Dr. Joseph Decker M.D.

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Get to know Ophthalmologist Dr. Joseph Decker, who serves patients in San Jose, California.

Dr. Decker, the Founder of the San Jose Eye Institute, is a talented ophthalmologist, eye surgeon, and humanitarian. For over 30 years, this combination has been demonstrated by his respect for his patients as unique individuals, his active participation in contributing to the local and global eye communities, as well as his commitment to the preservation and restoration of sight.

At San Jose Eye Institute, Dr. Decker works alongside Dr. George Yang, offering a full range of services from routine eye examinations and medical ophthalmology, to outpatient surgical needs. Concern, respect, confidentiality, and a strong ethical code are the cornerstones of this well-established and committed medical practice.

What’s more, he holds staff privileges at  Peninsula Eye Surgery Center in Mountain View, California. Since 1971, he has taught residents at the Stanford Department of Ophthalmology and is a Clinical Associate Professor of Ophthalmology at Stanford University Medical Center in Stanford, California. 

As for his academic background, Dr. Decker earned his medical degree from the University of Illinois College of Medicine in Chicago, Illinois in 1962. He then went on to complete his residencies in ophthalmology at the Illinois Eye and Ear Infirmary in Chicago and at Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas, Texas. Shortly after, he became board-certified in ophthalmology by the American Board of Ophthalmology, an independent, non-profit organization responsible for certifying ophthalmologists in the United States of America. 

In addition to being a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, he is a member of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the California Medical Association, the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery, and the Santa Clara County Medical Association.

Among the doctor’s many achievements, he was voted one of Silicon Valley’s “Top Doctors” by  his peers in the San Jose Magazine from 1999 until 2004. He was also the recipient of the AMA Physician’s Recognition Award. 

Through Christian Eye Ministries, a nondenominational, nonprofit organization dedicated to restoring sight to the world’s neglected blind, Dr. Decker has completed ten sight-restoring medical missions to Third World countries. Having traveled to the remote and impoverished regions of Colombia, West Africa, Haiti, and Nepal, he has seen up to 250 patients a day and has performed as many as 150 operations on a single mission.

His dedication to the global community began with a special teacher in medical school who inspired him to make his first medical mission. “It changed my life. It was another world, another civilization. I had a sense of my life just broadening tremendously.” remembers Dr. Decker. 

Ophthalmology is a branch of medicine and surgery, which deals with the diagnosis and treatment of eye disorders. Ophthalmologists are experts in the diseases, functions, and anatomy of the eye. They may provide routine care such as vision testing, as well as prescribe and fit eyeglasses or contact lenses. However, ophthalmologists are also surgeons. They repair traumatic injuries to the eye and perform cataract, glaucoma, and corneal surgery. 

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