Bradley R. Straatsma, MD, JD

Bradley R. Straatsma, MD, JD, was the founding chair of the Department of Ophthalmology at UCLA and the founding director of the Jules Stein Eye Institute. He received his medical degree from Yale University School of Medicine in 1951. Following graduation, he served in the United States Navy as part of the Underwater Demolition Team (now known as the Navy SEALs). After completing his service as a lieutenant in the United States Naval Reserve, Dr. Straatsma pursued residency training in ophthalmology at the Harkness Eye Institute at Columbia University, followed by fellowships at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology and the Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins University.

In 1959, Dr. Straatsma arrived in Los Angeles and joined UCLA as its inaugural chief of the Division of Ophthalmology. In 1961, he began a visionary collaboration with Jules C. Stein, MD—ophthalmologist, philanthropist, and founder of MCA—to establish what would become the Jules Stein Eye Institute. He became a professor in 1962, and the Institute officially opened its doors in 1966. Dr. Straatsma served as its first director and, in 1968, was appointed chair of the newly established Department of Ophthalmology.

Over the course of his distinguished career as a professor, researcher, and clinician at UCLA, Dr. Straatsma authored more than 575 scientific publications in vitreoretinal disease, choroidal melanoma, and ophthalmic education. A respected leader in his field, he served as president of multiple professional organizations, including the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the American Ophthalmological Society, the Association of University Professors of Ophthalmology, the Pan-American Association of Ophthalmology, and Academia Ophthalmologica Internationalis. He also served as chair of the American Board of Ophthalmology and as editor-in-chief of the American Journal of Ophthalmology from 1983 to 2002.

After stepping down from his leadership roles at UCLA in 1994 and transitioning to emeritus status, Dr. Straatsma continued his lifelong pursuit of learning by earning a Juris Doctor from the University of West Los Angeles School of Law in 2002.

In the early 2000s, Dr. Straatsma expanded his focus on global ophthalmology and education as a trustee of the Africa Eye Foundation, helping to improve, preserve, and restore vision in regions with a high prevalence of blindness and visual impairment. His leadership contributed to the establishment of the Magrabi ICO Cameroon Eye Institute in Yaoundé, which opened in 2016. In its first year, the institute provided subspecialty care to more than 25,000 patients, performed sight‑restoring surgeries for children and adults, and extended access through outreach programs that reached an additional 2,500 individuals in rural communities, whether they could pay or not. It also delivered essential training for ophthalmologists and allied health professionals.  

His life’s work continues to shape the future of vision care, improving the lives of patients worldwide for generations to come.

Dr. Straatsma is survived by his children, Derek, Cary, and Greer, and predeceased by his wife Ruth.