News

20252024202320222021

Clear Vision, Brave Mission: Flaum Optician’s Dual Callings

Wednesday, October 1, 2025

Keeping sight and service in focus, Brooke Coburn balances eyecare and firefighting with heart

When Brooke Coburn left home for work on the morning of Sept. 11, 2025, she didn’t expect to arrive late. But as she drove through the Town of Sparta, she saw thick gray smoke rising in the distance. Moments later, she came upon a devastating accident: two dump trucks had collided, one careening into a home and sparking a fire that claimed the life of a resident.

Coburn, an assistant managing optician at Flaum Eye Institute, is also in her first year of training as a volunteer firefighter with the Sparta Center Volunteer Fire Department. Without hesitation, she pulled over, grabbed her turnout gear from the trunk, and rushed to help.

“I saw the smoke and I knew I couldn’t just keep driving,” she said. “It was instinct at that point; you don’t think about yourself, you just think about what needs to be done.”

Coburn says the call to serve runs in the family. She serves alongside her husband, Joseph Coburn, and mother-in-law, Bobbi Jo Coburn (pictured at right with Brooke), who are also part of the fire department. “It’s something my husband’s family has been connected to for years,” she explained. “Being able to learn and grow in that same tradition is really meaningful to me.”

Her other professional calling began at URMC, where she started as an outpatient access representative and advanced into optical services. Today, she leads the optical teams in Geneseo and Webster.

“The University has given me a career path I didn’t even know was possible,” she said. “My supervisors saw potential in me and guided me forward. That support has given me confidence not just at work, but in every part of my life.”

Play It Safe: Avoiding Common Eye Injuries

Thursday, July 24, 2025

Child’s play can be great fun, except when it results in an unexpected visit to the pediatrician or eye doctor. UR Medicine pediatric ophthalmologist Dr. Benjamin Hammond, of the Flaum Eye Institute, offers insight on some common childhood eye injuries.

Toy tinkering

Each year, about 250,000 children are taken to hospital emergency rooms for toy-related eye injuries. Injuries frequently occur because a child uses a toy that isn’t appropriate for their age or uses it in an unintended way.

While any toy can be harmful if used inappropriately, extra care should be taken with toys used in simulated play-fighting or that launch projectiles, such as play swords or foam dart guns. These should never be swung or aimed towards the face. Many parents and children think these toys are harmless, but an unlucky hit or shot to the eye can cause injuries, including scrapes and bleeding inside the eye.

Balls and bats

Budding athletes face all sorts of injuries on the field and in the backyard, where it’s all too easy to be struck in the face by balls, fingers, elbows, or equipment. A blunt force hit or poke in the eye can cause bleeding or retinal detachments, which require immediate medical attention. A child who complains of blurry or cloudy vision, light sensitivity, or flashes should see a doctor to check for an internal injury to the eye.

Well-fitting protective eyewear can prevent up to 90 percent of sports-related injuries. Though few sports require routine eye protection, all children can benefit from wearing it, especially those with poor vision, a history of eye surgery, or strong vision in only one eye.

Pet problems

Eye doctors frequently care for young children who suffer a dog bite near the eye. The family dog may be well-trained, but pet behavior can be unpredictable. Often a dog bite near the cheek or eye will damage tear ducts. Parents can help avoid injury by teaching youngsters how to interact safely with pets.

Supervised play is one of the best ways to help reduce risky situations as children grow and gain an understanding of the potential dangers of their behavior.

Susana Marcos receives the 2025 Edgar D. Tillyer Award

Tuesday, March 11, 2025

Susana Marcos, the David R. Williams Director of the Center for Visual Science, the Nicholas George Professor in Optics, and a professor of ophthalmology at Rochester, was selected as the 2025 recipient of the Edgar D. Tiller Award by Optica. The award is presented to an individual who has performed distinguished work in the field of vision, including but not limited to the optics, physiology, anatomy, or psychology of the visual system.

Marcos was honored “for contributions to our basic understanding of the effect of the eye’s optics on vision including the passage of light through the cornea and lens and into the photoreceptors where vision begins.” She is a pioneer in the development of new techniques for the evaluation of the eye, including retinal imaging instruments, aberrometers, adaptive optics, anterior segment imaging of the eye and intraocular lens designs.

• Read about Marcos’ research using artificial intelligence to bring clarity to LASIK patients facing cataract surgery.