I am pleased to announce that Dr. James Kempton has been named Vice Chair for Veteran Affairs in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences.
As you know, Dr. Kempton is the Director of Eye Care Services for VA Connecticut. This important resource delivers the full spectrum of eye care to countless veterans in Connecticut and is an important and integral piece of our residency training program, providing a robust surgical experience for our trainees. Importantly, Dr. Kempton has been involved in several important leadership initiatives within our department, where he serves as Associate Director of the Yale-New Haven Hospital Residency Ophthalmology Program as well as the Associate Director of the Vitreoretinal Fellowship Program.
Dr. Kempton is one of the few physicians nationwide who is double board certified in Internal Medicine and Ophthalmology. He joined the Yale University School of Medicine in July of 2009 as an Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology specializing in Vitreoretinal Diseases and Retinal Surgery. He received his undergraduate degree with Honors at The Ohio State University where he stayed and completed medical school in 1997. He did his Internship in a Combined Internal Medicine/Pediatrics Program at the Medical College of Virginia in Richmond. He completed his residency in the Yale University Internal Medicine Primary Care Program, and then served as a Chief Resident in Internal Medicine at the Hospital of Saint Raphael before working as a hospitalist for two years in Connecticut. Dr. Kempton then completed a second residency in Ophthalmology at Yale University. In his senior year, he served as the first full-time Chief Resident in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science. At the completion of the three-year program, he was recognized and honored by the faculty with the Marvin L. Sears Award for Clinical Excellence. Dr. Kempton remained at the Yale Eye Center where he completed a two-year fellowship in Vitreoretinal Surgery.
Dr. Kempton has an interest in diabetic retinopathy, macular degeneration, retinal detachments, macular holes, and vitreoretinal diseases associated with trauma. His research interests include a systems approach in the delivery of medical education. Please join me in congratulating Dr. Kempton for leading the VA in Ophthalmology, and in his expanded role within our growing department.
About Yale University School of Medicine:
The school was established in 1810 as the Medical Institution of Yale College. The current name, Yale School of Medicine, was adopted in 1918.
Milton C. Winternitz, who served as dean from 1920 to 1935, was the architect of the school’s unique educational philosophy, the Yale system of medical education, which emphasizes critical thinking in a nongraded, noncompetitive environment and requires students to write a thesis based on original research.
Harvey Cushing, widely regarded as the father of American neurosurgery and a seminal figure in American medicine, joined the faculty late in his career and donated his extensive collection of books to Yale. The medical school library, which bears his name, is regarded as one of the great medical historical libraries of the world.
YSM’s historical contributions to medicine include the first X-ray performed in the United States, the first successful use of penicillin in America, the first use of cancer chemotherapy, and the introduction of fetal heart monitoring, natural childbirth and newborn rooming-in. Yale doctors designed the first artificial heart pump and the first insulin infusion pump for diabetes, and it was here that the means of transmission of the polio virus was established, paving the way for the Salk vaccine. Lyme disease was identified by two Yale physicians in 1975.
More recent milestones include the first transgenic mouse, discovery of the mechanism of protein folding, which is key to understanding neurodegenerative diseases, and discovery of the mechanism of innate immunity, with major implications for infectious disease and cancer. Additional highlights include the first reliable method for early detection of autism and identification of genes associated with hypertension, macular degeneration, dyslexia, and Tourette’s syndrome, among many others.
About James Kempton, MD:
Dr. James E. Kempton joined the Yale University School of Medicine in July of 2009 as an Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology specializing in Vitreo-Retinal Diseases and Retina Surgery. He received his undergraduate degree with Honors at The Ohio State University where he stayed and completed his medical school in 1997. He did his Internship in a Combined Internal Medicine/Pediatrics Program at the Medical College of Virginia in Richmond. He completed his first residency in the Yale University Internal Medicine Primary Care Program. Dr. Kempton then completed a Chief Residency in Internal Medicine at the Hospital of Saint Raphael before working as a hospitalist for two years in Connecticut.
Dr. Kempton returned for a second residency in Ophthalmology at Yale University. In his senior year, he served as the first full-time Chief Resident in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science. At the completion of the three year program, he was recognized and honored by the faculty with the Marvin L. Sears Award for Clinical Excellence. Dr. Kempton remained at the Yale Eye Center where he completed a two-year fellowship in Vitreo-Retinal Diseases and Retinal Surgery. Dr. Kempton is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Ophthalmology. He is the current Director of Eye Care Services at the West Haven Veterans Administration in addition to his appointment at Yale University. He will also serve as the Associate Program Director of the Ophthalmology Residency Program assisting Dr. Chow and the Associate Vitreo-Retinal Fellowship Director assisting Dr. Stoessel in continuing the high level of excellence in education.
Dr. Kempton offers the full range of laser and vitreo-retinal surgery. He has an interest in diabetic retinopathy, macular degeneration, retinal detachments, macular holes, and vitreo-retinal diseases associated with trauma. His research interests include vitreo-retinal diseases and surgery as well as the systems approaches in the delivery of medical education. Dr. Kempton is available for consultation and referrals regarding all disorders involving the retina and vitreous or related conditions.
Source:
News: https://medicine.yale.edu/news-article/james-kempton-md-named-vice-chair-for-veteran-affairs-in-the-department-of-ophthalmology-and-visual-science/
Doctor: https://medicine.yale.edu/profile/james-kempton/
School: https://medicine.yale.edu/about/