Dr Rebecca Haward is an Ophthalmologist and the newly appointed Director of Training at the Eye and Ear. Having completed her medical degree at Monash University and ophthalmology training with us, Dr Haward went to the United Kingdom to complete further sub-specialty training in Medical Retina and Uveitis before coming back to the hospital.
Dr Haward enjoys supervising and teaching ophthalmology trainees and other junior doctors, and her role as the new Director of Training provides an incredible leadership opportunity to help guide future leaders in ophthalmology.
What inspired you to become an ophthalmologist?
Whilst studying medicine at university, I thought I wanted to be a surgeon. However after starting clinical rotations in the hospital, I realised that I also liked the problem-solving involved in physician specialties. I did an elective in Ophthalmology in my final year at uni and picked it again as a rotation in my Hospital Medical Officer 2 year. I thought it was amazing that we could see such detail of the back of the eye with just a little lens. I loved how the eyes are involved in so many diseases that affected the rest of the body, and we could get a glimpse at that.
It became clear that Ophthalmology was the right mixture of working out what was going wrong using examination and investigations, and also being able to treat things through operating and procedures. It also helped to see that almost all ophthalmologists I met were very happy overall! And this encouraged me to apply for the program.
What is your advice to young women pursuing a career in ophthalmology?
I would highly recommend ophthalmology to anyone interested. It is a fantastic specialty to go into. Not only are there so many different subspecialties depending on your interests, it is easy to get work after getting a fellowship and we are so lucky to be able to choose how much and where we work (public, private, metro, regional etc).
My advice would be to check out the The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmologists application requirements, get as much ophthalmology experience as possible, and talk to lots of ophthalmologists so they know you are interested. You don’t know what extra opportunities may arise.
How have the women in your life help shape your career?
I’ve been lucky to have many great female role models in my life. My maternal grandmother was an immigrant from Cyprus, who worked hard in a factory together with my Greek grandfather to secure a stable future for their children. They valued education in their daughter (my mother), as well as their son, which was less common in those cultures and times.
My mother always put her children first, and always pushed me to be prepared and to do the best I could in everything that I tried. I went to a great girls’ secondary school which set high standards for what girls could achieve. During my BMedSci and my junior doctor years I had a fantastic mentor, Associate Professor Wendy Brown, who was an inspirational female leader in a traditionally male-dominated area of general surgery.
My mother-in-law is also an ophthalmologist, and has shown great detail in her work and dedication to her patients and to the public health system over her long career. I now also work with so many amazing female ophthalmologists who amaze me with what they can fit into their lives, trying to balance work and family.
How important is the messaging for year’s IWD theme ‘March Forward: For all women and girls’?
Having representation with visible female role models and females in positions of leadership is so important. Sometimes it is good to put your hand up and give something a go. You can show yourself and others that it can be done, and done well. Hopefully this gives courage to the next generation of women and girls to take that chance for themselves, too.
How do you encourage the next generation of Ophthalmologists?
In my new role as Director of Training in Victoria, I am hoping to encourage all our trainees to make the most of their registrar years. Although exams can be scary and study, time-consuming, the rotations in our training program offer breadth of pathology and chance to work on procedural skills. I would also encourage them to maintain a good balance outside of work, whether that be spending time with friends and family, exercising, or trying out a new cafe!
What are some of your proudest accomplishments since you began your career?
I still have a long way to go in my career! Some proud moments include:
- Seeing my finished Bachelor of Medical Science ( BMedSci) thesis all bound up in leather on completion of my year-long research project
- Getting onto the ophthalmology training program, and passing RACE after many months of long hours studying and a lot of sacrifices
- Being awarded the “Royal Children’s Hospital Employee of the week” after a particularly awful oncall weekend as a registrar. It was nice to see my efforts seeing many referrals from ED and across many wards had been noticed and appreciated
- Being told by patients that I have made them feel comfortable whilst doing a procedure they were worried about, or that I have explained something well that no-one had ever bothered to explain to them before
- Being a good mum to two (generally lovely!) young daughters, whilst navigating life as a new-ish consultant and non-clinical roles at the hospital
