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My goal is to improve patients’ access to care, workforce diversity and health equity. I advocate for my patients and their families, and make sure every family feels cared for and heard.
About A. Merrylees Dersch, MD
Merrylees Dersch, MD, is a pediatric ophthalmologist at Phoenix Children's. Dr. Dersch provides specialized treatments for children with eye conditions including retinoblastoma, strabismus, amblyopia, retinopathy of prematurity and pediatric cataracts.
Dr. Dersch earned her bachelor's degree in biology from the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, and her medical degree from Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine in Rochester, Michigan. She completed her ophthalmology residency training at the University of Arizona Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Science in Tucson, Arizona, and a pediatric ophthalmology and strabismus fellowship at The Hospital for Sick Children and the University of Toronto in Ontario, Canada.
Dr. Dersch is a member of the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus and sits on its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Task Force committee. She has presented research at the annual meetings of The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology and the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus.
In her free time, Dr. Dersch enjoys arts and crafts, traveling and reading.
Medical School / Education
Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine, Rochester, MI
Residency
(Ophthalmology) University of Arizona Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Science, Tucson, AZ
Fellowship
(Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus) University of Toronto / The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Academic Affiliations
Assistant Professor, Department of Child Health, University of Arizona College of Medicine - Phoenix
Professional Affiliations
Member, American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus
Powell J, Truong J, Schmidt B, Dersch AM, Cook R, Nelson A. Improving Community Health and the Volunteer Experience: The Creation of a New Student-run Free Clinic. The Free Clinic Research Collective. 2017 July 15;3:i-iii.
Dersch AM, Lamas-Basulto E, Cortes C. (2018). Complement Factor Properdin (CFP). In: Choi S. (eds) Encyclopedia of Signaling Molecules. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67199-4_101783. Springer, Cham
Koulisis N, Moysidis SN, Govindaraju VK, Dersch AM, Capone A Jr, Covert DJ, Dadgostar H, Dass AB, Drenser KA, Engstrom RE Jr, Faia LJ, Garretson BR, Guerami AH, Hanscom TA, Mahmoud TH, Margherio AR, Oh KT, Randhawa S, Raphaelian PV, Rhoades WR, Ruby AJ, Sanfilippo CJ, Sneed SR, Trese MT, Wolfe JD, Williams GA, Yedavally S, Hassan TS. Clinical Outcomes and Treatment Course of Eyes with Neovascular Age-Related Macular Degeneration Following the Development of Endophthalmitis. Retina. 2021 Jun 1;41(6):1242-1250. doi: 10.1097/IAE.0000000000002998. PMID: 33079789.
Jackman TD, Dersch AM, Taylor TAH, Cortes C. An Integrated Mycobacterium tuberculosis Infection Session: Utilizing an Online Collaborative Platform in a Synchronous Classroom Setting. MedEdPORTAL. 2021;17:11143. Published 2021 Apr 14. doi:10.15766/mep_2374-8265.11143.
Dersch AM, Leske DA, Hatt SR, Holmes JM. Association of preoperative sensory monofixation with surgical failure in adult-onset divergence insufficiency-type esotropia. J AAPOS. 2023 Jun 14:S1091-8531(23)00118-0. doi: 10.1016/j.jaapos.2023.04.012. PMID: 37321344.
View more at PubMed
Phoenix Children's ENT & Ophthalmology
9250 W. Thomas Rd.
Suite 320
Phoenix, AZ 85037
Phoenix Children's Hospital - Thomas Campus
1920 E. Cambridge Ave.
Rosenberg Plaza
Phoenix, AZ 85006
Rating & Reviews
I was very impressed with the time that was spent on me. There was no hurry in trying to find out what was wrong. I was very impressed and very happy with the time spent with me in order to try and deal with the double vision problem. I appreciate it very, very much.
Very professional
Great staff and great visit
My daughter had a simple eye exam under anesthesia. She had minor complications and all your staff were incredible! They managed to squeeze her in same day appt after said procedure. Im thankful for that! Found the issue and was addressed immediately!