Todd David Hess

Colonel (Dr.) Todd David Hess MC, USAF (Ret.) (born August 10, 1960 in Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.) is a retired Air Force Colonel, Ophthalmic Surgeon and Military Medical Commander. He was the first Air Force member to be inducted into the Army's Order of Military Medical Merit (member no. 7271). He was also the first physician ever to perform a cataract extraction via phacoemulsification in the history of the RAF Lakenheath hospital.

Hess and LRMC
The Landstuhl Regional Medical Center (LRMC) is the largest military hospital outside of the Continental US. It is located in Landstuhl, Germany, and has an approximate yearly budget of over $100 million. Hess started working at Landstuhl in 1997 after living in Phoenix, Arizona. Starting in 1997, Hess worked as the Chief of Ophthalmology in Landstuhl. In 2003, he was assigned the position of Chief, Head and Neck Surgery. He started working as the Chief of the Division of Surgery in 2004 and then, finally, as the Deputy Commander for Clinical Services (DCCS) from 2005 - 2006. He has worked on over 35,000 patients since the Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. He was the ultimate privileging authority for over 1200 health care providers from throughout both EUCOM and CENTCOM. In addition, he was responsible for the installation, inception, and management of LRMC's Warfighter Laser Refractive Surgery Program. This $4.5 million program has successfully performed refractive eye surgery on over 7,000 soldiers and airmen since 2002. Colonel Hess served as DCCS during the siege of Falluja and played an important role during the rapid expansion of OR and ICU capabilities at LRMC.

Education
Todd Hess was a 1978 Salutatorian graduate from Neenah High School in Neenah, Wisconsin. Hess graduated with his doctor of medicine at the Medical College of Wisconsin in 1985 and joined the Air Force in 1986. Until 1989, he worked as a GP (general practitioner) with the USAF in both Korea, Germany, and the US. In 1989 he started his residency in Ophthalmology at Lackland AFB's Wilford Hall Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas and completed it in 1992. He first started working as a licensed Ophthalmologist from 1992-1994 at RAF Lakenheath in England.

Ranks
Active Duty: 15 May 1986 - 01 October 2006
 * Captain
 * May 15, 1986 - May 25, 1991 (5 years)
 * Major
 * May 26, 1991 - May 25, 1997 (6 years)
 * Lieutenant Colonel
 * May 26, 1997 - May 15, 2003 (6 years)
 * Colonel
 * May 26, 2003 - present

Dr. Todd Hess retired at the rank of Colonel, effective as of October 1, 2006. His active duty service at LRMC, especially as deputy commander was greatly appreciated. Hess received many awards and certificates, including a deed of appreciation for 20 years of active service in the United States Air Force from US President George W. Bush.

Decorations
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 * Legion of Merit (1)
 * Meritorious Service Medal (2)
 * Air Force Commendation Medal (3)
 * Army Commendation Medal (4)
 * AF Outstanding Unit Award (6)
 * National Defense Service Medal (5)
 * Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
 * Korean Defense Service Medal

Family
Colonel Hess is currently married to the former Gudrun Emmel ( born April 21, 1955 in Offenbach am Main, Germany). Both have one son, Maximilian (born April 16, 1992 in San Antonio, Texas, United States). The Hess family got attached to Germany and have decided to continue to reside there after Retirement. They continue to live near Kaiserslautern, Germany, and Colonel Hess continues his job as a Department of Defense contracting Ophthalmologist and Surgeon at LRMC.