Bascom Palmer Eye Institute Opens Country's Most Advanced Eye Care Center.

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. -- Bascom Palmer Eye Institute today opened the most technologically advanced eye care center in the United States, located on a 7.4-acre campus in Palm Beach Gardens. E[acute accent]"This $22 million expansion reaffirms Bascom Palmer Eye Institute's long-standing commitment to deliver the highest level of ophthalmologic care, research and education," said Carmen A. Puliafito, M.D., M.B.A., chairman of Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, the world-renowned department of ophthalmology at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine and the nation's top-ranked eye hospital. E[acute accent]"With a uniquely comprehensive array of cutting-edge ophthalmologic technology at a single site, this campus supports a dramatic expansion in clinical care and research," added Puliafito. He noted that the academic ophthalmic center is a model for 21st century eye care centers and a magnet for the best and brightest eye care specialists. E[acute accent]The new campus, which triples the size of the institute's facilities in Palm Beach County, features the Maltz Center, a 40,000 square-foot patient care medical office building with more than 50 examination rooms for the treatment of all ophthalmic diseases and disorders. It houses centers for retinal and macular diseases, imaging, glaucoma, cornea, LASIK, aesthetics and pediatric ophthalmology. It also includes a center for low vision rehabilitation and an optical shop. E[acute accent]Adjacent to the medical office building is the Frankino Pavilion at the Bascom Palmer Surgery Center. The 10,000 square-foot, state-of-the-art ambulatory surgery center now allows Bascom Palmer's physicians to perform retina, cataract, glaucoma, ophthalmic plastic and reconstructive surgeries on-site. E[acute accent]Yunhee Lee, M.D., M.P.H., medical director and division chief of Bascom Palmer Eye Institute at Palm Beach Gardens, said the institute's $4 million investment in surgical, diagnostic and patient care equipment at the new campus provides a host of treatment options for patients of all ages, while streamlining business and clinical practices. For example, with $1.5 million in refractive lasers, the LASIK/refractive surgery suite features every major model of the latest laser equipment available in the market today, expanding customized treatment options. E[acute accent]To evaluate patients with "dry" age-related macular degeneration and other macular diseases, the institute has installed a digital fundus autofluorescence system that captures digital images of the retina and macula to detect the early signs of disease progression. This emerging technology is finding new applications in the field of macular disease, as retina physicians at Bascom Palmer continue their leading role in the diagnosis and treatment of age related macular degeneration. E[acute accent]To support its world-renowned medical research, training programs and academic conferences, the LASIK and Vision Correction Center's surgical suite incorporates an observation area and 50-seat conference theater designed for patient and physician education. For educational purposes, surgical procedures can also be simulcast to academic centers worldwide. E[acute accent]In the adjacent ambulatory surgery center, three operating rooms have the very latest in ophthalmic surgical instrumentation, and 14 pre-surgical and post-operative recovery stations are available for patients. E[acute accent]The campus significantly expands space for Bascom Palmer clinical studies, including full-time specialists who will oversee patient care and research in conditions and diseases of the retina. The institute's retina specialists have been involved in every major clinical trial for the treatment of the "wet" form of macular degeneration for the last decade. Already underway is the "HORIZON Trial," a national study intended to learn the long-term safety and efficacy of Lucentis, a drug approved June 30 by the FDA for treatment of "wet" macular degeneration, a potential blinding condition which affects eight million Americans. E[acute accent]As part of a two-year project, Bascom Palmer will begin incorporating an electronic medical record (EMR) system that will include physicians' notes, and all appointments and services delivered throughout the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine's healthcare system. "This will be a huge medical benefit for patients, so when they travel out of state or abroad, the EMR system will allow our physicians to access or transmit their medical records anywhere in the world," noted Lee. E[acute accent]For further information about Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, visit http://www.bascompalmer.org. E[acute accent]About Bascom Palmer Eye Institute - Bascom Palmer Eye Institute of the University of Miami 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 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, please contact Cynthia Birch, associate director of marketing at [phone], [e-mail] or visit the website at http://www.bascompalmer.org