DR . WHO Jeremy Clark , MD by KATHRYN VANCE
Many physicians learn of their passion for their specialty during medical school during rotations . For Dr . Jeremy Clark , that realization came much earlier , as a young teenager .
“ At 13 I had a bad trampoline accident at my uncle ’ s house and lost my balance and had an orbital blowout fracture . I had double vision , the whole nine .” Growing up in a small town in Kentucky in the heart of Appalachia , he had to be taken to an oculoplastic specialist in Lexington for surgery . “ Even at that age , I was taken aback at how specialized it was and how I had to travel to find someone who could take care of that kind of situation . Not being able to do simple tasks that you want to do kind of made me appreciate the gift of sight a lot more and not take it for granted .”
Medicine was also in his blood – his father was a CRNA , and his mother was an RN . The two factors together made a future in health care seem natural for him .
By the time he was in high school , he was a skilled tennis player and as one of the top juniors in the state , was recruited pretty heavily by some D1 programs . After an impressive visit , he was sold on the University of Louisville .
“ When I came down to visit , the coach took me to a practice with Rick Pitino and the basketball team . I knew if the coach would go out of his way to do that , he would really try to take care of me ,” he laughed . “ I was immediately a Louisville Cardinal even though
most of my family has ties to Wildcat country .”
In the next four years as a pre-med student athlete , he felt the world open up to him , while still holding to his hometown roots . “ The team was very international . I was exposed to a small subset of culture growing up . It was a wonderful culture and Eastern Kentucky taught me so much about my character like compassion , integrity , hard work , how to be humble and thankful . But in college is where I learned to enjoy new experiences and be mindful of other cultures , to learn and appreciate other cultures and the diversity that other cultures bring with them .”
As a tennis Cardinal , he also discovered a love for leadership , one that is still strong today . As a captain for three years , he learned about leading by example , how to handle different personalities , and the importance of being the hardest worker on the team .
Being captain didn ’ t just lead to friendships and leadership skills , though . One day , the women ’ s tennis coach was touring a recruit from Aruba around and wanted to introduce her to the men ’ s team captain .
“ I was a junior in pre-med curriculum , so I had a pretty busy schedule . I ’ m running in late from class and I ’ ve got my shoes in my hand so I can get to the court faster and immediately , I was like , ‘ Whoa this girl is beautiful .’ So I started my own recruiting campaign for her at that moment and thankfully she did end up choosing Louisville . By month two of being on campus , I was asking Stephania to go on a date with me ,” he said . “ I always tell her that
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