Profiles in Giving

Kristin Pisacano DC '89, DMS '94: Humanism in Medicine

"I give to all of my schools; it's just something I've always done," says opthalmologist Dr. Kristin Pisacano. However, she's quick to point out that Dartmouth holds a special place in her heart: "I'm a Dartmouth College graduate as well, so I was in Hanover for eight years. That's a long time and I loved it."

Because of her love for Dartmouth, Pisacano supports both the College and the Medical School.

After earning her M.D. in 1994, Dr. Pisacano completed her residency in ophthalmology at Manhattan Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital. Next came a fellowship in refractive surgery in Mendoza, Argentina with Dr. Roberto Zaldivar, one of the world's leading refractive surgeons.

Today, Dr. Pisacano is an attending surgeon at Montefiore Medical Center, Manhattan Eye, Ear and Throat Hospital, and the Ambulatory Surgery Center of Greater New York. She also practices ophthalmology at the New York Eye Surgery Center with her father Dr. Anthony Pisacano, a prominent opthalmologist who co-founded the Center in 1971. She specializes in cataract surgery, glaucoma surgery, and refractive surgery.

During her time as a medical student at DMS, Pisacano considered a career as a pediatrician, although becoming an opthalmologist and following in her father's footsteps was always in the back of her mind. "One of my favorite teachers was Dr. John Modlin-he was a great teacher and the kind of doctor I wanted to be," she recalls.

As an opthalmologist, Kristin Pisacano treats children as well as adults, with the goal of improving their vision and hopefully, their lives. Most of her patients are seniors, though, an age group she has come to enjoy working with immensely. "It's amazing what you learn talking to an 80-year-old-hearing about their life experiences is fascinating," she notes.

When she considers all she learned at DMS, it's learning the role that humanism plays in practicing medicine that she values the most. As she says, "Humanism is the most important thing I took away from medical school-to care for the whole patient, not just their disease. To empathize with my patients and listen to them." (348)

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