Externship Site
Walter Reed National Military Medical Center at Bethesda
ICO STUDENTS ACCEPTED EACH QUARTER
Essentials
Location
8901 Rockville Pike
City:
State:
Zip:
Bethesda
MD
20889
U.S.A.
Country:
North East U.S.
Region:
Additional Address Information:
Description
PLEASE NOTE: This site does not accept Canadian students.
The eye clinic is located in Walter Reed Hospital, directly across from the NIH and NEI. The ophthalmology department at WRNMMC specializes in all sub-specialties including retina, pediatrics, cornea, glaucoma and oculoplastics. It also has an active residency program.
Number of Student Encounters
Average number of patients per week per student:
How many are full exams?
How many are special testing?
How many are observation only?
Relative Percentage of Student Encounters
65
10
15
10
0
% = Routine Refractive
% = Contact Lens
% = Ocular Disease
% = Pediatric / Binocular Vision
% = Low Vision
Facility Details
Required equipment:
Contact for externship liason:
Geeta Girdher, OD
geeta.girdher.civ@mail.mil
301-319-7001 option 6
Arrival procedure for students:
We will contact the student by email. Packet is sent 3 months prior to start. Students are now required to obtain 2 fingerprint cards at their local police station. They will need to mail the completed fingerprint cards, copy of driver’s license, proof of US citizenship (copy of US passport or birth certificate) and completed 306 form (which will be sent to student via email) to the extern director 30 days prior to their start date.
Immunizations: required – Varicella (need the date of the vaccine); MMR (need the date of the vaccine); and TB status - either the 2 step PPD or quantiferon within 1 year ( or chest x-ray if positive).
US citizens and dual citizens are allowed (we may require an adjudicated clearance taking into consideration the foreign country). We no longer require relinquishments of foreign passports or other foreign citizenship documents.
Attending Staff - Full Time:
Geeta Girdher, OD (Primary Care, Contact Lens, Ocular Disease)
Ina Lee-Wharton, OD (Primary Care, Contact Lens, Ocular Disease)
Andrew Gregory, OD (Primary Care, Contact Lens, Ocular Disease)
Joseph Rispoli, OD (Primary Care, Contact Lens, Ocular Disease)
Joshua Walek, OD (Primary Care, Contact Lens, Ocular Disease)
Mini Lum, OD (Primary Care, Contact Lens, Ocular Disease)
Attending Staff - Part Time:
Kevin Jackson, OD (Primary Care, Contact Lens, Ocular Disease)
Jacqueline Anderson, OD (Primary Care, Contact Lens, Ocular Disease)
Miscellaneous comments:
Closest parking at Grosveor-Strhmore Metro rail lot 1 stop from campus ( ~$6/day).
Additional Information:
Click here to review onboarding requirements. If you do not see your site listed on Sharepoint, contact your preceptor directly.
Student Review
"I think this site went beyond my expectations for my first rotation. The staff, the patients, and the hospital itself made it an awesome place for learning. I looked forward to waking up early and going to work because of the environment of the optometry department. When I was confused or unsure about a diagnosis the attending doctors were not condescending but open to discussion. They use our feedback with evaluations to assign students to attendings with better ratings, which is really nice."
Ocular Disease
Facility specialties:
Facility category:
Ocular Disease (Specialty 2)
Max number of ICO students?
Housing available or a stipend?
Is this a residency program?
Other externship affiliations?
Do you provide formal journal club, case discussion, grand rounds?
Are meals provided?
Is an automobile necessary?
Is there on-site parking?
No
Yes
Yes
No
No
1
No
No
Facility website
Student Clinic Hours
5:00 pm
7:00 am
CLOSED
CLOSED
CLOSED
CLOSED
5:00 pm
7:00 am
5:00 pm
7:00 am
5:00 pm
7:00 am
5:00 pm
7:00 am
M:
T:
W:
T:
F:
S:
S:
-
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Additional Info about Hours:
Student hours vary depending on assigned attending - typically 8 hrs/day with varying start/stop times.
Military
Facility Type