Spotlight on Rashmi Mathew
On the occasion of her Inaugural Lecture on 19 March 2025, we spoke to Associate Professor Rashmi Mathew.
Tell us a bit about your work
I feel incredibly privileged in what I do. Like many of us, I came into medicine wanting to make a difference. Through education, I feel that I can make a difference on a large scale. Each year I oversee the education of over 800 undergraduate and postgraduate healthcare professionals – which is no mean feat! What I’m passionate about is that we inspire the brightest and the best into ophthalmology and some of those that I have taught as medical students are now ophthalmic consultants. In the last 5 years, I have diversified my education portfolio to include leadership teaching and not just clinical education, as I believe strong leadership is fundamental to providing good patient care and we need to give clinicians the toolkit to do this.
What inspires your work?
I am hugely inspired by my students, many of them make huge sacrifices in their quest to learn and be better clinicians. So, I feel motivated as an educator to ensure they have the best possible experience. I run a class on health inequalities, and it is such an enriching experience hearing from our students about healthcare systems from all over the world and seeing how they construct knowledge and understanding of this subject together.
I’m also very grateful to the many students who took the time to write personally to me and to give me feedback. One student wrote to me to tell me that they could feel how much I cared about their learning despite the challenges of the online delivery of the module and another wrote to me saying that mine was the first class that they had actively participated in, after being on the course for an entire term.
These are all beautiful moments of connection, that drive me to do better.
What has been your most memorable career moment so far?
I have had so many, one of the things I enjoy is contemporising learning and making it creative. I wanted to see if learning about landmark glaucoma studies could be made more accessible for students, so we turned it into a creative exercise and asked students to create infographics on these glaucoma trials and present them in class. The work they produced was of such a high standard, that I approached the Eye Journal to publish the work. Every student was able to publish their infographic and other groups have now developed infographics for their specialities. It was just amazing to see a simple idea, snowball. At the time of writing this piece, the glaucoma trials infographics were collectively accessed over 26,000 times.
What do you like to do outside of work?
I love to spend time outdoors with nature, both by myself and with my family. It helps me rejuvenate and some of my best thinking is often done on my walks.
What book is currently on your bedside?
Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol Dweck. This is a great read, as it is a reminder that our capabilities are not finite and with a growth mindset, we are constantly evolving, learning from experiences and mistakes and on a journey of self-actualisation. It is applicable on many levels from parenting to myself as an individual and the mentorship I give to others.
Professor Rashmi Mathew delivered her Inaugural Lecture is on 19 March 2025.
Watch Professor Mathew's Inaugural lecture