The Packo Service Award
The American Society of Retina Specialists established the Packo Service Award in 2019 to recognize a member for exceptional service to the Society.
The award is named for its first recipient, Kirk H. Packo, MD, FACS, FASRS, professor and chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology and director of the Retina Section at Rush University Medical Center.
Dr. Packo’s dynamic leadership and strategic innovations over 30 years helped shape the ASRS into an internationally recognized medical organization that encompasses all things retina.
Dr. Packo, who served as president of the Society from 2001-2002, served as a driving force behind many of the Society’s cornerstone initiatives, including the Preferences and Trends Survey and Film Festival.
2026 Packo Service Award Recipient
Joel A. Pearlman, MD, PhD, FASRS, managing partner at Retinal Consultants Medical Group (RCMG) in Sacramento, California, is the winner of the 2026 Packo Award in recognition of his exceptional service to the Society. The Packo Award is named in honor of its first recipient, ASRS 2001-2002 President Kirk H. Packo, MD, FACS, FASRS, whose dynamic leadership and strategic innovations helped shape and advance the Society for more than 30 years.
Dr. Pearlman became the editor in chief of Retina Times after co-editing the Retina Genetics section and being a Retina Times Annual Meeting reporter for many years. As editor in chief, he inspires the editorial team through his gift for words, inimitable wit, resourcefulness, and ability to make every contributor feel genuinely appreciated.
He is a member of the Society’s Communications Committee as well as the board of the Foundation of the ASRS and previously served on the Research and Safety in Therapeutics (ReST) Committee. Dr. Pearlman has been an ASRS member since 2002.
After a brief stint on the faculty at the University of California, Davis, Dr. Pearlman joined RCMG (then known as Vitreoretinal Medical Group) upon Dr. Neil Kelly’s retirement in 2003. He has cared for thousands of patients and has been a principal investigator for several hundred clinical trials over the past 23 years.
In addition to serving as RCMG’s managing partner, Dr. Pearlman is medical director of its ambulatory surgery center and serves on the board of Retina Consultants of America.
Dr. Pearlman earned his MD and PhD degrees from Baylor College of Medicine, where he investigated the underlying pathophysiology of Duchenne muscular dystrophy. He trained at the Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins Hospital. Dr. Pearlman served as assistant chief of service at Wilmer after completing his residency there, as well as his fellowship in vitreoretinal diseases.
Award Criteria
The Packo Award recognizes an ASRS member who has provided exceptional service to the Society.
The 2026 award nominations deadline was January 5, 2026.
Past Recipients
2025 Kevin J. Blinder, MD, FASRS
2024 John T. Thompson, MD, FASRS
2023 Timothy G. Murray, MD, MBA, FASRS
2022 Suber S. Huang, MD, MBA, FASRS
2021 Reginald J. Sanders, MD, FASRS
2020 ASRS Founders, Jerald Bovino, MD, FASRS, Roy Levit, MD, FASRS, and Allen Verne, MD, FASRS
2019 Kirk H. Packo, MD, FACS, FASRS