Dr. Tory J. Clugston

Philosophy of care | I try to tailor treatment to individual patients. Tailoring means I might aggressively try lifestyle modification to achieve goals in a younger, otherwise healthy person and avoid initiating medical therapy unless necessary. In an older person, I might have greater concern for medication side effects when organs like the kidneys may not tolerate drugs that could have been relatively safer and more effective when the patient was younger. And for a patient in midlife I might be more medically aggressive because it’s an ideal time to prevent poor outcomes later on. But for everyone I encourage self-care through healthy eating, exercise and stress reduction. | Why I entered medicine | I took a winding road into the field. When I was in middle school and high school I thought about going into medicine but got pulled away, thinking I might go into research or business. In college I started volunteering with the American Red Cross, and that drew me back to medicine. It made me feel fulfilled and gave me the sense I was doing service to the community. That’s how I ended up applying to medical school and sticking with it. | Community involvement | I recently moved back to the area and have family in Lehigh and Berks Counties, so my roots and my church are in the region. My husband is also from the area and we have community bonds through him as well. In other places I’ve done things like worked with the Rotary Club, participated in high school career fairs and of course volunteered with the American Red Cross. | Personal interests | I’m a big family person and we definitely moved back to the area to be closer to family. I’m also interested in running, yoga and hiking at places like Hawk Mountain or Trexler Nature Preserve. And my husband and I enjoy local activities like visiting local vineyards and craft beer breweries.

Her top areas of expertise are Peptic Ulcer, Necrosis, Cellulitis, and Hypertension.