Chief of Ophthalmic Trauma
2022-2023
Matt Santos completed his residency in Ophthalmology at WashU this year and I am absolutely delighted that he will be serving as the Chief of Ophthalmic Trauma for the 2022-2023 academic year. I am not alone in this sentiment- our faculty, staff, his colleagues and junior residents have all been overwhelmingly supportive, and for good reason.
As the chief of Ophthalmic Trauma, Dr. Santos will be responsible for managing the care of our sickest patients (both in terms of systemic illness and severity of ophthalmic disease) as the attending physician for the inpatient and emergency room consult service. He’ll be directly supervising residents in the hospital, in clinic and in the operating room in addition to performing administrative tasks and running a didactic lecture series. He’ll also continue to operate independently with a cataract surgery practice.
While this sounds like a lot of hats to wear, Dr. Santos is more than up to the challenge. In my four years working with him he has shown time and again that he has excellent clinical reasoning and surgical skills and an ability to convey this perspective to those around him. He is invested in good outcomes for his patients, and goes the extra mile to come up with creative solutions when faced with unexpected challenges. He has a great attitude, abundant patience and an openness to learning that will serve him, and his patients and trainees, well in the coming year.
He plans to pursue a cornea fellowship after completing his chief year. I’m excited to see where his career takes him, and am very much looking forward to working with him as a colleague in the future!
Jennifer Enright, MD, PhD, outgoing Chief of Ophthalmic Trauma