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The Kellogg Eye Center Brings Pediatric Ophthalmology to Oakland County
Communities and health systems across the U.S. are grappling with a shortage of physicians practicing in pediatric specialties, including pediatric ophthalmology. With fewer specialists to go around, families must wait longer and travel farther for appointments.
In 2022, a partnership between Trinity Health Michigan and University of Michigan Health’s Mott Children’s Hospital was formed to address the problem in Southeast Michigan. The program paved the way for Mott pediatric specialists to provide care at Trinity Health’s location in the northern Oakland County community of Pontiac.
Beginning with cardiology, the available pediatric specialties expanded to include urology, orthopedics and surgery. In May 2024, Kellogg added pediatric ophthalmology to the list.
“With a new clinical ‘home’ in Pontiac, we’re able to offer a full range of medical and surgical care to infants and children in the area with eye diseases, injuries and vision problems,” says the clinic’s medical director, Christopher Gappy, M.D. When more complex care is needed, the team can facilitate referrals to Kellogg.
For Kathleen St. Germaine, who lives in nearby Oxford, the new location means not only convenience, but peace of mind. Diagnosed as a child with a congenital glaucoma, St. Germaine has received surgical care and medical management at Kellogg ever since. She gave birth to her first child, daughter Riley, in Spring 2024.
“One of my first concerns was Riley’s risk of developing glaucoma,” she says. “My disease was caught early, so I was anxious to begin having her monitored right away.”
Riley made her first trip to the Pontiac clinic at just two weeks old. Though her exams to date have been normal, Dr. Gappy suggested that both mom and daughter undergo genetic testing at the Multidisciplinary Ophthalmic Genetics Clinic at Kellogg. “If they find a shared genetic mutation linked to glaucoma, that could give us an important head start to assess her risk.”
“I’ve been a patient for more than 20 years, and I love and trust my Kellogg doctors,” Kathleen says. “It’s wonderful to know Riley can get the same excellent care, much closer to home.”
