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About Us

Our Mission Statement

For Connecticut Eye Consultants to remain the premier ophthalmology group in the Western Connecticut area by providing superior multi-specialty medical and surgical eye care in an environment reflecting all the needs of our patients in a compassionate and efficient way, while encouraging and supporting the efforts of the staff and physicians in a congenial and stimulating atmosphere.

About Us

Serving the Danbury area for more than 30 years, Connecticut Eye Consultants (formerly Danbury Eye Physicians & Surgeons) is a comprehensive ophthalmology and optometry practice committed to providing a superior level of eye care in a welcoming environment. Our 12 ophthalmologists and three optometrists provide state-of-the-art technology and personalized services in three locations: Danbury, New Milford and Prospect, Conn. We also provide hearing evaluations with a board-certified hearing instrument specialist in our Danbury and Prospect locations.

We offer affordable payment options and accept most insurance plans, including Medicare.

Our History

The seeds of Connecticut Eye Consultants were sewn as early as 1970, when Dr. Turpin Rose opened his ophthalmology practice on Main Street in Danbury. A few years afterward, Dr. Ralph Falkenstein and Dr. Paul Ruggiero opened their own practices in the area. Dr. Matthew Paul joined Dr. Falkenstein in 1984, followed by pediatric and strabismus specialist Dr. Stephen Mathias in 1987. By 1988, the three practices had merged to create Danbury Eye Physicians & Surgeons, P.C., which also included retina specialist Dr. Vincent Repucci and office administrator Linda Bennett.

From the start, DEPS embraced innovative techniques for treating eye disease and correcting vision. Between 1988 and 1989, Dr. Paul introduced to the community small-incision ultrasound phacoemulsification, a method of removing cataracts that involved breaking them up with soundwaves. The doctors later introduced foldable lenses and the first premium lens that corrected astigmatism and presbyopia.

In 1990, DEPS moved to its current office at 69 Sand Pit Road, where over the next six years it grew to include glaucoma specialist Dr. Bruce Altman, cornea/kerato-refractive specialist Dr. Stephen Zuckerman, and optometrist Dr. Margaret Marcone. During this time, Dr. Zuckerman was one of a handful of doctors in the United States authorized to perform innovative laser-corrective eye surgery. By the end of the decade, he, Dr. Mathias and Dr. Altman had all become partners, and Danbury Eye Physicians & Surgeons had developed into a robust and respected provider of comprehensive eye care to the Greater Danbury community.

In 1999, Dr. Paul founded within DEPS the Clinical Eye Research Center of Connecticut, of which he remains medical research director. Angela Smit-Mulder became the research coordinator director. The center participated in the first trials of anti-VEGF therapy to treat wet macular degeneration.

The new millennium brought more specialized personnel and cutting-edge technology to DEPS, as well as the retirement of Dr. Rose in 2007. Vitreoretinal specialist Dr. Armand Daccache joined the practice in 2008, followed by cosmetic/general specialist Dr. Katherine Zamecki and cornea/refractive specialist Dr. Archna Johar in 2010.

Between 2011 and 2012, DEPS experienced significant growth, opening a satellite office at 120 Park Lane in New Milford and adding vitreoretinal specialist Dr. Richard Scartozzi, cornea/refractive specialist Dr. Anisha Jangi  and board-certified hearing instrument specialist Elaine Raccio to our roster of providers. Also during that time, Dr. Daccache became a partner.

By January of 2014, we had added four partners—Dr. Johar, Dr. Zamecki, Dr. Jangi and Dr. Scartozzi—and lost one, when DEPS co-founder Dr. Falkenstein semi-retired to part-time work. That fall, DEPS also added a third office, acquiring Greater Waterbury Retina in Prospect and later renaming it Greater Waterbury Laser Eye Physicians & Surgeons.

In 2016, DEPS co-founder Dr. Ruggiero followed in his colleague’s footsteps and semi-retired to part-time work as well. A year later, office administrator Linda Bennett retired after 33 years of service, and human resources manager Cassandra Jimenez assumed the role of practice manager. Meanwhile, glaucoma specialist Dr. Eitan Burstein joined the team.

In January 2019, Danbury Eye Physicians & Surgeons and Greater Waterbury Laser Eye Physicians & Surgeons changed their corporate name to Connecticut Eye Consultants, P.C. Later that year, optometrist Dr. Crystal Seaforth came aboard. She was joined in early 2020 by fellow optometrist Dr. John Stanley, around the same time that Dr. Burstein became a partner.

Our Future

As we have done since our inception in 1986, we will continue to provide compassionate, contemporary, superior multi-specialty medical and surgical eye care in an environment reflecting the needs of all of our patients.

Our Services