Access, Recognition, and Momentum
Dear Friends and Colleagues,
As we open the academic year, I want to share several developments from August and September that reflect the strength of our faculty, clinical teams, and partners.
After a decade of efforts to further increase the quality of care and translational science developed by our growing team, U.S. News & World Report has for the first time ranked our Department among the leading departments, No. 12 nationally, with a rating of excellent. That placement is an encouragement to continue to strive for clinical excellence, research productivity, and praise the daily work of everyone who cares for patients and trains the next generation of ophthalmologists. I congratulate our entire community, and our supporters on this milestone.
Faculty recognition continues to underscore Pittsburgh’s leadership in our specialty. Vishal Jhanji, MD, has been named editor-in-chief of the leading cornea journal, a role that will shape the field’s scientific discourse for years to come. Jay Chhablani, MD, has been inducted into the Retina Hall of Fame, joining clinicians and scientists whose work has defined modern retinal care. Please join me in congratulating both colleagues.
I am deeply honored that the Champalimaud Foundation has named Botond Roska, MD, PhD, and me as recipients of the 2026 António Champalimaud Vision Award. I want to share this recognition, the largest in our field, with many. Indeed, it belongs to the investigators, trainees, clinical partners, and philanthropic supporters across Pittsburgh, Paris, Basel, and our collaborating institutions who have collaborated with me for more than two decades, moving optogenetic and restorative approaches from fundamental biology into clinical trials. Awards of this kind mark a stage in a long collective effort; the work of restoring functional vision for patients continues.
Our commitment to patients who have had little or no prior eye care remains central. Community Vision Day, held roughly ten days ago, was a major success. Among the more than 130 patients who walked in like in the three preceding Community Vision Days, more than 100 patients without established care were seen, screened, and connected to follow-up. That event builds on the Guerilla Eye Service, Eyes on Wheels, and the many volunteers who make outreach possible. Access is not an add-on to our mission; it is the mission. We are immensely grateful to all, to the Eye & Ear Foundation and to the leadership of UPMC for supporting that unprecedented initiative at this scale.
Clinical volume tells a similar story of growth with purpose. When I arrived, our Department cared for approximately 50,000 patients a year. Last year we saw about 170,000, more than a 300 percent increase. Volume alone is not the goal. We are building new models of care, including urgent and remote care pathways, so patients can reach us more quickly and outside the limits of a single portal. Improving access remains one of our highest priorities.
August also marked the launch of Rare Ventures, a first-of-its-kind venture philanthropy platform designed to accelerate therapies for rare diseases. Backed by a commitment of up to $25 million from the Richard King Mellon Foundation and founded by the team behind EB Research Partnership, Rare Ventures brings together AI-enabled patient data, investment, and therapeutic development under one coordinated model. Partners include the University of Pittsburgh Health Sciences, UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, the UPMC Vision Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Stanford Medicine, ElevateBio, and industry collaborators. For ophthalmology, the platform builds on our work in inherited retinal disease and vision restoration, with the goal of moving discoveries to patients more rapidly. On September 4, Michael Hund, cofounder of Rare Ventures, rang the New York Stock Exchange opening bell; Lawney Snyder represented our Department and the Eye & Ear Foundation at that milestone. Moments like these remind us that translating discovery into lasting impact depends on partners who believe in Pittsburgh’s science.
I am grateful to our faculty, trainees, staff, UPMC colleagues, and the Eye & Ear Foundation supporters for the work behind every ranking, every patient visit, and every new pathway of care. The months ahead will ask still more of us. With your trust and support, we are ready.
José-Alain Sahel, MD, FARVO
Chairman, Department of Ophthalmology
Director, UPMC Vision Institute
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine