Bascom Palmer Eye Institute Announces $17-Million Expansion of Palm Beach County Facilities, #1 Ranked Eye Hospital in U.S. to Break Ground on New Palm Beach Gardens Campus.

MIAMI -- Bascom Palmer Eye Institute of the University of Miami's Miller School of Medicine today announced a $17-million expansion of its Palm Beach County facilities, tripling the space available for its nationally recognized patient care, research and educational programs.

Located on a seven-acre campus in Palm Beach Gardens, the new Bascom Palmer Eye Institute of the Palm Beaches will be one of the country's largest academic ophthalmology centers, with a 35,000-square-foot patient care facility and an adjacent 10,000-square-foot surgical center. Bascom Palmer Eye Institute is ranked as the best eye hospital in the nation by U.S. News & World Report.

"As the University of Miami's first major construction project outside Miami-Dade County, this state-of-the-art medical treatment, research and education facility reflects our commitment to serve the region's fast-growing population, while continuing to provide the finest academic medical programs in the state," said Donna E. Shalala, Ph.D., president of the University of Miami.

The university will announce its plans at a groundbreaking ceremony for the new center, scheduled for February 3 at the new campus at PGA Boulevard and Fairway Drive in the PGA National development, just a short distance from Bascom Palmer's current Palm Beach Gardens office.

Purchase of the site at PGA National in 1995 was spearheaded by John Clarkson, M.D., then chairman of the Institute and now senior vice president for medical affairs and dean of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. "As a Palm Beach native and ophthalmologist, it has always been my vision to provide comprehensive ophthalmic care for the Treasure Coast," said Dr. Clarkson. "With the region's dynamic growth, the time is right to meet growing demand for the most advanced treatment and research."

Carmen A. Puliafito, M.D., M.B.A., chairman of Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, noted that the university operates the only academic medical center serving Palm Beach and Martin Counties, whose combined population is expected to reach 1.4 million in 2010. Acknowledging the foresight of Dr. Clarkson, Dr. Puliafito said, "It is only appropriate that our new facility will be built while John Clarkson is dean of the medical school."

This new facility will be a model for 21st century ophthalmology centers, added Dr. Puliafito. "It will allow us to see three times the number of patients, to perform surgery in our own, custom-designed surgical center, and to create a magnet for the best and brightest ophthalmologic health care specialists."

The new center will support a dramatic expansion in research and greater access to clinical trials for Palm Beach and Martin County residents. "This facility can become a focal point for ophthalmology research in the Treasure Coast region," Dr. Clarkson added.

More than 90,000 patients a year can be diagnosed and treated at the new center, which is projected to employ a staff of 125, including 50 Bascom Palmer clinical and research faculty members.

The current 13,000-square-foot center, which opened in 1996, now serves about 30,000 patients a year, a steady increase from 5,500 patient visits in 1996, the year the original facility opened.

When the new facility is completed in 2006, Palm Beach County patients will no longer have to drive to Bascom Palmer's main location in Miami for other types of procedures, such as retina surgeries, ophthalmic plastic and reconstructive surgeries, and cataract surgeries.

In addition to dedicated surgical space, the new Bascom Palmer campus will contain clinical space customized for the treatment of retinal and macular diseases, glaucoma, corneal diseases, pediatric ophthalmology and adult strabismus. Other elements of the new facility include an aesthetics and oculoplastic center, a macular degeneration and imaging center, laser vision correction, low vision rehabilitation and 52 examination rooms.

A planned education and conference center will allow Bascom Palmer to conduct education programs for community ophthalmologists, and expand public education programs on eye health and eye disease. Fellowship training, as part of Bascom Palmer's rigorous physician education program, will also be available in Palm Beach County for ophthalmologists.

"For many patients, Bascom Palmer offers resources that are not available elsewhere in the community," said Dr. Puliafito. "With our satellite offices in Naples and Plantation, as well as the expansion of the Miami and Palm Beach Gardens locations, we are positioning Bascom Palmer to serve South Florida and the world for the first half of this new century."

For further information about Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, visit http://www.bascompalmer.org

About Bascom Palmer Eye Institute

Bascom Palmer Eye Institute of the University of Miami's Miller School of Medicine is ranked the best eye hospital in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. Having earned an international reputation as one of the premier providers of eye care in the world, Bascom Palmer is also ranked #1 in patient care and #1 in residency training by Ophthalmology Times. As the largest ophthalmic care, research and educational facility in the southeastern United States, more than 200,000 patients with nearly every ophthalmic condition are treated each year and more than 10,000 surgeries are performed annually. Founded in 1962, Bascom Palmer has patient care facilities in Miami, Palm Beach Gardens, Naples, and Plantation, Florida. For additional information about Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, please contact Cynthia Birch, Associate Director of Marketing at [phone], [e-mail] or visit the website at http://www.bascompalmer.org