Love of patients keeps doc going

Published 11:00 am Thursday, November 27, 2014

TIFTON — Staff at Tift Regional Medical Center recently helped one of its own celebrate 70 years of birthdays.

Dr. Larry Moorman, ophthalmologist at Tifton Ophthalmology on Old Ocilla Road, said he started at TRMC in 1978. He’s now the oldest staff member at TRMC. Originally from Douglas, he moved to Tifton to join Dr. Ronald Hughes, a long-time ophthalmologist for Tifton. He then started his own practice, Tifton Ophthalmology, in 1980.

Moorman said he didn’t always want to be an ophthalmologist. When he was in medical school, he got a job in the ophthalmology lab.

“I enjoyed working with it, and from there, that’s the residency that I picked,” he said.

Moorman said the most memorable development in his career was when phacoemulsification for cataract surgery was introduced.

“It’s a new technique that was developed years ago, but it’s so much better for our patients,” he explained. “We’re still today doing the same thing.”

He and his wife, Debra, who’s the office manager and has been there for almost 40 years, said they have staff members who have been with them for 20 years.

“We’re like family,” Moorman said, noting they have a lot of employees, including two other ophthalmologists.

He added, “Of course, I love my patients. It’s one of the reasons I’m still here. When you get older, you start losing your professional people from retirement or whatever. And, it’s a little bit scary. You’ve had a doctor for years and then all of a sudden, you come in and he’s quit and then you don’t know what to do. It’s very difficult. So, it’s one of the reasons that I continue to practice.”

Moorman said he was “sort of” surprised to learn that he’s the oldest staff member for TRMC. He noted some of his fellow long-term employee have started retiring.

Moorman says he’s not planning to retire any time soon.

“I’ll have to retire eventually because everybody stops, but I don’t have any plans to do it…because we’re just friends,” he said, chuckling.

While celebrating his 70th birthday last Thursday, Moorman said it is a significant number.

“When you get 70, then you start thinking about how old your dad was when he died. Things like that start popping into your head, but I still can run this place,” he said, smiling. Debra noted Moorman has no health problems, and his mother was age 95 when she died.

“Some days I feel 70, some days I don’t,” Moorman said, smiling.

He said his birthday celebration last week was “unbelievable.” Generally, a group of them at the office have breakfast at Jojo’s in the morning on weekdays. Moorman said a table was set up with decorations on his birthday.

“It was really nice,” he said. They later went to dinner at Chicago Pizza & Pasta.

When Moorman arrived to work that day, a red carpet leading from the parking lot to the back door of the building was laid out.

“The girls had given all of my patients birthday cards with a $1 in it, so they could participate in my birthday celebration,” he said.

Debra said the patients had fun with it. Moorman ended up with $78. He said for his patients and friends to participate in his birthday celebration was very pleasing. Also, his employees put 70 balloons in his office, as well as 10 jars that each contained 70 pieces of his favorite candies. He was also given an Italian cream cake.

“It was a good day for us,” Moorman said.