Christopher J. Rapuano, MD, this week began his 1-year term as the 130th president of the AAO. Dr. Rapuano is chief of cornea service and the Peter and Ruth Laibson cornea service chief chair at Wills Eye Hospital, and has been involved in clinical education at the AAO for more than 30 years. He was elected to leadership by the AAO’s community of 32,000 ophthalmologists.

Dr. Rapuano said he plans to jumpstart an effort to improve emergency eye care services provided in hospital emergency rooms to help ensure timely treatment for severe eye injuries.

“Reforming emergency rooms nationwide is not an easy task, and I am not under the illusion that we could do it all in one year,” Dr. Rapuano said. “However, I do believe that by educating our members—something the Academy already has a strong background in—providing physicians with the tools they need, and leveraging our partnerships with other organizations, we could do a lot.”

Dr. Rapuano noted that many ophthalmologists would like to serve their communities by taking call at their local emergency department, but barriers can include practice logistics, inadequate equipment and staffing, and concerns about managing cases outside your subspecialty area.

His work is already underway, collecting educational content and practical resources to support colleagues so they can confidently take call, including a section on the AAO website featuring quick, informative videos.

Developing educational content has been a central part of Dr. Rapuano’s career. He coedited the first edition of the bestselling Wills Eye Manual; to date, nine editions covering more than 200 eye conditions have been published, which he continues to facilitate as the senior faculty supervisor. He also worked on the inaugural Basic and Clinical Science Course for Refractive Surgery.

Previous Academy roles include serving as senior secretary for Clinical Education and secretary for Lifelong Learning and Assessment, chairing the refractive surgery Basic and Clinical Science Course book, and chairing the preferred practice pattern guidelines committee. He also oversaw the Committee for Resident Education and the Ophthalmic Knowledge Assessment Program committee.

Dr. Rapuano earned his undergraduate degree at Brown University and his medical degree from Columbia University.