ASCRS NEWS
Contact
information
Clinch: tclinch@edow.com
by Liz Hillman
EyeWorld Editorial Co-Director
he did today, or if he has been at his weekend
house, his commute is a 50-mile drive back to
the city.
"It's one of two extremes," he says.
Each clinic day is different in terms of the
number of patients he'll see. In August, Con-
gress is on recess, so it's a quieter time when
lawmakers, lobbyists, and other groups that
populate much of the D.C. area head out of
town. What's more, it's a Tuesday, the day be-
fore Dr. Clinch starts to operate. He performs
cataract surgery on Wednesdays and LASIK on
Thursday afternoons. This reduced the number
of early postop patients that he would evaluate
that day.
"On a day like today, I'll usually see some-
where between 40 to 45 patients, and it will be
allocated into cataract consults, LASIK con-
I
n morning haze characteristic of Washing-
ton, D.C., in August, Thomas Clinch, MD,
made five stops on Metro's red line to his
practice's downtown location.
A short walk from the White House
is one of three offices held by the Eye
Doctors of Washington, where Dr. Clinch
has practiced for 20 years. At 7:45 a.m., staff
at the practice were already getting situated:
receptionists at their desk, techs prepping the
machines and exam rooms. Dr. Clinch arrives
describing a not-so-ideal sleep the night before.
Still, within minutes he's ready to greet patients
with a handshake and a smile.
In an exam room that smells of isopropyl
alcohol evaporating from equipment wiped
moments before, Dr. Clinch describes his clinic
routine. He either takes the subway to work, as
A day in the life of
Thomas Clinch, MD
Thomas Clinch, MD,
has been an ASCRS
member since 1988
Thomas Clinch, MD
Source: EyeWorld
22 | EYEWORLD | NOVEMBER 2019
