Best Practices: Christopher Coad
The founder of Chelsea Eye Ophthalmology on innovations in the field, the emotional impact of his work, and his international community health efforts with Orbis.
Growing up around animals, Dr. Christopher Coad always believed he would become a veterinarian. But by the time he entered college, he realized that his passion for medical research and taking care of people was even greater than his love of caring for animals. As the founder of Chelsea Eye Ophthalmology, Dr. Coad specializes in the most advanced vision correction procedures that enable him and his team to drastically improve the quality of life of his patients.
Read on to learn how he got his start in ophthalmology, how technology has advanced the field, and his work on the only international flying eye institute, Orbis.
How did you get started in medicine and what inspired you to choose your specialty?
As one of seven kids, I grew up in a big family. We lived on a city farm in Southern California with lots of animals around — and I loved taking care of them. Up until I reached high school, I thought I would become a veterinarian. Then, at some point during my high school or college experience, I realized that I liked working with people even more.
I did a lot of medical research in college, including research on obesity, hearing, and neuroscience, and my pursuit of medical knowledge eventually led me to medical school. In medical school, I concentrated on neuroscience and soon became very interested in ophthalmology.
To this day, I remain passionate about ophthalmology. It’s a wonderful field because we get to take care of the whole body. In a way, the eyes are an entryway to the rest of the body, and we can tell a lot about a person’s health through the health of their eyes. And of course — people love their eyes and their vision, which makes it easier to motivate them to take care of it. At Chelsea Eye Ophthalmology, we’re always on the forefront of medical technology, whether by working with lasers, cutting-edge implants, or other medically enhancing procedures for vision correction. It’s an exciting and rewarding field that I am continually grateful to work in.
How has ophthalmology changed since you started practicing? What innovations are you especially excited about?
I finished medical school in 1983, after which I moved to New York to complete my internship and then residency here in New York. By the time I finished my residency, it was 1988, and a lot has changed since then.
When I first started training, cataract surgery was essentially an inpatient procedure. People had to remain in the hospital for several days after surgery, which was done under general anesthesia. Today, it’s an outpatient procedure. We use topical anesthesia, light sedation, no patch, no-stitch lasers, and wonderful new implants.
Not to mention — laser vision correction didn’t even exist when I started training. That’s a procedure that has really bloomed over the last 20 to 30 years.
There has been a lot of innovation in technique and technology in the field over the last few decades, which has yielded great outcomes. And they continue to improve today.
The biggest change that we’re looking forward to is in our work with the over 45 population that needs reading glasses. If we can take care of these people and help them become even less dependent on spectacle aids, I think we’re going to accomplish a lot and make a lot of people very happy.
Speaking of making people happy: You specialize in the most advanced vision-correcting procedures — the likes of which can drastically improve the quality of your patients’ lives. How do you approach the emotional impact of this work?
After doing this for many years, I’ve witnessed how patients experience a “post-surgical high,” especially after cataract or laser vision surgery. After a procedure like this, the body can often release endorphins, serotonin, and other happy chemicals for about a month, and you can see the effect it has on them when they walk around with a big smile on their face. It’s clear that these procedures have a big emotional impact on our patients.
I’ve helped young people who are having kids to be able to wake up and take care of the kids first thing in the morning rather than reaching for glasses, and it’s a real joy. These procedures tremendously improve their quality of life, and it’s a privilege to make it happen.
Can you tell us more about your work as part of the only international flying eye institute, Orbis?
Orbis started in Houston, where I went to medical school at Baylor College of Medicine. The chairman of ophthalmology was the one who helped to get it off the ground, which is how I came to be involved.
It’s an incredible institution that connects physicians around the world who cannot come to the United States for training, either because of financial or bureaucratic barriers, with our educational and surgical resources.
These planes carry classrooms, operating rooms, nursing staff, high-technology instruments, biomedical engineering staff, and of course, teaching physicians. Though from its name many assume that we’re performing operations in the sky, the reality is that these planes transport teaching and surgical resources to the communities and physicians who need them most.
Equally important is their mission of community health. When I was on the plane for just one year, I met the heads of state of virtually every country that we visited. I started in Sofia, Bulgaria before the Iron Curtain came down. It was a stark and powerful contrast to be able to experience how medical partnerships and the idea of sharing medical knowledge enabled us to reach across borders that were otherwise strictly enforced.
Today they’re on their third plane and are continuing to save sight — even during a global pandemic.
Are there any changes you’ve made to patient care during Covid-19 that you plan to carry over?
Covid has reinforced the importance of communication, and specifically remote communication, in our industry. Telehealth has certainly bloomed during this time, which is a gift for both patients and practitioners.
We were using telehealth in our practice long before the pandemic, but since last year we’ve been able to refine this part of our practice in ways that will help us to make it a permanent feature. Using Capsule has also been a blessing — in addition to improving access to medications, we love how our patients feel like they have a more personal relationship with their pharmacists now.
Of course, mask-wearing and sanitizing is also essential, and I have a feeling that mask-wearing will become more commonplace even after Covid because of how much it has helped to reduce respiratory infections — even when we look at how flu numbers from last year significantly decreased.
We also make an effort to comply with distancing regulations in the office and to not keep people waiting. But the two biggest silver linings from the past year are the protection we enable with mask-wearing and our improved telehealth services.
Vital Signs
How do you unwind after a stressful day? I’m lucky to live close enough to work to be able to walk to and from our office every day. A big part of my de-stressing routine is walking home at the end of the day. I don’t listen to music or anything — I just focus on the sights and sounds of the city. I also love great dining and travel. Though options are more limited now, I’m still able to reap the culinary rewards of living in New York. I enjoy fine dining and mom-and-pop shops, and I’m a big fan of Mexican food. One of my favorite places for great Mexican fare is Cosme, right here in Flatiron.
What impact does increased screen time have on our eye health? Is there anything we can do to reduce or counterbalance this impact? I get asked this question a lot, and the reality is that it’s unlikely for increased screen time to damage your eye health. Your body will send signals far before that point that it’s time to take a break. Even still, there are some things you can do to help support your eye health during this time when everyone from students to bankers are spending more time looking at their screens. First, take frequent breaks. This will also help your physical and ergonomic health, too. Secondly, it’s not a bad idea to have an artificial tear by your computer to refresh your eyes. Studies show that we don’t blink our eyes as often as we should when spending extended time in front of the screen, and artificial tears will help remind you to blink. Finally, our eyes get more tired at the end of the day, especially if you’re over 45. So having a magnifier you can use at that time of day if you need to be looking at a screen will help.
Is there a book, TV show, or podcast you’ve been loving lately? I’m a book person and a huge news junkie. I read the news online every night and then catch up with a paper copy the next morning. I get daily deliveries of The New York Times and Financial Times. When it comes to reading, I prefer stories of history, travel, food, and wine over fiction. I just finished a fantastic book called Wine and the White House, which tells the fascinating history of past presidents’ experience of wine.
What’s one healthful habit you’d love to see patients adopt? There are three pieces of advice that I often give to my patients: 1) Wear sunglasses: UV protection is crucial for our eyes, especially when we’re young. 2) Nutrition: I believe that taking multivitamins, particularly when we age, will support our general and eye health. 3) Keep your body and mind healthy. Mindfulness is exceptionally popular right now, but I think it can veer into gimmicky territory. In reality, keeping your mind healthy can be very simple, like doing a little game or crossword every day. I love The New York Times’ mini crossword — it’s quick and satisfying and keeps my brain engaged for a short period of time every day.
You can learn more about Dr. Christoper Coad here.
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