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Meet Your Neighbor: Steven Leibowitz
By Callie Thomas
“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched – they must be felt with the heart.” – Helen Keller
The gift of sight is truly a blessing, and it takes a man with an enormous amount of heart to dedicate himself to allowing others that opportunity. Resident Steven Leibowitz specializes in ophthalmology and has used his skills as an eye surgeon to help his patients. He’s founded The Center for Graves’ Disease at Sunrise Hospital & Medical Center to ensure that all Southern Nevadans have access to first-class medical care without having to leave the state. He has also personally funded medical missions to the Island of St. Lucia in the West Indies to provide much-needed eye care.
To say that Leibowitz is an accomplished eye surgeon would only be the beginning of the story. He attended Columbia, interned at Stanford and did his residency in ophthalmology and his fellowship in ophthalmic plastic and orbital surgery at Harvard. After his training, he joined the faculty at the Jules Stein Eye Institute, at UCLA Medical Center. Although a Las Vegas resident since 1993, he is still on the faculty there and travels to Los Angeles every week doing surgery, teaching and research at the center.
It is evident that Leibowitz is passionate about giving back, as his entire practice has been built on that philosophy. He assists those without access to medical eye treatment by traveling and providing his skills to people in need inside and outside of the country and has been a part of the Founders Group, which provides funds to local charities. Steven Leibowitz talks more about giving back and shares some personal facts that even his friends may not know.
Tell us more about some of the charitable organizations you support.
“I was a member of the Founders Group for years. We sponsored the Las Vegas PGA annual tournament and gave away the entire profits to local charities. While it was very time consuming we gave away $16 million dollars to local charities. Through UCLA I started the ophthalmic plastic, orbital and trauma service at Martin Luther King Hospital for this much underserved medical population, and operated on over 50,000 patients there.”
How did you get started with the missions to St. Lucia?
“I started going there when I was a resident at Harvard. At that time, there were 120,000 people and no ophthalmologists. Today there are 170,000 people and four ophthalmologists. In this area people walk four hours to come to my clinic. Everyone from the Prime Minister to the poorest person comes to the clinic.”
How does your practice here assist those in the community?
“In addition to founding The Center for Graves’ Disease at Sunrise Hospital, I also operate on Saturdays and Sundays so that people can have needed surgery and not miss time at work. During the recession when many of my patients lost their jobs and their insurance, I still kept them as patients. When many ophthalmic plastic surgeons around the country don’t accept any type of insurance, I accept Medicaid and others so that all patients can have needed surgery.”
What are you most passionate about?
“Aside from raising my three sons Jeremy, Brett and Shaine, it would be helping the less fortunate. I grew up in an economically depressed neighborhood in Philadelphia and went to university on full scholarship. I also try to help young people apply to university and attend top colleges.”
So, we hear there may be a surprising job that some may not know you’ve had?
“I was a Ringside Physician for the Nevada State Athletic Commission for 3-1/2 years. My favorite quote is by Mike Tyson, who said that everybody has a plan till they get punched in the mouth.”
If you weren’t an Ophthalmic Plastic Surgeon, what would be your other dream job?
“Commissioner on the Nevada State Athletic Commission.”
