Dr. Joseph Caperna was born and raised in Ohio. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree, cum laude, from Kenyon College in 1984. He then graduated from the Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine (Cleveland, OH) in 1990. He has practiced medicine since that time, completing Internal Medicine residency training at the UCSD Medical Center in 1993. He is board certified in Internal Medicine. In 1994, he was awarded a master’s degree (MPH) in public health from UC Berkeley. He completed a three year fellowship in Hematology/Oncology at UCSD 1995-98. He was a full time faculty member at UCSD, Clinical Professor of Medicine, from 1998 to early 2013.
Dr. Caperna has received several awards recognizing his compassionate approach to medicine. In 1998, he received the UCSD Humanitarian Award for helping to start a blood bank in a rural area of Peru, called Huaraz. In 2007, he received the UCSD Diversity Award, recognizing his contributions to underserved populations. In 2011, he received the Kenyon College Humanitarian Award for volunteer work in Africa and Peru. In 2012, he was awarded the San Diego County Brad Truax Award for Community Service in the area of HIV care and treatment. He is also an American Academy of HIV Medicine Specialist, passing the credentialing examination every two years since 2006.
Dr. Caperna takes a holistic approach to patient care, remembering the mind, body and spirit connections. He believes in promoting optimal health through collaborations with complementary therapies and practitioners. He welcomes new patients, and accepts most major medical insurance. He has urgent and same day appointments available.
He is affiliated with Scripps Partners, UCSD, and Alvarado Parkway Institute.