Patricia e. bath biography

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Patricia e. bath biography

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below. Black Inventors. It performed all steps of cataract removal: making the incision, destroying the lens and vacuuming out the fractured pieces. Bath is recognized as the first Black woman physician to receive a medical patent. After completing an ophthalmology residency at New York University, Bath completed a corneal transplant surgery fellowship at Columbia University.

Bath conceived her laserphaco device in , published her first paper in and had her first U. Based on her research and achievements with keratoprosthesis, Bath was chosen to lead the first national keratoprosthesis study in It was then she had decided to look further for the best laboratories in the world, to support her plans for innovation in the world of ophthalmology.

In Germany, she served as visiting professor at the University of Free Berlin and the laser medical center. In , Bath retired from UCLA, which subsequently elected her the first woman on its honorary staff. Bath served as a professor of ophthalmology at Howard University's School of Medicine and as a professor of telemedicine and ophthalmology at St.

Georges University [ 19 ] [ 22 ] ophthalmology training program. In an article written by Bath, in the Journal of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, she had proven that with better training and supervision in residency programs, students were able to achieve better results in their surgeries, leading to greater visual acuity. Bath lectured internationally and authored over papers.

Based on her observations at Harlem Hospital, Bath published the first scientific paper showing the higher prevalence of blindness among Blacks. Based on her research, Bath pioneered the discipline of community ophthalmology in [ 28 ] after observations of epidemics rates of preventable blindness among under-served populations in urban areas in the US as well as under-served populations in third-world countries.

Co-founded in with Alfred Cannon, an American psychiatrist and community organizer, and Aaron Ifekwunigwe, a Nigerian-born pediatrician and human rights advocate, the organization was created on the principle that "eyesight was a basic human right. Bath spent her time as director traveling the world performing surgeries, teaching and lecturing at colleges.

Oda School for the Visually Impaired in Kenya. Bath was recognized for her philanthropic work in the field of ophthalmology by President Barack Obama. In she was on stage with President Obama, and was appointed to commission for digital accessibility to blind children. Bath discussed gender disparities in the STEM and lack of female inventors.

Bath coined the term "laser phaco" for the process, short for laser photoablative cataract surgery, [ 36 ] and developed the laser phaco probe, a medical device that improves on the use of lasers to remove cataracts, and "for ablating and removing cataract lenses". Bath first had the idea for this type of device in , but did not apply for a patent until several years later.

Bath holds five patents in the United States. Bath has been honored by two of her universities. She is also the subject of a short play, "The Prize about Dr. Patricia Bath " by Cynthia L. Cooper [ 57 ]. Contents move to sidebar hide. Article Talk. Read Edit View history. Tools Tools. Download as PDF Printable version. In other projects.

Wikimedia Commons Wikidata item. First African American woman doctor to receive a patent for a medical invention. Early life and education [ edit ]. Career [ edit ]. Blindness studies and community ophthalmology [ edit ]. Humanitarian work [ edit ]. Inventions [ edit ]. List of U. Honors and awards [ edit ]. Volunteers trained as eye workers visit senior centers and daycare programs to test vision and screen for cataracts, glaucoma, and other threatening eye conditions.

This outreach has saved the sight of thousands whose problems would otherwise have gone undiagnosed and untreated. By identifying children who need eyeglasses, the volunteers give these children a better chance for success in school. Bath was also instrumental in bringing ophthalmic surgical services to Harlem Hospital's Eye Clinic, which did not perform eye surgery in She persuaded her professors at Columbia to operate on blind patients for free, and she volunteered as an assistant surgeon.

The first major eye operation at Harlem Hospital was performed in as a result of her efforts. When she became the first woman faculty in the department, she was offered an office "in the basement next to the lab animals. I said it was inappropriate and succeeded in getting acceptable office space. I decided I was just going to do my work.

Despite university policies extolling equality and condemning discrimination, Professor Bath experienced numerous instances of sexism and racism throughout her tenure at both UCLA and Drew. Determined that her scientific endeavors not be obstructed by the "glass ceilings" in the US, she took her research abroad to Europe. At those institutions she achieved her "personal best" in research and laser science, the fruits of which are evidenced by her laser patents on eye surgery.

Bath's work and interests, however, always went beyond the confines of a university. In , she and three other colleagues founded the American Institute for the Prevention of Blindness, an organization whose mission is to protect, preserve, and restore the gift of sight. The AIPB is based on the principle that eyesight is a basic human right and that primary eye care must be made available to all people, everywhere, regardless of their economic status.

Much of the work of the AIPB is done though ophthalmic assistants, who are trained in programs at major universities. The institute supports global initiatives to provide newborn infants with protective anti-infection eye drops, to ensure that children who are malnourished receive vitamin A supplements essential for vision, and to vaccinate children against diseases such as measles that can lead to blindness.

On these travels she has performed surgery, taught new medical techniques, donated equipment, lectured, met with colleagues, and witnessed the disparity in health services available in industrial and developing countries. Bath was also a laser scientist and inventor.