GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM Director is part
MD, part CEOChristopher Tortora has the
equivalent of two full-time positionsAs medical director of Hawaiian Eye Center, I wear two hats. I must be the medical professional, caring for patients and performing surgery; and I must act as CEO, keeping the statewide company running smoothly.
The two roles go hand-in-hand, in a sense. As physician, my concern is providing the patient with the highest quality care. As CEO, my goal is to provide that high quality in all offices, with all doctors and in all cases.
The rewards of my job are twofold. As a physician, I am thrilled to be able to restore sight. One of the most rewarding experiences you can imagine is to have a grateful patient thanking you for returning the color to their world, or the brightness to their life. As CEO of Hawaiian Eye Center, it is not only I who help people, but because of my work, six doctors in six offices throughout the state do likewise. I hear again and again that patients arrive at our offices nervous and apprehensive, and leave feeling relaxed and confident.
Continually striving to be the best has its price. Just being a physician is a full time job. To be qualified for the job involved years of training, first in medicine, then in ophthalmology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, followed by glaucoma subspecialty training at Harvard University's Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. With each year of my training, despite the difficult work and long hours, I became increasingly convinced I had chosen the right field. Being able to preserve and often restore something as precious as sight is truly a blessing.
But add to the role of the physician the responsibilities of running a modest sized company, and you can imagine the time commitment involved.
An understanding family, and the rewards I reap in the satisfaction of knowing what we do makes a difference in dozens of lives a day makes it all worthwhile.
Even when things get more hectic than I'd like, I never falter in my conviction that I've chosen the right path. One big smile with a new-found twinkle in the eye makes it all worthwhile.
Hawaii At Work features tells what people do for a living in their own words. Send submissions to: business@starbulletin.com
