For 35 years Dr. James Davison has worked to help treat vision and eye problems in his patients in the Marshalltown area, and he said goodbye to his current office at the Central Iowa Healthcare (CIH) facility Monday.

Davison specializes in ophthalmology, concentrating on eye disorders and diseases. He said if it had not been for the friendly atmosphere at the Wolfe Eye Clinic in Marshalltown, he may have gone out-of-state for work.

“Turned out to be the best thing ever for me,” Davison said. Two ophthalmologists, Dr. Russell Watt and Dr. John Graether, worked with Davison for years before they retired in 2000 and 2013, respectively.

“These two guys [Watt and Graether]… drew me here and kept me here,” Davison said.

“I remember he [Davison] joined us in 1980,” said Graether, who began at Wolfe in 1962.

Davison was educated at the University of Minnesota and the Mayo Medical School in Rochester.

The three doctors discussed their fondness of Wolfe Eye Clinic, which they agreed is an asset to Iowans in need of eye care.

“Wolfe Eye Clinic has done 60,000 procedures,” Davison said. Graether said the clinic has a long history of groundbreaking eye care procedures, including now common small-incision catarax surgery.

Davison will not be leaving the Marshalltown area. Instead, he will move his practice to the new CIH outpatient surgical facility near the Marshalltown Community College campus.

“We’re going to our new facility in August,” Davison said. Nostalgia was an emotion he said hit him while walking the halls of the clinic he called “home base.”

“You always feel better in your ‘home field,'” he said. The positive attitudes and good practices are what he liked most about working at Wolfe.

Watt and Graether praised Davison’s work and skill as a ophthalmologist.

“I can’t believe it’s been 35 years since he started,” Watt said. Graether agreed.

“He’s been a great surgeon,” he said.

Davison said he was happy and grateful to have worked in Marshalltown.

“Generosity and honesty are such hard things to come by,” he said. “We’re proud to have been in partnership with the [CIH] hospital.”

—-

Contact Adam Sodders at adam.sodds94@gmail.com or (641) 753-6611