Glaucoma leader Joel S. Schuman, MD, to join Wills Eye Hospital

Joel S. Schuman, MD, FACS, comes to Wills Eye from NYU Langone Health and NYU Grossman School of Medicine, where he has served as the Elaine Langone Professor of Ophthalmology and Professor of Neuroscience and Physiology. (Image courtesy of Wills Eye Hospital)

Wills Eye Hospital today announced that ophthalmologist Joel S. Schuman, MD, FACS, will join Wills and the Vickie and Jack Farber Vision Research Center at Wills Eye.

According to the hospital’s news release, Schuman will hold the Kenneth L. Roper Endowed Chair and will serve as vice chairman for Research and Innovation, as well as co-director of the Glaucoma Service.

Joel S. Schuman, MD, FACS,

Schuman is a pioneer in the field of ophthalmology, lauded for his research, discoveries, inventions, and compassionate patient care over the course of his more than 30-year career. In 2001, he and his colleagues were the first to identify a molecular marker for human glaucoma. In 1991 he was part of the team that invented optical coherence tomography (OCT) technology, which provides quick, non-invasive, high resolution 3D mapping of the eye and has become an essential tool for the detection and treatment of diseases including glaucoma, macular degeneration, and diabetic retinopathy. Today more than 60,000 of these machines are used every day across the globe. He also is a member of the Ophthalmology Times Editorial Advisory Board.

“Dr. Schuman is an internationally-renowned glaucoma clinician-scientist,” said Julia A. Haller, MD, Ophthalmologist-in-Chief, Wills Eye Hospital. “He is truly a giant in the field of ophthalmology, and we are delighted that he has decided to join the Wills Eye team.”

Schuman comes to Wills Eye from NYU Langone Health and NYU Grossman School of Medicine, where he has served as the Elaine Langone Professor of Ophthalmology and Professor of Neuroscience and Physiology. He is professor of Biomedical Engineering and Electrical and Computer Engineering at the NYU Tandon School of Engineering and Professor of Neural Science in the Center for Neural Science at the NYU College of Arts and Sciences. He chaired the ophthalmology department at NYU Langone Health and NYU Grossman School of Medicine from 2016 to 2020 and was Vice Chair for Ophthalmology Research in the department from 2020 to 2022.

Prior to arriving at NYU in 2016, he was distinguished professor and chairman of Ophthalmology as well as Eye and Ear Foundation Endowed Chair in Ophthalmology and Director of UPMC Eye Center (2003-2016) and before that was at Tufts University (1991-2003), where he was Residency Director (1991-1999), Glaucoma and Cataract Service Chief (1991-2003), Professor of Ophthalmology (1998), and Vice Chair (2001 - 2003).

“Wills is adding another superstar to its roster with Dr. Schuman,” said Joseph P. Bilson, CEO, Wills Eye Hospital. “His pedigree speaks for itself and is complemented by a motivated, caring, and collaborative personality. On behalf of the Wills Eye hospital faculty and staff, I want to wish Dr. Schuman a very warm welcome.”

Schuman also has a long list of accomplishments, including 22 patents, dozens of awards and recognitions, and contributions to more than 450 peer-reviewed publications.

A graduate of Columbia University, where he received his AB in Psychology, he received his medical degree from Mount Sinai School of Medicine. After completing his internship year at Beth Israel Medical Center he went on to do his ophthalmology residency at the Medical College of Virginia and a glaucoma fellowship at Massachusetts Eye & Ear Infirmary.

“I am really energized by the chance to join to be a part of this phenomenal institution, truly one of the world’s premier ophthalmology hospitals,” Schuman said in the news release. “The environment at Wills, the teamwork, and its devotion to ground-breaking research that fuels its outstanding clinical practice – all of these factors make Wills a great fit and I look forward to a long and successful partnership.”