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What We Do:

The Wilmer Eye Institute of Johns Hopkins is one of the largest and leading ophthalmological centers in the country. The Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine’s Ophthalmological Anesthesia Division works with a specialized team of certified nurse anesthetists to provide anesthetic care for 7,000 surgical cases per year, the majority of which are performed in the Maurice Bendann Surgical Pavilion on the Johns Hopkins East Baltimore Medical Campus on an outpatient basis. Eye surgery can require unique and customized anesthetic since many surgical cases only 10 minutes. Our Ophthalmological Anesthesia Division aims to ensure maximum comfort and pain relief while allowing patients to spend minimal time in the operating and recovery rooms. More complex and lengthy procedures, particularly for infants and inpatients, are done in the Sheikh Zayed Tower that is within the Johns Hopkins Hospital.

Habits and Hacks from Hopkins (H3)

We are very pleased to present the second free eBook Habits and Hacks from Hopkins (H3) that culminated from year 3 of the Faculty Factory podcast series. This second eBook features our faculty members sharing their work-life/home-life habits, hacks, practices, routines, and tips. The first free eBook, Snippets for Success: An eBook Brought to You by the Faculty Factory Community is a collection of the top podcast “snippet” episodes from year 2 with top takeaways and questions for self-reflection. We are proud to have provided an international forum for our faculty members to share their wisdom and build their leadership presence and equally proud to be recognized as leaders in faculty development.

Can Eye Drops and Surgery Be Fun for Children? A Wilmer Doctor and Nurse Say Yes!

A combination of clinical experience and research for her Ph.D. spurred Lizzie Horn, a certified registered nurse anesthetist, to start playing with toys again. It all began with a 4-year-old patient, explains Horn, who frequently works with pediatric patients at the Wilmer Eye Institute, Johns Hopkins Medicine. This patient visited Wilmer monthly for surgery, and would often refuse his preoperative eye drops or to go back to the surgical suite. “I wondered, how can we improve this experience for him?” says Horn. Around the same time, Horn was researching patient anxiety and pain as a potential topic for her dissertation. Based on studies she had read, and asking her own children what they liked to play with, she decided to try a new tack: giving the young patient a fidget toy — a type of toy that provides a tactile experience. “Now, when he gets here, he comes and finds me and walks right back with me. It’s pretty amazing,” says Horn. Tina Tran, M.D., chief of anesthesiology for the Wilmer Eye Institute, explains, “We were using distraction techniques such as electronics or music. And then we noticed the things that made children the calmest were both parental presence and having something in their hands to fidget with.” These experiences inspired Horn and Tran to create an initiative to provide superhero capes and fidget toys to children who come to Wilmer for procedures that require anesthesia. Continue reading at hopkinsmedicine.org.

Habits and Hacks with Tina Tran, MD

Dr. Tran was featured on the Faculty Factory podcast where she discusses the importance of attending events and conferences to expand your leadership and collaboration opportunities.

You can listen to the episode and read more here: https://facultyfactory.org/tina-tran/

Perioperative Collaboration in the Bendann Surgical Pavilion

The Maurice Bendann Surgical Pavilion on the Johns Hopkins Hospital campus opened in 2009 and is one of the most modern ophthalmic surgical facilities in the world. The building was constructed to deliver state-of-the-art ophthalmic care and the surgical team members have come together to ensure the highest level of patient experience and efficiency to match. The Perioperative Leadership Team (PLT) was established in 2002 and includes representation from surgery, anesthesia, surgical scheduling, preoperative nursing, and materials management. Wilmer Anesthesia Division Chief, Dr. Ric Rivers, works tirelessly with the PLT to develop a safe and efficient system of perioperative care through project work. Most recently, members of the perioperative team including nurses, certified nurse anesthetists, anesthesiologists, and administrators attended a two-day Lean Six Sigma workshop to improve workflow in the Bendann Surgical Pavilion so that patients and families can experience a smooth process from the time their surgeries are scheduled through their discharge from the post-anesthesia care unit after surgery.

Division Faculty and Clinical Associates


Tina Tran, MD
Division Chief

Maria Bauer, MD
Assistant Division Chief


Richard Rivers, MD, PhD, MBA