Surgical Experience

DMEI Residency Surgical Experience

The resident surgical experience at the Dean McGee Eye Institute (DMEI)/University of Oklahoma (OU) Department of Ophthalmology is truly unique. With the volume of a large multi-specialty private practice and the complexity of an academic tertiary referral center, residents experience the best of both worlds. The surgical experience we offer at DMEI/OU is one of the reasons our residency program has recently been ranked in the top 20 nationally and in the top 10 of programs affiliated with a public university.

What to Expect From Our Residency Surgical Experience

As part of our integrated PGY-1 program, interns now have significant hands-on surgical experience both on their trauma and plastics surgery rotations as well as in our new PGY-1 to PGY-2 onboarding ophthalmology curriculum.

For PGY-2 residents, surgical training starts immediately with extensive oculoplastics exposure. Residents are able to build a strong microsurgical foundation during their first year thanks to dedicated attending mentorship and training. Residents are provided with an abundance of oculoplastic cases as primary surgeon and often finish their first year with more than double the ACGME minimum. The first-year surgical foundation is rounded out with early strabismus and intraocular surgery, with many PGY-2 residents completing multiple primary cataract surgeries enhanced by hours of simulator training in DMEI/OU’s microsurgical training facility.

Through the second and third years of training, the surgical experience continues to grow and evolve. An appropriate increase in the level of autonomy, based on each resident’s own individual learning curve, allows residents to develop the confidence needed to operate independently by the completion of training. A healthy, ethical, and constructive relationship with industry leaders gives residents exposure to the latest and greatest surgical technology. Residents also receive extensive training with multiple microinvasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS) devices and techniques and finish residency with some of the highest MIGS numbers in the country.

Though surgical teaching by the fellows and upper-level residents plays an important role in the surgical curriculum, the vast majority of surgical training at DMEI occurs one-on-one with faculty, many of whom are leaders in the field. With multiple providers across every subspecialty, residents are exposed to a variety of surgical techniques and styles. Finally, residents have the benefit of operating in both a hospital setting and the extremely efficient, “eye only” ambulatory McGee Eye Surgery Center with highly skilled and supportive staff.

The DMEI Difference in Resident Surgical Education

DMEI/OU provides residents with one of the country’s most diverse, highest volume, and truly comprehensive surgical experiences. We are successful in our goal for each resident to become comfortable in the operating room and to graduate prepared for the future practice environment of their choice. The nearly 300 alumni who have gone through our program represent some of the best surgeons to have practiced in the field.

How to Apply to the Residency Program at DMEI/OU

You can find information on how to apply to the residency program at DMEI/OU here. We also encourage you to learn about the other reasons we are one of the most competitive residency programs in the county by visiting our Why Choose DMEI page.