Patricia Bath—The Woman of Many Groundbreaking Firsts in Ophthalmology

In an era marked by a male-dominated landscape in ophthalmology, Dr. Patricia Bath, a woman of colour, arose as a groundbreaking figure, becoming the first woman to dismantle the glass ceiling within this challenging field. With her exceptional intellect and deep compassion for her patients, she not only advanced her own career but also transformed the landscape of eye care. Her unwavering humanity and fierce determination propelled her remarkable achievements as she tirelessly advocated for initiatives aimed at preventing blindness, providing effective treatments, and pursuing innovative cures. Through her profound contributions, Dr. Bath has left an indelible mark on the practice of ophthalmology and the lives of countless individuals. THE JOURNEY BEGINS Patricia Era Bath was born in Harlem, New York, United States of America, in 1942 to immigrant parents Rupert and Gladys Bath. Her parents constantly encouraged her by meticulously supporting her education. She was a National Science Foundation scholar in her high school and actively focused on cancer research.[1] She was inspired by the French Nobel Peace Prize laureate Albert Schweitzer, whose work in medicine led her to a research project at Yeshiva University and Harlem Hospital Centre. She studied the effects of streptomycin residue on bacteria and the catabolic nature of cancers.[2] At as young as 18 years of age, she received the merit award of Mademoiselle magazine for this research work.[3] Bath did her Bachelor in Chemistry at Manhattan’s Hunter College in 1964 and then attended the Howard University College of Medicine, from where she graduated with honours in 1968. She received the Edwin Watson Prize for Excellence in the field of Ophthalmology.[4] The same year, she was motivated by the sudden demise of human rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., when she organised volunteer health care for the Poor People’s Campaign in Resurrection City. Her ophthalmology journey began perse in the 1970s, where she did her residency at New York University, and was the first African American woman to do so. During her residency, she noticed that a large proportion of visually disabled patients were in the Black community, which motivated her to rally up free eye care services. She persuaded her professors to operate on such patients, free of cost—a game changer to the eye care system at Harlem Hospital Centre.[5] Post her NYU residency, she went on to do a corneal fellowship programme at Columbia University, which focused on keratoplasties and keratoprosthesis. She then moved to Los Angeles, where she kickstarted her career as the first women ophthalmic faculty at the Jules Stein Eye Institute at UCLA. She founded the Ophthalmic Assistant Training Program (OATP) to train personnel to provide screening as part of blindness prevention programmes. She had short stints in France, England, and Germany, where she served as a visiting professor, and went on to retire from UCLA in 1993. During her tenure, she has authored more than 100 papers.[6] Among her various contributions to the field, she was a strong advocate of telemedicine and heralded the creation of virtual labs of 3D imaging for ophthalmic residency training programmes. In 1976, she was behind the origins of the branch of Community Ophthalmology after observing rising rates of preventable blindness in third-world countries. She co-founded the American Institute for Prevention of Blindness with Alfred Cannon and Aaron Ifekwunigwe, which was based on the principle that eyesight was a basic human right. She worked through the organisation to provide free eye drops, immunisations, and vitamin supplements to those in need. She was recognised for this philanthropic work by President Barack Obama in 2009.[7] THE HEAD-TURNING ACCOMPLISHMENT Her most notable invention was the use of excimer laser photoablation in cataract surgery, which she coined as ‘laser photoablative cataract surgery’, also known as ‘laser phaco’. She completed the creation of this device in 1986 and patented it in 1988, which made her the first African-American woman to hold a medical patent.[8] She was the recipient of numerous awards, which honoured her as the first of many women to change the course of ophthalmology. She was inducted into the Hall of Fame at Hunter College in 1988 and was declared a pioneer in Academic Medicine by Howard University in 1993. She was also the muse behind numerous books written about her life and her extensive research work. In 1972, Patricia Bath welcomed the birth of her daughter. She embarked on a lifelong mission to advocate against blindness, a cause that became her passion until her passing in May 2019. Throughout her life, she faced numerous challenges, particularly as a Black woman in a predominantly male field, yet she persevered with unwavering determination. Bath made groundbreaking contributions to ophthalmology, innovating techniques and raising awareness about eye health in ways that transformed the field. Her remarkable achievements not only advanced medical science but also served as a beacon of hope and inspiration for countless women who aspire to follow in her pioneering footsteps. Financial support and sponsorship Nil. Conflicts of interest There are no conflicts of interest.