Phaco and Glaucoma Ahalia offers a 12-month phaco and an 18-month glaucoma fellowship.  Both programs give you phaco training (about 50-60 cases minimum) during your last 4 months here.  If you're a glaucoma fellow, you also get around 5 trab cases in addition to the cataract cases. All fellows share the same OP workup, so you get to see cases across all specialties. There is a mandatory one year pre -fellowship duty to be done at one of Ahalia's centers first. During this time, you're an op doctor and get zero surgeries.  Salary during pre-fellowship is 80,000/ month and then 30,000/ month during fellowship (as of 2025). The main fellowship training happens in Palakkad which is a small town- but the Ahalia campus is huge and vast. Palakkad is not a very happening place but thankfully Coimbatore (cool city with great hangouts) is just 1 hour drive away.  You start with SICS for first 6-7 months and then shift to phaco but if you pick up well, you can start even earlier. You learn to operate on all kinds of cataract.   OT runs daily from 9 am till about 3 pm and usually never goes past 5.  Fellows are also taught to manage complications, do vitrectomies etc.  All cases are recorded and then reviewed later by trainers to determine areas for improvement. Academics and classes don't happen much so it's up to you to read textbooks and other relevant materials. After fellowship, there's a 1.5 year bond with a salary of 1.2 lakhs annually. Breaking the bond will cost you 10 lakhs. You can work as a consultant at any Ahalia center for your bond period, they have a branch in most districts of Kerala. Medical Retina As a fellowship program was just started only in 2025- duration is for 3 months. So after finishing your Phaco/Glaucoma fellowship, you can opt to stay an additional 3 months and do Medical Retina. D uring this time you continue to do more phacos (some fellows have even transitioned to topical phaco in this period) in addition to learning lasers and intravit injections as well.

Duration : 1.5yrs  Phaco included (mainly phaco). But those who not familiar with SICS, it may be difficult if you're looking to better your SICS skills as fellows don't get much SICS- those are given mostly to PGs.  Surgical hands-on starts at 3 months, sometimes later.  Clinical exposure, you get to see all kind of cases in glaucoma. Work environment is good, friendly staff and colleagues. Camp duties once in a while, divided between PGs and fellows. No formal theory classes, only one dedicated senior under whom we are trained both surgically and academically. Trabs around 25-30 given per candidate. They give plain trabs first, then combined cases. If payment cases, then you operate under supervision.  If you are well trained in SICS, Comtrust is a good place to be as you get good exposure to phaco, high end machines and foldable IOLs.

Duration -1.5 years In this 1.5 years, you will get to see all types of cases in pediatric, strabismus and neuro- ophthalmology. OP numbers are very high so will be hectic also. You will start seeing individual OP from second or 3rd month.  OT starts after 3 months. You will get enough hands on for strabismus cases, especially for recti muscles. Oblique muscle surgeries depends on your skill. For SICS- will have to share camp cases with PGs.  If you have enough exposure in SICS, you can get Phaco also but the numbers will be less. No training in pediatric cataract cases. Academics is good as madam HOD is interested in conferences and classes. General Casualty duties and camp duties will be there once or twice a month. Any pediatric injury case will have to be attended by the fellow at night also. So will have to pick a stay near the hospital. The working atmosphere is good. If you have real interest in strabismus and pediatric ophthal, Comtrust is a really good option.

Phaco-ref at ASG provides a decent fellowship of two years with good working environment. Fellows here get paid about 70k a month. Fellows get to operate about 300 phacos and about 50+ independent LASIKs. Along with other opd procedures and OT procedures like lid repair, evisceration, yag PI etc  I for one (fellow finishing in 2025) have done 253 phacos and 30 eyes for LASIK, 7 eyes for ICL, over 300 pterygiums, 50 C3Rs, 25 intravitreal injections including Ozurdex.

Duration can be customized acc to requirement. Charges 30,000 per month. Accommodation not provided (but they can help you with finding one). You are given intravit injections and lasers on daily basis (2-3 lasers, 2-3 injections usually) Retina op is very heavy (200+ pts every day) so it's busy. Daily Routine- • Report to retina op at 10 am • Tag along with Dr Nipun as he sees patients. You have to do IO for every case, plus you can also review OCT and FFA. Dr Nipun discusses every case with you, explaining findings and treatment plans. • Also get to see a lot of Uveitis cases as well. • Morning op runs from 10-2 pm.  • Post lunch from 3-6 pm is OT.. you do injections, lasers etc. Once free after your procedures, you can also visit their cataract OT and observe phacos and other cases being operated there. If you're experienced or have completed a prior fellowship, you may even be allotted independent cases of pterygiums or DCR. Very knowledgeable and supportive staff. Highly recommended fellowship to go for if you want to build skills in retinal lasers and intravit injections. Also one reviewer recommends that if you are a total beginner at lasers, then you take the fellowship for minimum 2 months so you can master it. Just one month might be inadequate to become pro at retinal lasers.

Duration- 1 year 6 months. OT access and surgeries (SICS) starts at around 3rd month. You share OT with external trainees who have come for paid training (SICS/Phaco) and with DNBs. 3 OTs a week, usually 1 case is allotted per trainee. More cases allotted per OT towards the end of your tenure. Phaco training is subject to respective consultant, may get Phaco around last 1-2 months. Clinical exposure is decent. Work environment is very good, not toxic at all. It’s not that hectic as well. PG seminars every alternate day.  Dedicated consultants will teach you when you're posted under them.  No refractive training. Around 3 evening duties a month.  Around 3-4 peripheral vision centre visits a month (8am to 5pm). No bond.

- Duration of fellowship= 18 months - Selection is by interview  Twice in a year, January and July. - 1 fellow taken per session. - Phaco training included, glaucoma fellows share cataract OT with other fellows.  - Phaco will be given in the last 6 months. You will get to operate 1-2 phaco cases on your OT day. - Trab will start as early as you can master SICS. You will learn phaco trab also. In the starting, senior fellows will teach you all basic steps. Senior consultants also train you surgically. - Good clinical exposure, depending on your interest, you will get an opportunity to learn every clinical case. - Work environ hectic but not toxic. - For glaucoma, you get countless lasers and PIs. - You are given advanced cataracts also to operate... at the end of your session, you will do small pupil, CTR, PXF, brown mature cataract, ant vit and many more things - No hands-on for MIGS GATT.... you get hands-on and opportunities to do them independently. - No peripheral postings. Only camps will be there and that also, once or twice in a month, depending on the no. of current students. - Academics- regular classes by senior consultant, everyday 8AM class.

The fellowship is called Comprehensive Ophthalmology but the only surgeries you are given is cataract. Duration= 2 yrs Selection is by interview. Stipend is 60k for first 3 months, 80k for next 9 months. They will increase it in 2nd year. For the first 3 months, fellows are kept in observation (rotation in general ophthal opd, speciality opd and tele-ophthalmology). Simultaneously, there will be wet lab postings (on simulator), suture practice. OT will start after 3 months of joining.  Training OT is 2 days a week. 1 fellow/ week is taken for Training OT. Even though 4 fellows join AJEH on the same date, they don't start OT posting together. 1st person gets OT after 3 months 2nd person, after 3 month 1 week. 3rd person, after 3 month 2 weeks. 4th person, after 3 month 3 weeks. Basically, for the 4th person OT will start after 4 months from date of joining. First they will start with ECCE 30 cases, followed by SICS. According to the fellows, during the first year of fellowship you will get 100- 200 SICS. By the end of 18 months, you will have done 1500- 2000 cases, even more. Phaco will start after 18 months. You get at least 130 cases. First 100 phaco cases - you do sclero-corneal tunnel with rigid IOL. Next 30 phaco cases- you do clear corneal incision with foldable IOL. May get advanced cataracts (hard cataracts, PXF, small pupil etc), but chances are less. Opd timing - 9am to 5pm. There are evening camp duties (2hrs) on alternate days for first year fellows. Camp duty is on rotation till 11 pm. "Camp" is conducted in hospital premises itself- camp patients are brought from peripheral vision center. Team of optometrists do preliminary workup and 1-2 fellows are posted till 11 pm. Compensatory offs are given only if you do camp duty on Sunday. No night duties.

1.5 yrs long. Fellowship is under guidance of Dr Jitendra Jethani sir. Hospital is mainly focused on diagnosing and treating myopic and squint disorders.  Good place- you get exposure to wide range of paed strabismus cases- weekdays you sit with sir and manage op. Starts 10 am, goes till 2 pm then lunch break and then op picks up again from 4-7 pm. Wednesdays you will be sent to manage op at one of their charitable branches where squint screening is done- you post pts for squint sx. Camp squints (depending on no of cases) are operated on Sundays  OT training starts early, fellows are given small steps at first and then guided to do full surgeries.. after 6-7 months, you will be operating squints independently. You also do ROP screenings- but lasers when needed are done by sir. Other paed procedures like NLD probing or paed ocular injuries are not treated here- this program focuses primarily on myopia control and squints. Work environ is very good, not toxic, not very hectic either. Jitendra sir is a very good teacher, other consultants are also approachable. Accommodation not provided, has to be self- arranged. No night calls/ emergency duties.

It's 1.5 years (18 months) duration, 1 fellow taken per session. No adult cataracts given to operate for anyone in any department except General Ophthal (including consultants). Surgical hands-on starts by month 5-6 (cases are less in March and April due to children's exams) Clinical exposure is very good. You also get to evaluate cases and measure squints yourself. Dept- no toxicity. Consultants are approachable.  Continuous chutti ka thoda sa problem hai (translation- they don't give long leaves) because Sundays and public holidays are anyway off. It is not hectic. Working hours are 7.5- 8 hours a day max, with Sundays and public holidays off. Consultants train you. Both junior and senior consultants. I got good number of muscles, around 35+. Superior oblique I didn't get as no case came by the time I was competent enough to do one. It depends on how many cases come during your duration.  Got roughly 10 paediatric cataracts including cases with posterior capsulorrhexis and ant vitrectomy. This also depends on how many cases come during your time. Also got to do 4 intravitreals in ROP babies and a lot of ROP lasers. Haven't counted lasers, since I did many ROP lasers. Camp duties- very less. Night calls 0. Specialty fellows don't do calls as of now (2025).

No short term phaco trainings here. Only long term :- 18 months 2 fellows taken per session. Every alternate day OPD and OT. OPD :- See pts and refer them for cataract and if needed, to other specialties. Major emphasis on cataract as there are other specialty fellows who look into their respective specialty.  OPD timings:- 8:30 - 3:30 Duties of fellow:- Morning 7-7:30, all fellows reach. Some see post op pts while others do remaining paperwork. Then OPD/OT. After 3:30, depending upon camp distance, pts come and fellows do work up.  20-30 pts on average come in camp. Camps are all days expect Saturday.  Average daily OT list is 50 pts. For the first 3 months, the fellow has to do camp work up everyday. Then after 3 months, he/she has to do camp work only on their call days. Call duty frequency is every 3 days.  For the first 6 months, SICS are given. Roughly 2 cases per OT.  So 25-30 cases in a month. Depending upon progress and learning curve, phacos are started after 6 months.  All seniors are great and patient teachers. Will even help you in wet lab for refining and correcting your mistakes.  Roughly you will get 100 phacos by the end of fellowship. Salary :- 22k per month No accommodation provided. Have to find your own. Timings for fellow:- 7-7:30 am up till when camp work up gets done. Usually by 10 pm as lots of paperwork.  For the first 3 months, it's hectic. Plus on call days, you have to stay in hospital. Other days, you are  free by 5-5.30 pm.

I went there for a 3 week hands-on phaco training which included 15 cases. I extended it for another week for 5 extra cases at extra cost. One case is given each day but they are flexible and cases can be adjusted if required.  In the morning, you get to observe all the paying phaco and discuss or enquire any questions you might have. You can also observe other surgeries if you are free. Hands-on is done after the paying list is completed, usually in the afternoon. After that, you are free.  The consultants are helpful and approachable. Different consultants teach you on different days. So you get to observe and learn different techniques. They are patient and guide you. They do not take over the case unless you’ve messed up real bad. If you’re stuck during a step, they tell you how to do it and let you proceed.  Phacos are taught through a corneal incision with a foldable IOL. Wet lab is also there to practice in your free time.  Overall it has been a great experience and they make sure that you learn phaco by the time you’re done. They charge 5500 + 18% GST per  extra case. Fee (as of 2025) was 1,05,000 + 18% GST for 3 weeks, 15 cases. They do provide single accommodation for 2500 per night.