Surgeons embrace LASIK

Sharon Josloff sits with her husband after LASIK. Dr. Josloff said he saw well enough to operate 24 hours after surgery. As a patient he realized how important it was to be relaxed during the procedure. “ Your staff is the best.”

Abington General and Laparoscopic Surgeon ends his dependence on glasses and contact lenses

GUEST EDITORIAL
by a Philadelphia Medical Malpractice Attorney and LASIK patient

I sit here writing my thoughts about a month after having had LASIK surgery with Dr. James Lewis. No doubt, I was not Dr. Lewis’ “typical” patient. My educational background is in the legal and medical fields and has made me an educated consumer – – and a skeptic.
It took me about three years to garner the resolve to actively seek out surgery to correct my vision. Starting with 20/200(R) – 20/400(L) vision with correction to nearly 20/20 with glasses or contacts, I was motivated to be able to see better without the nuisance of glasses or contacts. In my line of work (medical malpractice), I knew too well what the horrible possibilities were and was hesitant to invite them to my door. A sense of humor is integral in my life and I didn’t want to lose mine as a result of this surgery.
After doing a fair amount of Internet research about LASIK surgery, lasers, various centers, multiple surgeons, risks of the procedure and news/opinion articles, I pored over the various web sites of many of the LASIK centers. Dr. Lewis was an unknown to me (in my line of work) before my surgery. One could say that that, in itself, was a good thing, given what I do for a living. Gathering information and references about the practice and person who would ultimately do my surgery was a priority. I had to be comfortable with not only my surgeon, but also the office staff and support personnel. Meeting my potential surgeon would be the deal maker or deal breaker.
When I started my active search for a LASIK surgeon, I was cautious and completely willing to forego surgery until and unless I found a good “match.” Glasses or contacts were not the worst burden in the grand scheme of things. My calls for preliminary information (after gathering a fair knowledge base from my research) to a number of LASIK centers were met with anything from cool indifference to unsupported and outrageous “guarantees.” Curiously, some centers I called would not discuss the type of laser they utilized. Two centers refused to tell me whether residents (doctors in training) would be responsible for performing any or all of the surgery. It wasn’t difficult to weed out some of the centers (and potential surgeons) merely based on these initial screening calls. After I called many and met with three other practices and discussed the possibility of LASIK surgery, I appeared at Dr. Lewis’ door.
As fate would have it, I was, by my own error, late and somewhat flustered upon arrival. Michelle, Dr. Lewis’ very skilled and efficient LASIK Coordinator, was gracious and understanding of my late arrival (even though I was the last appointment of the day). The initial evaluation and information gathering started immediately. I was provided with a packet that contained information about LASIK surgery generally and the specific laser Dr. Lewis uses. Overall, it was a wealth of information that pre-operative patients should know or at least be curious about. The twenty-one page consent was enough to make any potential patient think more than twice about making the leap.
The initial appointment started with a history form and a series of evaluations and examinations. It was then that I was introduced to Dr. Marc Myers who continued the evaluation and history gathering process. Dr. Myers, I learned, would be totally involved in my pre- operative and post-operative care. Dr. Myers confirmed, as I suspected, that I was a good candidate for this surgery. The ball was in my lap.
Neither Dr. Myers nor Michelle ever shied away from any of my rather pointed questions. Having all of my questions answered and continuing to gather additional information was paramount. I was not disappointed.
Based on my perception of the various LASIK centers to which I had been exposed, Dr. Lewis’ practice seemed to be the “well-oiled machine” I was seeking. From the operators answering the phones to the office staff, everyone seemed pleasant, efficient and knowledgeable. The missing component, at that point, was a personal meeting with Dr. Lewis. It was still early in the process and I had some more information-gathering to do before I could be sure I wanted this surgery or that I wanted Dr. Lewis to be my surgeon. Regardless of these hurdles, I scheduled my surgery for a month and a half later. I wouldn’t be shy about canceling the surgery if things weren’t right. Nothing about my vision or the surgeon who would be responsible for its correction required a rush to judgment. Not having met Dr. Lewis, I was still unsure if this was the perfect fit I needed.
I left Dr. Lewis’ center carrying the packet of information and the intimidating twenty-one page consent. After carefully reading the consent and the accompanying information, I found myself still interested in pursuing LASIK surgery. It very easily could have gone the other way. This decision is very personal and shouldn’t come as a result of others’ decisions. It is you who must live with the consequence of your decision.
As my possible surgery date drew near, I felt the ebb and flow of apprehension as I expected. Just to calm my concerns and to see if unexpected demands would be received as smoothly as the scheduled appointments, I stopped by at the office with no more than 10 minutes notice to ask some pre-op questions that cropped up with my reading of the consent. Michelle welcomed me in and invited me to sit down while she answered anything she could. She also offered to set up an appointment for me to speak with Dr. Myers or with Dr. Lewis to go over any and all concerns or questions. I was assured that I would have as much time as I wanted or needed to speak with Dr. Lewis either before or on the day of surgery. Michelle and I spoke for quite a while. Operative and post-operative surprises would not be acceptable. My questions were answered and I left very satisfied that this practice provided the comfortable fit I was seeking.
Dr. Lewis and I met on my day of surgery. Pre-operative medication was administered to allay any residual pre-operative angst and to foster the ability to rest comfortably after the surgery. I found Dr. Lewis to be a caring and warm individual who wasn’t a member of the “hard sell” school of practice. Our conversation was unhurried, friendly and included the all-important and necessary sense of humor. Although I had no unanswered questions, I asked Dr. Lewis certain of the questions that had warranted my impromptu visit days before surgery. He would, after all, be the one performing the procedure. A short walk later and I was being positioned for my procedure. I was comforted to see how careful and meticulous Dr. Lewis was to be sure the positioning was just right before beginning the procedure.
Even with my background, I didn’t really want to have a running color commentary during my procedure. Too much information would just keep me from remaining calm, cool and collected or benefitting from the pre-operative medication. A VHS video of the procedure could be made if I was inclined to see the surgery first hand. Dr. Lewis has a very warm and compassionate manner, while proceeding in a very professional and efficient way. Things progressed very nicely and in no time one eye was done. The other eye went just as smoothly. His assistants kept me aware of what generally was going on and were calming. Once the surgery was completed, medicated ointment was administered to both eyes and protective patches applied (shortly after I was pleased to look around the room and enjoy clear, focused vision without glasses).
I was driven to my home and rested for the balance of the day, as directed. The most unpleasant feature of my first day and night post-operatively was the tape holding the eye guards in place. That was a short-lived problem. Sleeping was no problem. There were no strange sensations, pains or problems with my eyes. Even through the medicated ointment and the eye guards, I could still see my alarm clock across the room. Not too shabby!
By the next morning, my 24 hour check up revealed uncorrected vision of 20/15. One week after my surgery, my vision had improved to 20/10. Due to my age and previous vision problems, I was pleasantly surprised that I didn’t yet need reading glasses. Close and distant vision are perfectly focused. This was neither expected, nor typical, from what I gather. I’m not complaining. I was careful to follow instructions to the letter. No swimming meant no swimming. Eye drops were instilled as directed. Absolutely no rubbing of the eyes. There are many instructions and following them was, to me, a priority.
At one month post-op, I continue to marvel daily at the crisp vision I have in both distance and close fields. While I understand that I’ll likely soon need reading glasses, I’m enjoying the temporary reprieve from all corrective lenses.
I make it a practice not to “recommend” physicians or procedures to others. What I do recommend is that you should be well informed and educated about the procedure and its risks and benefits and that you are comfortable with the health care provider you choose. These are big decisions. It’s not like buying an appliance on a recommendation. It should be given the appropriate measure of analysis that will make the health care consumer confident and comfortable. For me, this procedure and this surgeon were the right choice.

Meghan Fisher wears her mother’s “bunny suit” after Valerie’s LASIK surgery. Both proudly display their new iHateMyGlasses.com hats. Mrs. Fisher is a respiratory therapist at Pottstown Medical Center.