Each of our subspecialty clinics is directed by Armenian physicians who completed fellowships at the finest medical institutions and teaching centers in the United States, sponsored by the EyeCare Project. Combined, the clinics treat over 50,000 patients a year. They are located in Yerevan’s leading eye hospitals — the Malayan Ophthalmological Center and the Kanaker Zeitun Medical Center.
Retina Clinic
Dr. Armen Vardanyan, the first AECP Fellow, studied under Dr. Barry Kuppermann, a world-acclaimed retinal surgeon, at the University of California, Irvine (UCI.) Chosen in 1996 as the first AECP-AAMSOC (Armenian American Medical Society of California) Scholars participant, Dr. Vardanyan views his selection as “both a great honor and a big responsibility.”
Dr. Vardanyan returned to Armenia and in 1998, as Director of Retinal Services, established the Retina Clinic at the Malayan Ophthalmological Center — the Project’s first subspecialty clinic. The clinic specializes in vitreo-retinal disorders and treats those who experience loss of sight that can’t be fully corrected with eyeglasses, contact lenses, medicine or surgery — about 3,300 patients a year.
Since Armenia declared its independence, and particularly in the last 10 years, Dr. Vardanyan has seen drastic changes in his country — in medicine and ophthalmology, especially. The EyeCare Project has changed the landscape of eye care in Armenia as it has transitioned from a centralized Soviet system to a decentralized delivery of care and Dr. Vardanyan feels fortunate to be a part of this transition. As the first AECP Fellow and the Director of the AECP Retina Clinic, Armen has the opportunity to help his country fulfill its promise.
Glaucoma Clinic
In her capacity as Chief of Glaucoma Surgery at the Malayan Ophthalmological Center in Yerevan, Dr. Lilit Voskanyan, an extraordinarily gifted surgeon, specializes in the disease that damages an eye’s optic nerve. She sees more than 50 patients a day — treating 18,000 patients annually. In her role as a surgeon, she performs about 15-17 surgeries a week.
Dr. Voskanyan, the AECP’s second fellow in 1999, studied under Dr. Richard Hill, at the University of California, Irvine (UCI.) The most important thing Dr. Voskanyan learned while she trained in the United States was “to treat patients very well and be attentive.”
As Chief of Glaucoma Surgery, Dr. Voskanyan considers teaching one of her most important roles and credits her mentor, Dr. Hill, for the learned skill. Today, she supervises about 10 doctors herself in the Glaucoma Clinic.
In the last few years, Dr. Voskanyan has added to her work load, taking on the role of researcher. She is much sought-after in the academic and research worlds as a talented researcher and teacher and speaks at many medical conferences. In her capacity of researcher for Glaukos Corporation, leaders in transforming glaucoma therapy, Dr. Voskanyan performs a number of clinical trials to advance the treatment of Glaucoma, the second-leading cause of blindness, affecting approximately 78 million people worldwide.
Describing the rewards of her work, Dr. Voskanyan says, “Many people in Armenia, including lots of children, need help because of their glaucoma disease. When you can save their sight, and even restore their vision, that’s great.”
Corneal-Uveitis Clinic
Directed by Dr. Anna Hovakimyan and opened in 2001, the Corneal-Uveitis Clinic, located in the Malayan Ophthalmological Center in Yerevan, serves nearly 20,000 patients annually. Specializing in disorders having to do with the outer layer of the front of the eye (cornea) and middle layer of the eye (uveitis), Dr. Hovakimyan treats anywhere from 50 to 100 patients per day and performs about 1,000 surgeries per year — including corneal transplant surgeries, stem cell surgeries, and more.
Dr. Hovakimyan was awarded a one-year fellowship at the prestigious UCSF Proctor Foundation in San Francisco, California in 1999. After the fellowship abroad, Dr. Hovakimyan, along with the first two Scholars, Drs. Lilit Voskanyan and Armen Vardanyan, returned to Armenia to establish subspecialty clinics at the Malayan Ophthalmological Center. There, they deliver outstanding medical care on par with U.S. medicine.
Dr. Hovakimyan attributes a great deal of her success as a corneal-uveitis specialist to her AECP fellowship. “I like that I am referred many interesting patients whom I would never diagnose if I had not received training at the Proctor Foundation,” she says. “Even if I had not encountered a similar patient in the U.S., I heard about the disease and I can recognize the pathology. I have many nice books brought from the U.S. and I look over those books, become sure of my diagnosis and begin treatment. When the patient gets a positive result, it makes me extremely happy.”
Neuro-Orbital Clinic
Following her fellowships in New York and India, Dr. Armine Gharakeshishyan returned to Armenia to open the AECP Neuro-Orbital Clinic at the Malayan Ophthalmological Center in 2008. She sees approximately 4,000 complicated cases each year and specializes in thyroid ophthalmia, ptosis (drooping eyelids), strabismus (eye deviations) and aesthetic problems with the eyelid.
In theory and in practice, Dr. Armine Gharakeshishyan made the most of her one-year AECP fellowship.
For the first six months, she trained in neuro-ophthalmology and orbital surgery (facial reconstruction) under the auspices of Dr. Steven Feldon, Director at the University of Rochester Eye Institute in New York. For the second six months, Gharakeshishyan applied what she learned by performing surgeries at the LV Prasad Eye Institute in Hyderabad, India.
Through her fellowship, Dr. Gharakeshishyan has become experienced in a subspecialty that, before, was not very developed in Armenia — reconstructive, or plastic, surgery. Now, the orbital surgeon is able to offer these services to those who want them in Armenia.
The Neuro-Orbital Clinic Director also says she is grateful to have had the opportunity to work with so many talented surgeons in the best clinics in the world through her fellowship. “Every doctor wishes to have such an opportunity,” she says.
Pediatrics Clinic
The AECP Pediatric Clinic, directed by Dr. Ruzanna Harutunyan, sees approximately 6,000 children a year. Pediatric Ophthalmology is a subspecialty of ophthalmology dealing with problems common to or seen exclusively in infants and children. Following their specialty training in ophthalmology, pediatric ophthalmologists complete one year or more of subspecialty training in the diagnosis and treatment of infant and childhood eye disorders and diseases.
In the Pediatric Clinic, Harutyunyan performs about eight surgeries each week and examines approximately 30 children each day. “Every one of them is my favorite,” she says.
Much different than adults, a child’s eye exam focuses more on specific aspects of the eyes. Beginning in the preschool years, a number of conditions can be detected early including refractive errors (nearsightedness, farsightedness and astigmatism), strabismus — a misalignment of the eyes or eye muscle disorders (“crossed” or “lazy eyes”), and blocked tear ducts.
“Correcting vision problems and treating eye diseases is important at any age, but for children it can be especially important,” Dr. Harutyunyan says. “It gives me great happiness to be able to bring sight to a child.”
At the same time Harutyunyan is diagnosing and treating children, she is teaching other doctors the art and science of pediatric ophthalmology. Training and working with five physicians in the Pediatrics Clinic, she considers teaching an important part of her job. “I enjoy teaching them as much as I can and seeing the results,” she says.
Dr. Harutyunyan has become very well-known in the diagnosis and treatment of Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP) — a potentially blinding eye disease seen in premature infants — and speaks at a number of international conferences. The diagnosis and treatment of ROP is new to Armenia — and the Caucuses — since the EyeCare Project opened the Center of Excellence for the Prevention of Childhood Blindness and established its ROP program.
Low Vision Clinic
Directed by Dr. Lilit Mkrtchyan and opened in 2005, the Low Vision Clinic treats roughly 7,000 patients a year and is located at the Kanaker Zeitun Medical Center in Yerevan. The clinic opens a new world for the visually impaired and treats those who experience loss of sight that can’t be fully corrected with eyeglasses, contact lenses, medicine or surgery.
The only center of its kind in the Caucuses, the Low Vision Clinic works with patients who have these uncorrectable visual impairments and teaches them the vocational and life skills needed to be fully functioning members of society. With low vision impacting daily activities like reading, cooking, watching television, and using the computer, patients benefit from this specialized training not available anywhere else in the Caucuses.
“For people with visual impairments, the possibility of using a computer is a big step forward in obtaining access to information, learning new skills and gaining computer literacy,” says Dr. Mkrtchyan. In addition to the Computer Training program for adults, thanks to the Low Vision Clinic, over 20 children from School No.14 for the Visually Impaired have the opportunity to participate in specialized Low Vision training classes. The goal of the training program is to provide visually impaired adults and children with the highest possible level of independence.
