Tag Archive | "Bascom Palmer Eye Institute"

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Bascom Palmer Ranked No. 1 Eye Hospital for the 15th Time


Special to UM News

BPEIMIAMI, Fla. (August 2, 2016)—Bascom Palmer Eye Institute of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine has again been ranked as the nation’s Best in Ophthalmology by U.S. News & World Report in its Best Hospitals 2017 Edition. It is the 15th time that Bascom Palmer Eye Institute-Anne Bates Leach Eye Hospital has been named No. 1 since the publication began surveying U.S. physicians for its annual rankings 27 years ago.

“Receiving the No. 1 ranking again is a great testament to the tradition of excellence that drives every aspect of Bascom Palmer’s operation,” said Eduardo C. Alfonso, chairman of Bascom Palmer Eye Institute. “Drawing on their deep knowledge and experience, our dedicated doctors, scientists, nurses, technicians, and support staff provide high-quality compassionate eye care to our Bascom Palmer patients.”

For more than 50 years, Bascom Palmer has been a leader in providing clinical care and community service to the dynamic South Florida region, while building a national reputation for excellence. In addition, its medical training and education programs attract ophthalmologists from around the world, multiplying the institute’s impact on patient care.

Bascom Palmer’s physicians are internationally recognized in every subspecialty of ophthalmology. With four patient care facilities in Florida (Miami, Palm Beach Gardens, Naples, and Plantation), Bascom Palmer is the largest ophthalmic care, research, and educational facility in the southeastern United States. More than 250,000 patients, from infants to seniors, are treated each year for nearly every ophthalmic condition, and more than 18,000 surgeries are performed annually. The institute serves as the Department of Ophthalmology for the Miller School of Medicine, part of UHealth – the University of Miami Health System.

“All of us at the University of Miami are proud of the extraordinary performance of Bascom Palmer Eye Institute’s physicians, researchers, and staff, year after year,” said Steven M. Altschuler, senior vice president for health affairs and CEO of UHealth. “Their discovery, innovation, and training advance the field of ophthalmology worldwide, and their care changes lives in South Florida and beyond.”

Bascom Palmer researchers and clinicians are at the forefront of precision medicine in ophthalmology, translating basic research from their laboratories into individualized diagnostic and treatment methods tailored to each patient. That collaboration approach has resulted in revolutionary advances in the diagnosis and treatment of glaucoma, age-related macular degeneration, retinal diseases, ophthalmic cancers, eye infections, cataracts and diseases of the optic nerve.

Bascom Palmer recently established the world’s first laboratory dedicated to finding cures for diseases of the orbit, the bony structure surrounding the eye. In March, the institute dedicated the Dr. Nasser Ibrahim Al-Rashid Orbital Vision Research Center as the only interdisciplinary, cure-based research center dedicated to transforming the lives of patients with traumatic orbital injuries and malignancies through clinical applications of basic scientific research.

Another milestone will occur this fall with the opening of the Samuel and Ethel Balkan International Pediatric Glaucoma Center at Bascom Palmer. The center is taking a new approach to eradicating pediatric glaucoma by offering genetic research and a multidisciplinary approach to diagnosing and treating the debilitating disease in children.

The rankings are accessible online at www.usnews.com/besthospitals.

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Bascom Palmer Offers Unique Master’s Degree

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Bascom Palmer Offers Unique Master’s Degree


From left are Eduardo Alfonso, David Tse, UM President Julio Frenk, Dr. Nasser Ibrahim Al-Rashid, his sons Fahad Al-Rashid and Ibrahim Al-Rashid, UM Trustee Ron Stone, and Miller School Dean Emeritus Pascal J. Goldschmidt.

From left are Bascom Palmer Director Eduardo Alfonso; Dr. David T. Tse, the Dr. Nassar Ibrahim Al-Rashid Chair in Ophthtalmology; UM President Julio Frenk; Nasser Ibrahim Al-Rashid and his sons, Fahad Al-Rashid and Ibrahim Al-Rashid; UM Trustee Ron Stone; and Miller School Dean Emeritus Pascal J. Goldschmidt.

MIAMI, Fla. (July 26, 2016) —Bascom Palmer Eye Institute—the global leader in eye care, vision research, and ophthalmology education—has launched the Master of Science in Vision Science and Investigative Ophthalmology (MVSIO) program. This innovative, first-of-its-kind program offers comprehensive training in ophthalmic translational research, problem-based learning, management, and a skill set available only at Bascom Palmer.

Led by Bascom Palmer’s world-class faculty and supported by leading-edge technology, the MVSIO program will educate the next generation of global leaders in ophthalmology, including clinicians and vision researchers. The interdisciplinary program focuses on science and laboratory research, research management, and administrative skills to sharpen the critical thinking and communication expertise essential for careers within the realm of ophthalmology.

Bascom Palmer is internationally recognized as an outstanding teaching, research, and patient care center, and its training programs are among the best in the world. As the department of ophthalmology at the University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine, it is committed to improving sight, preventing blindness, and advancing ophthalmic knowledge.

This August, five students will begin the two-year MVSIO program. The inaugural class includes medical doctors with degrees from the University of California San Diego School of Medicine; Universidad Iberoamerica, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic; Alfaisal University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Tripoli University, Libya; and Alexandria University, Egypt.

Much of the MVSIO program takes place within the Dr. Nasser Ibrahim Al-Rashid Orbital Vision Center located in the Evelyn F. and William L. McKnight Vision Research Center on the Miller School campus.

The center’s facility was made possible thanks to a transformative $10 million gift from Dr. Nasser Ibrahim Al-Rashid and his children: Nourah Caskey, Ramzi Al-Rashid, Salman Al-Rashid, Ibrahim Al-Rashid, and Mohammad N. Al-Rashid. During a recent dedication ceremony of the eponymous center, the Al-Rashid sons, Ibrahim, Mohammad, and Salman, made an additional commitment of $2.5 million to continue to propel the vision research engine.

“The MVSIO program would not be possible without the generosity of the Al-Rashid family,” says Sanjoy K. Bhattacharya, professor of ophthalmology and director of the MVSIO graduate program. “Their support allows Bascom Palmer to attract exceptional graduate students from every corner of the globe to realize their full potential in eye and vision science.”

A longtime UM supporter, Nasser Ibrahim Al-Rashid received an honorary doctor of science degree from the University in 2008. Two of  his sons are UM graduates, with Fahad Al-Rashid earning an A.B. in Marine Science Affairs in 2005, and Ibrahim Al-Rashid earning a B.B.A. in Entrepreneurship in 2006.

 

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UHealth at Coral Gables Marks Milestone: ‘Topping Off’ The Lennar Foundation Medical Center


Special to UM News

Topping Off 2

Construction workers hoisted a small pine tree on the rooftop of the new Lennar Foundation Medical Center to mark the occasion of the last beam being placed atop the structure.

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (November 23, 2015) — Eleven months after The Lennar Foundation Medical Center, home of UHealth at Coral Gables, broke ground on the University of Miami’s Gables campus, construction on the 200,000-square-foot facility came to a stop — but only briefly. The occasion was to observe the traditional “topping off” ceremony, held when the uppermost portion of a building is put into place.

On Friday, November 20, the large crane at the site of the five-story building hoisted a small pine tree and American flag to the rooftop, “topping off” what will be the first presence of UHealth – University of Miami Health System on the Coral Gables campus.

More than 155 construction workers were treated to a celebratory lunch and raffle of several gift cards. Over the past year, they have worked to build the state-of-the-art medical center that will offer specialty care by the renowned Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center and Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, ranked the No. 1 eye hospital in the nation for the past 12 years, along with outpatient surgery, men’s and women’s health, sports medicine, physical therapy, diagnostic imaging, radiation oncology, and other UHealth subspecialties.

Addressing the construction crew, Ben Riestra, chief administrative officer of The Lennar Foundation Medical Center, said they had set the building blocks for a health care destination. “You are creating an iconic building where we will deliver the most targeted therapies to UHealth patients. This facility allows us to do that to an entirely new group, including you and your families.”

Augustin R. Arellano, chairman of OHL-Arellano Construction, which is building the Coral Gables facility, remarked on the positive feedback he hears about the site and the work being done.

“So many people are talking about this great project and that is all because of you,” he said. “I congratulate and thank you for that.”

The luncheon took place on the third floor, which will be home to UHealth Sports Medicine and Bascom Palmer Eye Institute services. Framing on the second floor for the outpatient surgical suites is well underway, and rough plumbing and electrical systems are being put into place. Following the luncheon, guests and the construction crew were able to sign an interior wall, effectively marking the occasion.

The Coral Gables facility is scheduled to open late 2016.

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Bascom Palmer Eye Institute Celebrates Official Grand Opening of New Naples Campus


Special to UM News

From left: Mayor John Sorey, Stephen G. Schwartz, Eduardo C. Alfonso, Steven Falcone, and Michael Gittelman.

From left: Mayor John Sorey, Stephen G. Schwartz, Eduardo C. Alfonso, Steven Falcone, and Michael Gittelman.

NAPLES, Fla. (October 29, 2015) — More than 150 friends and supporters of Bascom Palmer Eye Institute attended the official grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony at the new Naples campus on October 26.

Eduardo C. Alfonso, M.D., chairman of Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, and Stephen G. Schwartz, M.D., M.B.A., associate professor of ophthalmology and medical director of the Naples Center, cut a huge orange ribbon officially opening the new facility. They were joined by Naples Mayor John Sorey, Steven Falcone, M.D., M.B.A., executive dean for clinical affairs and CEO of the UHealth Physician Practice, and Michael Gittelman, executive hospital administrator of Bascom Palmer Eye Institute.

“This is truly an exciting time for Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, the Naples community, and the entire region we serve,” said Alfonso. “With this new 20,000-square-foot cutting-edge eye care center, we will be able to deliver the highest level of ophthalmic care, research, and education to our patients in Collier County for decades to come.”

The new Naples Center opened for patient care earlier this summer. The new building, which is LEED certified, a building certification program that recognizes leadership in energy and environmental design, has 22 examination rooms. A 5,000-square-foot ambulatory surgery center located on the second floor of the building is scheduled to open in 2016.

“The new Bascom Palmer campus at Naples will allow our doctors to treat virtually all eye diseases, from the most common to the most rare,” said Schwartz. “The patient demand for our services in Naples has grown exponentially. Not only are we expanding the space and our faculty and staff, but the number of clinical research trials offered to patients will increase.”

The $25 million state-of-the-art eye care facility in Naples was made possible by a construction loan from Bascom Palmer’s Ophthalmology Research Foundation. A number of naming opportunities are available within the Institute, some of which have already been accounted for by generous philanthropists and families living in the Naples community, including the Ernie D. Semersky family and Dory Newell and Allyn J. Heath, along with Monty and Usha Ahuja, Don and Connie Smith, and Shelia Davis.

Also present at the ceremony were members of the Greater Naples Chamber of Commerce and Bascom Palmer’s Naples Advisory Group, including Reg Buxton, Andrew Cummins, Stephanie Goforth, Jonathan Gopman, Colleen Murphy, Patrick Neale, William O’Meara, and Mayela Rosales, as well as many local politicians and community leaders.

 

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Community Leader Stanley Arkin Passes Away


Stanley Arkin

Stanley Arkin

UM News

CORAL GABLES. Fla. (August 27, 2025)—Stanley Arkin, a lifelong Hurricane, civic leader, and volunteer who chaired the board of governors at Bascom Palmer Eye Institute’s Anne Bates Leach Eye Hospital (ABLEH), passed away August 22, leaving an enduring mark on the institutions and community he loved. He was 82.

A 1953 graduate of the University of Miami, Arkin was a life member of the University of Miami’s Board of Trustees. As chairman of ABLEH’s board of governors from 1995 to earlier this year, he oversaw initiatives that resulted in the expansion of the hospital’s surgical suites and the renovation of its patient care areas, lobby, and waiting rooms.

“Stanley will never be forgotten at Bascom Palmer,” said Eduardo Alfonso, chairman of Bascom Palmer Eye Institute. “He provided guidance and wisdom to all of us who had the good fortune to work with him.  First as a volunteer, and then as chairman of the board of governors, he dedicated his heart, time, and energy to the institute that he loved.”

As president of Arkin Construction, Arkin built many projects in South Florida, including parts of Mount Sinai Medical Center, the Miami Beach Hilton, and the Miami Beach Jewish Community Center. After his retirement, he formed Arkin Consulting and worked on such projects as the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, Braman Management, and Jungle Island. He also served on the Miami Beach City Commission from 1984 to 1991.

“Stanley Arkin was just a wonderful human being with a passion for Bascom Palmer and a life member of the Board of Trustees,” former UM President Donna E. Shalala told The Miami Herald. “He was always the first to volunteer.”

Arkin was predeceased by his wife of 56 years, Jill, who often accompanied him to Bascom Palmer and was known for her grace and elegance. He is survived by their three sons, Bradley, Robert and Gregory; three grandchildren; and his brother Jules.

Donations in Arkin’s memory may be sent to Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, to the attention of the Development Department, 900 NW 17th Street, Miami, FL 33136.

 

 

 

 

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