. meeting, I am a Diplomate of the American Board of Cosmetic Surgery, the only certifying board that exclusively tests surgeons’ knowledge and experience in cosmetic surgery. The American Board of Cosmetic Surgery is specifically designed for “extraordinary surgeons that must already possess at least one recognized board certificate before they can even be considered to potentially take the rigorous written and oral exams required by the American Board of Cosmetic Surgery.” As a Diplomate, I was able to attend certain educational sessions which were not open to those who had not achieved Board Certified status.

At the meeting, I attended full day sessions on Cosmetic Facial Surgery, Cosmetic Body Surgery, Advanced Liposuction Surgery, and Advances in Lasers, Fillers, Chemical Peels, and Fat Grafting Techniques.

I am returning to my practice feeling more invigorated and enthusiastic than ever about the newest advances in cosmetic surgery. I can’t wait to offer my patients the benefits of what I learned. I am so excited that my patients enjoy the improved results from the latest techniques I learned in the diverse and ever changing field of cosmetic surgery.