EyeWorld is the official news magazine of the American Society of Cataract & Refractive Surgery.
Issue link: https://digital.eyeworld.org/i/78788
The Physician's PERSPECTIVE August 2012 Smooth continued from page 69 Dr. Mendelblatt in Curacao 2011 with his kids Dorothy, Adam, and Reid and wife, Amy world championship, which I still have not done," he said. "I came close in 2010—I tied for first, but I lost the tie breaker." Dr. Mendelblatt is not the only sailor of renown in the family—his younger brother Mark is a sailor as well. "He started sailing because I was having some success, and over the last 30 years, sailing has brought us very close as a family," he said. "My brother and I have been best friends and also fierce rivals." The two have raced together on the same high school, college, and U.S. world championship team, and even on the same boat many times. "Some- times we race against each other," Dr. Mendelblatt said. "We've diverged a bit in that he's now a little better than I am." The younger Mendelblatt In today''s s economic clima onomic climate... I trust my business to ASOA. www.ASOA.org brother competed in the Olympics in 2004, where his older brother coached him, and he was in the 2012 games as well. Dr. Mendelblatt admitted, however, that he is not the best coach for his brother. "We agree on 99% of everything, and the 1% we disagree on, we fight bitterly over," he said. "I think it's that 1% that makes him an Olympic sailor and one of the best sailors in the country, and it makes me a weekend warrior and an ophthalmologist." Ophthalmic compass For Dr. Mendelblatt, sailing has been not just a favorite sport but a valu- able adjunct to his other avocation, ophthalmology. He sees sailing as having provided some valuable les- sons that have carried over into his career. "It helps you to maintain self control because you're out there some times in rough conditions, and you have to be able to maintain composure and stay in control of yourself, your team, and your equip- ment, sometimes in situations where the forces of nature are strong or Source: David J. Mendelblatt, M.D. even dangerous," he said. "Whether it's your team, your competitors, your patients, or a roomful of surgical assistants, there's no quicker way to show people that you've lost control of yourself and the situation than to start yelling and losing your cool." He finds that sailing also teaches needed flexibility. "The race course is never the same, the winds are never the same, the competitors are never the same, so you have to learn to be flexible and to adapt to chang- ing situations," he said. "Also in sailing your equipment has to work for you, so it teaches you to prepare, make sure that everything is in working order, and maintain your equipment so that it serves you when you need it." Of course, the same is true of surgical equipment. Dr. Mendelblatt sees sailing as a great release for practitioners. "When you go out there on a boat, whether you're racing or taking a pleasure cruise, you can expect that it's going to take all of your atten- tion, and it's a great way to escape the burdens of life, work, and any- thing else that's bothering you," he said. "When you're out there you're going to spend 100% of your effort and attention on what you're doing." Going forward, Dr. Mendelblatt still hopes to one day crown his career with a world championship. Likewise, he would like to see his brother nab an Olympic medal. But perhaps most of all, his thoughts go to his children. "I want to show my kids how wonderful it is to be on the water and to enjoy the water and nature the way that I have," he said. EW Contact information Mendelblatt: 727-822-6763, dmendelb@yahoo.com