A brilliant light on ophthalmology education

Presented by the Ruiz Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, the Adrien and Gladys Drouilhet Visiting Professorship in Ophthalmology series continues to showcase some of the nation’s most influential specialists. Funded by the generosity of the Drouilhet family, this lecture series is fast becoming a forum for those shaping the future of vision care.

Last fall alone, guests included University of California San Francisco Professor Eugene de Juan, MD, a leading innovator — some would say the leading innovator — in vitreoretinal surgery, and Professor Andreas Lauer, MD, from Oregon Health & Science University, who gave an insightful presentation on subretinal gene therapy surgery. This fall, we will welcome Donald Budenz, MD, MPH, the Kittner Distinguished Professor and Chair of Ophthalmology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

“I cannot overemphasize how grateful we are to the Drouilhet family for funding our educational series,” said Timothy J. McCulley, MD, who chairs the Ruiz Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science. “It’s been so successful we now have a named Drouilhet lecturer within the Houston Ophthalmologic Society, boosting UTHealth Houston’s visibility.”

John H. Drouilhet, MD, and Adrien F. Drouilhet III, PhD, established the endowment in 1992 to honor their parents, who instilled in their sons a strong sense of family and duty to the common good. The brothers envisioned a sustainable educational resource for students, faculty, and researchers in the Ruiz Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences and have generously pledged long-term endowment support.

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