In 2000, when Irene C. Kuo was recruited to become the medical director of Wilmer Eye Institute, Johns Hopkins Medicine’s White Marsh satellite location, the clinic was nothing but cinder blocks and wiring. Not only did Kuo help open the clinic that summer, but more than two decades later, Kuo — and the clinic — are thriving.

While she may be a cornea specialist, LASIK surgeon, and the infectious disease chief at Wilmer, Kuo considers herself first and foremost to be a well-rounded ophthalmologist, never hesitating to see patients who may need treatment for inflammation of the eye, glaucoma or macular degeneration.

For Kuo, ophthalmology combines the best of internal medicine and surgery — she describes cataract surgery as “beautiful, intricate and clean” — while allowing her to provide continuity of care for her patients, sometimes over many years. “You can fix people with surgery and medications, and you are also able to develop long-term relationships and gain their trust,” she says.

Outside the clinic, Kuo has had many accomplishments in research, notably pioneering the institute’s red eye policy, which established PCR-based diagnostic testing to help prevent epidemic spread of eye infections caused by adenovirus. This policy has gained interest at other medical centers. As a researcher, Kuo’s recent papers focused on comparing types of corneal cross-linking for keratoconus. Another, in peer review, examines treatments versus placebo for epidemic keratoconjunctivitis caused by adenovirus. She has also conducted reviews of lens implants for cataract surgery in eyes with uveitis and of treatments for pterygium, inflammatory growths that extend onto the clear cornea and cause discomfort, blurred vision and unwanted appearance. Another recently accepted paper surveyed state policies on conjunctivitis in schools and questioned the requirement of antibiotic use for students to return to school.

In addition, Kuo sits on the editorial board of two ophthalmology journals, is president-elect of the Ocular Microbiology and Immunology Group, an international group of ophthalmologists and microbiology researchers, and is an oral examiner for the American Board of Ophthalmology, which certifies newly graduated ophthalmologists to practice safely.

As medical director at White Marsh, Kuo works hard to ensure the satellite location reflects her values. Of those, providing personalized patient care is of foremost importance. Growing up, Kuo’s physician uncles and grandfather made a big impression on her as far as how to be kind to patients, listen to them and be responsive to their needs. At Wilmer, she wants to make sure she knows patients beyond just their eyes, so they don’t feel like a number. “I think White Marsh patients are very kind,” she says. “They appreciate what Wilmer at White Marsh offers and they love having all their care in one Johns Hopkins building.”

Kuo says she loves what she has created at White Marsh and the relationships she has established over the years with patients, staff members and colleagues at Wilmer. “Wilmer at White Marsh predates my husband and children, so I guess it is my first ‘child,’” she says. “It has been a source of pride and happiness.

Kuo believes it’s important to value the employees who work alongside her to care for patients. Kristy Davidson, an assistant administrator at Wilmer who has overseen the institute’s northern satellite clinics for the last five years, has seen that firsthand. She says Kuo recognizes the hard work done at the White Marsh clinic and recognizes and values the people who help her be the best doctor she can be. “She lives and breathes Wilmer,” Davidson says. “She is very passionate about what she does on every level, about research, patient care and the clinic and staff.”