S. Grace Prakalapakorn

About S. Grace Prakalapakorn

Associate Professor of Ophthalmology and Pediatrics at Duke University; Affiliate Faculty at the Duke Global Health Institute; Director of International Outreach at Duke University Eye Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA

What is your proudest professional achievement?

I have been proud to represent the American Academy of Ophthalmology as a member of the Young Ophthalmologist Committee’s International Subcommittee. As part of that role, I was given the opportunity to meet other young ophthalmologists from around the world and serve as a resource and mentor to them. Through various international meetings, I have met some amazing young ophthalmologists and formed lifelong friendships.

What can be done to make the field more diverse? 

In order to make the field of ophthalmology more diverse, we should strive to expose all medical students to our field. I didn’t discover the field of ophthalmology until late in medical school, and I believe that if all medical students were exposed to our speciality early on, we would be able to encourage more diversity in our field.

Outside of ophthalmology, what makes you happy?

I love to explore the world. I enjoy traveling (I’ve visited 58 countries so far), meeting new people, learning about different cultures, and trying new foods. I also enjoy the beach, marine life, and scuba diving. My most memorable experiences with snorkeling were in the Great Barrier Reef, Australia, and in Fiji, while my most memorable diving experiences were on a diving rig (converted from an oil rig) in Malaysia, and diving with manta rays in Thailand.