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True StoriesHerve M. Byron, M.D.: Patient Advocate
His 'Patient Evaluation Form' -- the first rating method we’ve seen for choosing your doctor, a difficult and uncomfortable task for many of us -- will be available from MD-TV next year. One of Herve Byron’s columns coincided with the Retire the "R" Word Contest we ran in September. In the excerpts reprinted below, he talks about his own life changes. "My brain reacts to the word "retire" just about the same way that a patient suffering from macula disease reacts when they are told by an insensitive ophthalmologist that they have macular degeneration. "Retire’ to me connotes the end of a productive and exciting life. "Degeneration" to the anxious and frightened patient means that they are falling apart and approaching the end of life without vision. They rarely comprehend the usual accompanying caveat uttered by their ophthalmologist -- "but you will never be completely blind because macular degeneration never affects your side vision!" "As a writer, I understand and respect the power of words. Some are exciting or motivating or supportive; others are vicious of depressing or destructive. The hallmark of most successful and respected leaders is their careful choice of words, both in print and verbally from the podium. "I have seen many individuals retire at various ages. Those who anticipate the fun of playing golf, fishing, traveling or just hanging around with their other retired friends, invariably change from their pre-retirement performance and gratification levels to unhappy, bored and cynical retirees. What a profound waste of stored wisdom and unparalleled experience! "On the other, I have observed people who carefully planned their own transition into a completely new field or into a different field of expertise within their own profession or business. Inevitably, these individuals become dynamic, productive and desirable in their new status. What could be more gratifying than to apply all the wisdom that come with increasing years to a new challenge? "When I was a resident-in-training, I made a promise to myself as a result of assisting several famous ophthalmic surgeons whose fingers had lost the finesse that they must posses to perform delicate intraocular maneuvers. For whatever reason, these people could not face the reality of terminating their surgical careers despite the high incidence of subpar outcomes. My commitment was that when I found another surgeon who performed better than me so that their postoperative eyes looked superior to mine, I would permanently give up the knife to that surgeon. "In 1995, I began to notice that the surgeon with whom I worked for several years was producing quieter, better seeing and faster healing eyes. It was time to convert my skills from digital to cerebral. The transition was NOT easy because of my passion for eye surgery, but the moment of truth had arrived for me. Yet, I still participated in the total care of my patients at their insistence, with the exception of the actual surgical procedure. "Life is a series of adjustments to change -- from student to professional, from unmarried to married, and then to parenthood, from player to coach, from clinician to consultant, from organization leader to politician, from parent to grandparent. The happy and productive individual understands and plans for the necessary transitions required in all of these seques. This transitional planning underscores the new awareness that aging is a disease to be treated -- with continued physical AND cerebral activity -- rather than an unavoidable process to be passively accepted. "I wish to permanently retire that dreadful word "retire." Let’s substitute this more contemporary and accurate word TRANSITION in its place. It sounds better; it feels better; and it more precisely depicts what most of actually do in our senior years!" Getting Started Check your local Time-Warner cable outlets for MD-TV. Watch for announcements on www.2young2retire.com for more on Herve Byron’s Patient Evaluation Form.
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When
ophthalmologist Herve M. Byron, celebrated his 70th birthday earlier this year, he also
reached another landmark in his life: he had been in practice for 45 years, most of them
as an eye surgeon. Was he ready to retire, as many of his colleagues suggested? Hardly.
Although he has given up his "passion for eye surgery," he still sees patients
two days a week, writes a column for a professional journal, and is one of the medical
experts for a company called MD-TV Inc. The company finds experts in various surgical
disciplines who fill the requirement of being "patient advocates" in addition to
being among the best in their chosen specialties. These experts are interviewed and the
resulting television program is shown in the area where they practice. Herve’s role
with MD-TV Inc. is to help identify the experts who are patient-oriented.