A Day in a Doctor’s Life at EyeHub
Have you ever wondered what your doctor’s life is actually like? Curiosity got the better of Carlie Wacker so she spent some time with one of the most inspiring eye surgeons on the Sunshine Coast – the delightful Dr Sonia Moorthy.
The hardest part of my day is figuring out what to wear. Meanwhile, others are performing precision eye surgery on humans as young as 12 months.
Curious, I decided to spend some time with a woman I admire greatly – EyeHub ophthalmologist Dr Sonia Moorthy.
Dr Sonia has a calming and gentle energy which makes it much less intimidating when talking to her as an interviewer and, I’m sure, as a patient.
Being obsessed with fashion, I think her super cute hot pink scrubs also help break the ice.
The reality is that once you get to the point that you need Dr Sonia’s services there is a serious problem with your eyes (or your children’s eyes) and it can be a very scary time. To be welcomed with the warmth and joy that radiates from this inspiring human is pretty special.
EyeHub is celebrating its first, and very successful, year in Buderim and being the passionate and caring professional that she is, she has celebrated by opening a second clinic in Gympie.
“I’ve always felt that I am able to provide more and realise that I solve a huge problem by having satellite sites across the region starting with Gympie,” she says. “The Sunshine Coast is such a big area and I realise there is a real limitation for patients travelling from Gympie and beyond and those areas are not serviced very well.
“I have started with consultations and minor procedures onsite then will build to seeing kids and doing laser procedures. The clinic is in the Queen Street Medical Centre and it’s a pink building,” she excitedly shares.
Clearly pink is Dr Sonia’s spirit colour and I love how her eyes light up when she tells me about the pink building in the heart of Gympie.
Dr Sonia also regularly travels to remote and regional communities to provide much-needed services and is an examiner with the Royal College of Ophthalmology to support tomorrow’s eye specialists.
With all she gives back to community I wanted to find out what a day in the life of this working mum of two is like. Let’s dig into the doc’s daily routine.
“I haven’t always started the day with coffee – it’s new,” says Dr Sonia. “A strong black coffee and squeeze of lime.
“Apparently, it boosts your metabolism so let’s see how that goes – that’s a top tip from my mum,” she jokes.
Jokes aside, if that is what Dr Sonia is doing then so am I.
If she is up at 6am she fits in a HIIT workout and mornings in the Moorthy household run like a well-oiled machine.
She and husband Harry have recently acquired some help with the kids but they still do the school drop off and then the short commute from Maroochydore to Buderim begins.
On rare occasions she will even ride her pink bike (wearing her pink helmet of course) to EyeHub’s medical suite.
Following a check of emails, Dr Sonia prepares for the consultations and surgery scheduled for that day.
Her first meal is at 10am – a little bowl of chia with oat milk and peanut butter.
“I’m very disciplined like that,” she shares.
A regimented routine makes sense for a woman that is so busy and it’s fascinating to hear her talk about her surgeries.
“Yesterday I implanted a stent alongside cataract surgery which is the smallest known implant in the human body,” she says. “I explain to my glaucoma patients that this implant simply improves the plumbing in the eye – gets the fluid running better.”
This implant is so tiny you can only view it on a microscope – can you imagine working with such tiny little eyesight saving things? This lady blows my mind.
“This implant surgery has become quite common among cataract surgeons where you can treat glaucoma this way rather than more established approached such as glaucoma drainage surgery,” she explains. “Now we have MIGS (micro incision glaucoma surgery) which has revolutionised glaucoma surgery.”
Dr Sonia performs operations one day per week and is super pedantic about the preparation before surgery.
“I have a very dedicated routine – I make sure I don’t have coffee or alcohol for at least 24 hours before and I play the piano the night before,” she says.
Is there anything this woman cannot do?
“I still have a routine of prepping with cataract surgery videos and it’s something every eye surgeon should do because it helps to improve the efficiency of your surgeries,” she shares.
The most common surgeries Dr Sonia performs are cataract surgery with new technology lenses; micro incision surgery; and strabismus (squint) surgery.
Consultations, surgery and laser procedures are all in a day’s work for Dr Sonia and her office reflects her cool and calm personality. Jazz music plays softly in the background and the decor includes pink velvet furniture and a pink lamp.
Her daily pace and structure is solid – work is limited to an hour when she gets home to tidy up daily correspondence; she switches off with a pink gin on occasion and when she is not in doctor mode she is hanging out with the family.
You’ll often find them dining at the Alex Heads Surf Club on Friday nights where the kids love to skate at the park or enjoying date night at Market Bistro.
My eyes have been opened to the amazing work of this inspirational human that we are lucky to have in our community. Every time I wear pink, I will think of Dr Sonia and the gift of sight that she has given to her patients.
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