Dr. Azar joined Dr. Dickey in 1976 as the only surgical Ophthalmologists in town. The two were very successful and brought specialized care to patients of all demographics throughout the Eastern Shore.

In the early 1990s, Dr. Azar opened a solo practice on Riverside Drive which thrived and was joined by Dr. Filipov in 1995. A fire devastated the Riverside Drive location and shortly after, in 1997 they constructed “Azar Eye Institute” in Winterplace on the east side of Salisbury.

Dr. Azar was very active in the community, loved to educate all who knew him, and brought medical advances to the practice. He enjoyed teaching medical students at Wilmer Eye Institute for many years. Surgical and clinical advancements were sought out and brought to the Eastern Shore by Dr. Azar. Until his health issues prevented him from seeing patients, he stayed active in the practice. He continued to run the practice, mentoring the staff and the physicians. He also received an academic appointment in the UMES Physicians Assistants Program and was very involved in the Lions Club.

The foundation set by Dr. Azar, his philosophies and legacy of compassionate community eye care are followed today by the doctors and staff at Azar Eye Institute.

Dr. Peter Filipov has been practicing Ophthalmology on the Eastern Shore for over 22 years.

He grew up in Maryland and received a Bachelor's Degree in Biochemistry and Zoology from the University of Maryland, College Park in 1983.

Dr. Filipov attended school in St. Louis and received his Medical Degree in 1987 from the St. Louis University School of Medicine. Upon graduation, he completed his training by performing a medical internship at the Washington Hospital Center. He then completed a residency in Ophthalmology at Temple University in Philadelphia.

Prior to coming to Salisbury, Dr. Filipov held the rank of Major in the United States Air Force. He was a staff Ophthalmologist at Andrews Air Force Base in addition to serving as a surgical instructor for the Uniformed Health Service School of Medicine and Georgetown University Hospital.

Dr. Filipov came to Salisbury in 1995 and joined Dr. Alex Azar in forming the Azar Eye Institute. He currently serves as senior surgeon and treats a wide range of ophthalmic disorders, including Cataracts, Glaucoma and Diabetes. Dr. Filipov has performed over ten thousand cataract surgeries.

Dr. Filipov lives in Salisbury with his wife, Jane, and his two labradoodles. He has three grown children in college and enjoys traveling, boating, bicycling, and music.

Dr. Tu is a highly skilled Board Certified general ophthalmologist who treats a wide range of ocular issues. He has a strong interest in cataract surgeries, general glaucoma patients, dry eye treatment, and diabetic eye care.

Dr. Tu graduated from Jefferson Medical College and completed his internship in Internal Medicine at Christiana Hospital in Newark. His residency in Ophthalmology was completed at the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit. An avid runner, Jason has competed five marathons. Having grown up in the Philadelphia area, Jason is very happy to be in Salisbury where he is close to family and friends.

As an experienced surgeon, Dr. Tu is very skilled in handling the practice's most complicated cataract surgeries. He also performs Blepharoplasty and other eye lid procedures. He is experienced with advanced technology lenses, including the latest Restor, and Toric Lenses.

Dr. Tu has office hours in Salisbury, Ocean Pines and Laurel Delaware.

Raised in Atlanta, GA, Dr. James F. Gallagher received an engineering degree from Georgia Tech in 1983. He then received his Doctor of Medicine degree from the Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, GA in 1987. He completed his internship in Internal Medicine at the Chattanooga Unit of the University of Tennessee in 1988 and entered the U.S. Navy. He graduated from Naval Flight Surgeon School in 1989 where he received the Surgeon General Award. He was assigned as flight surgeon to Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, NC where he served with a USMC Harrier squadron and deployed around the world. He returned to training in 1991 and completed residency in Ophthalmology in 1994 at Erlanger Medical Center, Chattanooga Unit, University of Tennessee where he served as Chief Resident.

Dr. Gallagher was assigned to U.S. Naval Hospital Camp Lejeune, NC, Department of Ophthalmology where he served from 1994-2004, 2006-2009 rising to the rank of Captain in 2004. He held multiple positions there including Department Head Ophthalmology, Director of Refractive Surgery, and Director of Surgical Services. He also served a tour of duty at U.S. Naval Hospital Naples, Italy from 2004-2006 as Department Head of Ophthalmology. After 21 years of service, Captain Gallagher retired from the U.S. Navy in 2009.

Dr. Gallagher specializes in state of the art cataract surgery and the latest techniques in excimer laser vision correction. He has a special interest in laser vision correction applied to the surface of the eye (no flap) having performed over 3000 advanced surface ablation procedures on service members of the armed forces. He is also skilled in an increasingly popular alternative to LASIK known as phakic intraocular lens (Visian Implantable Contact Lens). Dr. Gallagher has 18 years of experience performing strabismus surgery (eye misalignment correction) on pediatric and adult patients. He is Board Certified in Ophthalmology and a Fellow of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.

Dr. Gallagher has office hours in Salisbury, Ocean Pines and Laurel and is accepting new adult and pediatric patients.

Dr. Gallagher enjoys many outdoor activities with his wife and their two sons, particularly jogging, tennis and skiing. He is also an avid golfer.

Dr. Jennifer Giles is the longest tenured optometrist at AEI. She has been compassionately caring for patients on the Eastern Shore with AEI since 1999. After receiving her magna cum laude undergraduate degree in Biology from Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, PA, Dr. Giles was admitted to Hershey Medical School. She quickly realized that becoming a medical doctor and spending all of her time in surgery wasn’t what she wanted in a career. From her teen years spent babysitting for her optometrist to later working in his office, the time Dr. Giles spent with patients sparked her interest in caring for patients and their eyes. Dr. Giles went on to receive a Bachelor of Science and O.D. from the Pennsylvania College of Optometry in Philadelphia. While at PCO, Dr. Giles finished first in her class, earning the Alumni Association Award for Highest Scholastic Attainment.

Doctor Giles is Maryland Board Certified through the National Board of Examiners in Optometry. Dr. Giles is also certified to use diagnostic pharmaceutical agents and therapeutic pharmaceutical agents.

Dr. Giles joined the Azar Eye Institute upon her graduation in 1999. She specializes in comprehensive eye exams for adults and children, optometric management of ocular disease, contact lens evaluations, and co-management of cataract surgery. Dr. Giles looks forward to working with pre-op and post-op patients because it allows her to work with patients throughout their entire plan of care. Dr. Giles says the best part is the smile on a patients face when they open their eyes and can see with clarity.

Dr. Giles resides in Salisbury with her husband, Joe Wright, of Vernon Powell Shoes, and their three children, JP, Caroline and Grant. Out of the office, Jennifer enjoys spending time with her family on the beach and cheering on her children at soccer and lacrosse games.