The pathology laboratory is an integral part of Bascom Palmer’s residency training program. First-year residents spend four months on the service and return for two months in their second year. In the ocular pathology laboratory, Bascom Palmer professors and students use a multi-headed microscope, which is ideal for teaching and learning. In addition, under the supervision of an ophthalmic pathologist, residents perform gross exams on tissue samples after grand rounds and write up their laboratory findings.
Residents learn about ocular anatomy and ocular disease by studying all current laboratory cases as well as teaching cases in the files. A fellowship in ocular pathology was initiated in 2002.
The medical director of the Ocular Pathology Laboratory at the Florida Lions Eye Bank is Dr. Sander Dubovy, an assistant professor of ophthalmology and specialist in both ocular pathology and the study of the retina. Dr. Dubovy is board certified in ophthalmology and anatomic pathology. In addition to his responsibilities at the ocular pathology lab and the eye bank, Dr. Dubovy treats Bascom Palmer patients with vitreoretinal disorders.
After a fellowship in ophthalmic pathology at the Wilmer Ophthalmological Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, and a two-year residency at Columbia University’s Department of Pathology, Dr. Dubovy served as a special fellow at the Department of Ophthalmic Pathology, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology. He completed his training in the medical retina division of The Moorfields Eye Hospital, Institute of Ophthalmology, University of London.
Dr. Dubovy has completed a complex certification process and is a member of the Association of Eye Pathologists, New York State Society of Ophthalmology, the American Society of Ophthalmology, the American Society of Clinical Pathology, and College of American Pathologists. Dr. Dubovy was awarded the Harvey Z. Klein Award for Excellence in Patient Care at the University of Chicago.
Florida Lions Eye BankAs medical director of the Florida Lions Eye Bank, Dr. Dubovy ensures that all operations are in compliance with federal and state regulations. The important work of the ocular pathology lab includes evaluation of tissue samples from patients at Bascom Palmer, as well as from outside of the institute.
When an ophthalmology patient undergoes surgery, any eye tissue that is removed is sent to the ocular pathology laboratory for evaluation. When the material arrives, it is examined, described, sectioned, and photographed. Pathologists and their assistants look at cancers of the eyelids, conjunctival cancers, intraocular tumors, lymphomas, inflammations, corneal disease, and whole eyes. After the comprehensive evaluation is complete, a written report of the laboratory findings and diagnosis is sent back to the referring physician.