The Macular Degeneration Association
Empowering patients and their caregivers to live fuller lives.
In 1998, Lawrence Hoffheimer’s mother was diagnosed with age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Wanting to do something to help her and others with the disease, he created the nonprofit Macular Degeneration Association (MDA) in 2007 with the goal of providing education, advocacy, and support for people with AMD and for individuals caring for those with the disease.
MDA Medical Board
Medical Director, Optometrists:
Jeffry D. Gerson, OD, FAAO
Medical Director, Retina Specialists:
Joshua Mali, MD
Members: Jeremiah Brown Jr, MS, MD; Joshua Greene, MD; Pamela A. Lowe, OD, FAAO, Dipl(ABO); Rajiv Rathod, MD;
Leo Semes, OD, FAAO; Pamela Weber, MD
A FOCUS ON PATIENT EDUCATION
The mission of the MDA is to find a cure for macular degeneration by disseminating research information while providing education that will improve the quality of life of patients, their family members, and their caregivers today and in the future.
The MDA conducts seminars so that patients can hear from eye care providers about AMD and from vendors about their products and services. Additionally, the association’s website provides informational videos in both long and short formats and lists upcoming events. Appropriately, it offers an option to view content in large print.
The MDA estimates that it reaches nearly 24,000 people on a regular basis through its social media platforms and more than 32,000 people through its quarterly newsletter.
Historically, the information provided by the MDA has been on AMD, but in response to patients’ comments there are now plans for online seminars about general eye care, dry eye, diabetes, and other non-AMD topics.
AMD CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE
Over the past year, the MDA has established optometric criteria to identify doctors and practices as AMD Centers of Excellence (see Join the MDA Network). Criteria for retina specialists and practices to attain that status were previously established.
The criteria for optometrists include familiarity with technology used in the diagnosis and care of patients with AMD, education in the area of AMD, and provision of low vision care. The Centers of Excellence are overseen by the MDA’s Medical Directors, Joshua Mali, MD, and Jeffry Gerson, OD, FAAO, with the support of a board of advisors.
Drs. Gerson and Mali both feel that, in addition to educating patients, it is also important to educate their colleagues about AMD. The MDA has begun offering continuing education seminars for optometrists and has plans to start a series for ophthalmologists. So far, attendance for the OD seminars has been outstanding, according to Dr. Gerson, and the intention is to continue conducting these at least through 2021, as quarterly talks are already scheduled. The MDA has hosted several COPE-approved webinars that have reached more than 1,000 ODs, along with initiating virtual patient seminars on a wide array of topics.
The MDA is supported in part by grants from pharmaceutical companies and donations from a variety of sources. Learn more about the association at macularhope.org.
Join the MDA Network
Qualifying ODs may submit an application to become an MDA AMD Center of Excellence. Among the criteria, optometrists must have access to at least three of the following technologies: macular pigment optical density measurement, fundus photography, OCT, OCT angiography, dark adaptation testing, in-office CCTV demonstration, ForeseeHome AMD Monitoring Program (Notal Vision).
Find out more about the optometric criteria for an AMD Center of Excellence with MDA accreditation at:
macularhope.org/join-our-network/.
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