Katherine Holcomb Connects Clinical Care and Resident Research

Katherine Holcomb, PhD, first came as a patient to UVA Ophthalmology in 2001, when she was referred to Bruce Prum, MD, for ocular hypertension. As her care expanded to involve several UVA ophthalmologists, she came to know the department through the physicians who worked over many years to preserve her sight.  Ms. Holcomb had previously donated to the UVA Department of Astronomy in memory of her late husband, Prof. John F. Hawley.  When she later considered another charitable contribution to UVA, her medical history made Ophthalmology the clear place to begin. “Ophthalmology was the natural department for me because it was the part of the Health System I had come to know most closely,” she said.

Her previous support of Astronomy informed how she approached the question of purpose. Prof. Hawley’s experience in academic administration made her aware that a contribution can become difficult to use if its restrictions do not align with a department’s priorities. When Courtney Wilson, UVA Health Director of Development, Healthcare Philanthropy, began speaking with her, Ms. Holcomb brought an interest in residents to the conversation while remaining open to learning whether the department had a more immediate need. “One thing I did not want to do was impose anything that was not concordant with the department’s priorities,” Ms. Holcomb said. “I wanted to do something that would be of interest or benefit to residents.” She wanted her contribution to produce something the department could use in practice.

That approach led Ms. Holcomb to ask Dr. Prum whether there was an immediate clinical need she could address. After considering the question, he identified a need for additional pneumotonometers because the clinic had only one, which might be in use elsewhere when needed. Ms. Holcomb funded two additional units, and they soon entered clinical use. “Katherine was actually one of the first patients able to use one of the new devices,” Wilson said. At one of her own appointments, she experienced the benefit Dr. Prum had described when she first asked what the clinic needed.

Her interest in residents was grounded in a scientific career that began with a PhD in physics and doctoral research in computational cosmology. After a postdoctoral appointment, she moved into scientific programming and research computing, first at the National Center for Atmospheric Research and later at UVA. That experience gave her a familiar framework for understanding physicians who were still developing specialized knowledge. “In my mind, residents map to graduate students and fellows to postdocs,” she said. She hopes that even limited research participation will help residents understand how clinical research works and become more discerning readers of published studies.

Ms. Wilson discussed Ms. Holcomb’s interest in resident research with Dr. Prum and Dr. Albert Jun, chair of the UVA Department of Ophthalmology. Dr. Jun helped develop an endowment that will support two resident research prizes each year while allowing the awards to evolve with the department’s needs. The resulting award will give future residents an opportunity to engage more deeply with the research process that shaped Ms. Holcomb’s own career. Its purpose reflects the way she approached the department from the beginning: she brought her own experience to the conversation, listened carefully to what others knew, and allowed the department’s needs to determine where her support could matter.