Many small, good deeds can make significant — even fundamental — changes in the world

Our new year is opening with turbulent incidents. Terrorism in Turkey, France, and here in the United States makes us anxious. We have a new president like no other in our past. Republicans hold majorities in both houses of Congress — putting one party in control of the legislative and executive branches. The U.S. Supreme Court has a vacancy to be filled with a new justice whose views — likely conservative given prevalent sentiments of the president and the Senate — could tilt the balance of opinion on the Court and affect the law for decades to come. Insecurity rules.

In England, a country also in turmoil with its pending withdrawal from the European Union, members of the royal family offered an antidote to the anxiety and anger: At numerous holiday appearances, they reminded their subjects that many small, good deeds can change the world for the better.

Theirs was a message the world needed to hear.

Indeed, we ophthalmologists, as physicians and citizens, aspire to mend our nation. When the world seems its most insecure, we can remind one another that we have the power within ourselves to effect positive change and the tools to do it. This means recognizing the significance of what we do every day in our ASCs. We repeatedly achieve small acts of kindness and good deeds by restoring vision to our patients. It is essential to remember that — although cataract surgery may seem routine to us — to our patients, the sight-restoring surgery is profoundly life-changing.

So perhaps, in periods of uncertainty, we can discover asylum by tuning out the tension of the turbulent intervals and undertaking something familiar and assured — a single, well-defined, core goal to alleviate anxiety and pain, and provide our patients with the miracle of eyesight!

With a solid foundation built upon aiding our patients and preserving the quality of their care, including the efficacy and endurance of our practices and ASCs, we can confidently press onward toward an unpredictable political skyline. Fortified by the confidence of our patients and an outstanding reputation in our communities, we optimistically will have the resources to explore new alliances and strategies in dealing with the political and regulatory powers that define the future for us and our patients.

Indeed, many small acts of kindness can make significant, even fundamental, changes in the world. ■