UF ophthalmology department celebrates 40th birthday by honoring pioneers

A weekend-long celebration marking the University of Florida department of ophthalmology’s 40th anniversary paid tribute to three pioneering faculty members who helped the department gain an international reputation for innovation and excellence.

Former department Chairmen Herbert Kaufman, M.D., and Melvin Rubin, M.D., and former technology training Program Director Barbara Cassin, M.Ed., received Outstanding Life-Long Achievement Awards at a black-tie banquet in November at the Paramount Resort & Conference Center in Gainesville.

Current department Chairman Mark Sherwood, M.D., a UF professor of ophthalmology, hosted the banquet’s awards ceremony, stating that the lifetime honorees helped chart a pathway the department would follow for decades to come.

“They have gone out and set themselves on the national and international stage,” Sherwood said. “There are very few people in ophthalmology in the world who haven’t heard of (them).”

The department currently ranks among the nation’s top 10 in National Institutes of Health funding and in the top 10 percent of academic ophthalmology departments in terms of resident surgical volume, Sherwood said.

Kaufman came to UF in 1962 to serve as chief of the UF surgery department’s ophthalmology division, then chairman of the ophthalmology department from 1965-77. Currently a professor at Louisiana State University, Kaufman’s achievements include helping make modern eye banks possible by developing a medium for preserving corneal tissue, introducing therapeutic soft contact lenses and helping develop the world’s first antiviral therapy for the eyes. Rubin joined the UF ophthalmology faculty in 1963 and served as department chairman from 1978-94. Currently a UF professor emeritus of ophthalmology, he is perhaps best known for creating the annual national Ophthalmic Knowledge Assessment Program, which promotes uniform standards of excellence among clinicians.

Cassin was an assistant professor of ophthalmology and director of the Orthoptic and Ophthalmic Technology Training Programs from 1962 until her retirement in 1994. She authored the textbook “Fundamentals for Ophthalmic Technical Personnel” and the first edition of the Dictionary of Eye Terminology.

Other celebration events included daylong scientific programs presented by department alumni and banquet speeches by Michael Redmond, M.D., president of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, and Gary Schemmer, M.D., president of the Florida Society of Ophthalmology and a former UF ophthalmology resident. Funding for the event was provided in part by Alcon Pharmaceuticals and Allergan.