Hi, I’m Terry Kim, professor of ophthalmology here at
Duke University School of Medicine and division chief for cornea and
refractive surgery. I was a medical student here at Duke and
my father was an OBGYN. And he encouraged me to look
into ophthalmology because I think he saw some traits in myself. I like to tinker with toys,
I like to work with small things, and also I was somewhat of
a perfectionist I guess. And so that’s how I got involved when
I started doing some research here as a medical student in
the ophthalmology department. I think one of the things that is so important in today’s world of
patient care is bedside manner and I do try to make that point
to relate to the patients. Many of us have eye
conditions that can be so personally traumatic, and I think one
of the jobs of the physicians is to put the patient at ease cuz there are times
you may not be able to help that patient. But even providing that comfort and
offering alternatives can go a long way in terms of helping
that patient in one way or for another. The field of ophthalmology is so
rewarding. It’s not until you lose your vision that
you really appreciate the value of sight and the importance of your eyes. So, one of the most rewarding parts
of my job is seeing patients and giving them vision back, whether they’re
trying to get out of their glasses or contacts, or whether they have
a blinding corneal disease, or if they have a really dense cataract. All of those patients have the same
thing in common in terms of when they get their vision back, it is such
a special and rewarding experience, and to be apart of that is really a privilege.