PROGRAM SITE:  Jesse Brown VA Medical Center & Hines Hospital, Chicago
PROGRAM COORDINATOR:  Charles Kinnaird, OD
(email:  Charles.Kinnaird@va.gov)
RESIDENCY DIRECTOR:  Janice Jurkus, OD, MBA
NUMBER OF POSTIONS:  3
PROGRAM DATES:  July 1-June 30                                              

Our program offers extensive exposure to the management of ocular disease ranging from medical / surgical through and including low vision rehabilitation. JBVAMC is affiliated with the Illinois College of Optometry and the University of Illinois Medical School.

The ocular disease program at Jesse Brown is located in a joint optometry/ophthalmology eye clinic with shared facilities and equipment. The clinic has twelve general examining rooms, two visual field rooms with threshold and kinetic instruments, a minor suite for surgery, laser (argon & krypton, YAG, SLT) rooms, photogra¬phy room, electrodiagnosis / ultrasonography & retinal topography suite, eye library, offices, and a conference room.   Full scope optometric and ophthalmologic ser¬vices are provided by seven O.D.’s, three VA opto¬metry residents, four optometry students, seven attending ophthalmologists, two ophthalmology fellows, three ophthalmology residents, and consulting ophthalmology professors from the University of Illinois, Dept. of Ophthalmology.  Residents provide routine eye examinations, visual field interpretation, ultrasonography, complete digital imaging (including OCT, digital fluorescein angiography and fundus photography), experience with ocular prostheses, and ultrasonography (both posterior segment as well as UBM).  Residents gain contact lenses experience with keratoconus, pellucid marginal degeneration, aphakia, corneal trauma, s/p PKP, s/p PRK or LASIK and anisometropia , and have access to a variety of gas permeable, hybrid and soft lens diagnostic fitting sets including: Synergeyes KC, A and Clearkone, Dynaintralimbal standard and post-graft, Rose K and Rose K 2, Soper, Cooper Prosthetic and Aphakic lenses, and standard RGP, bitoric and reverse geo lens kits with extensive parameters and power availability.

The low vision part of the program at Hines Hospital is located in the Central Blind Rehabilitation Center. There the optometry residents func¬tion to direct the clinical low vision services that are offered to veterans.  It is based on a multidisciplinary team approach to rehabilitation, where veterans are provided train¬ing with the intent of allowing adjustment to disability and reentry into community life. In addition to the inpatient services an Outpatient Clinic provides low vision rehabilitation services for both partially sighted and legally blind veterans located in the Chicago area.

Clinical conferences, seminars, and rounds take place at JBVAMC, University of Illinois Dept. of Ophthalmology, and the Illinois Eye Institute at the Illinois College of Optometry.  The resident is expected to attend weekly optometric conferences at JBVAMC, and participates in bi-monthly glaucoma & neuro-ophthalmology rounds, monthly retinal rounds and weekly Grand Rounds at UIC Dept. of Ophthalmology. 

For more information:
Phone: 312.569.7507
Website: www.chicagovaoptometryresidency.org

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September 7, 2012 (CHICAGO) — The Illinois College of Optometry has announced the winners of the 2012 Alumni Awards. Six optometrists and one corporation will be honored for excellence and leadership in education, philanthropy, research and patient care, as well as for their outstanding contributions to ICO and the optometric profession. The award recipients will be recognized during a banquet this evening at the Hard Rock Hotel Chicago.

A Lifetime Service Award will be presented to Robert L. Fait, OD, ‘68.  He has founded a private practice and several companies, including Genix Pharmaceuticals, Pentech Pharmaceuticals and Eye Care Wisconsin, which contracts vision care to HMO's and IPA's.  Since 1982, Dr. Fait has been supporting independent practitioners through Wisconsin Vision Associates, a fully authorized contact lens distributor and buying group that he founded to provide tools to help lower the cost of optical supplies. Dr. Fait is a member of ICO's Board of Trustees and has served in many other leadership positions throughout his career, including nine years on ICO's Alumni Council.

Mark K. Colip, OD, '92, vice president for student, alumni and college development at ICO, will receive the Alumnus of the Year Award. Dr. Colip’s leadership and 20 year commitment to the college has resulted in significant improvements including a highly selective admissions process, superior retention rates, expanded student life amenities and scholarships, and the establishment of ICO's Communications and Media Center. Most recently he has been instrumental in the achievement of increasingly successful fundraising outcomes which will benefit the program for years to come.

The Young Alumnus of the Year Award will be presented to Nathan Bonilla-Warford, OD, ‘04. He is the president and owner of Bright Eyes Family Vision Care, in Tampa, Florida, as well as a leading voice in optometry on topics including social media and practice management. Dr. Bonilla-Warford is also a member of the social media committee of the College of Optometrists in Vision Development and is chair of the Florida Optometric Association's Children's Vision Committee.

The Excellence in Education Award will be presented to Leonard V. Messner, OD, FAAO, a 1984 graduate of the Pennsylvania College of Optometry. Dr. Messner is the vice president for patient care services at ICO and executive director of the Illinois Eye Institute. As a professor at ICO, Dr. Messner has been awarded Teacher of the Year by students each year for the last 18 years.  He is considered an expert in the areas of retina-vitreous and neuro-ophthalmic disorders and, as such, has authored numerous professional pieces and lectured across the world.

Millicent L. Knight, OD ’87 will receive the Professional Achievement Award.  She is the owner of North Shore Eye Center and Integrative Eye & Wellness Centers, both located in Evanston, Illinois.  Dr. Knight was selected as the Key Legislative Person of the Year award in 2006 and the Optometrist of the Year award in 2011 by the Illinois Optometric Association.  She has served on the National Advisory Eye Council of the National Eye Institutes, on the Illinois Licensing and Disciplinary Committee of the Illinois State Board, and served 12 years on ICO's Board of Trustees.  Dr. Knight was recently recognized as one of Vision Monday's "2012 Most Influential Women in Optical" for her mentoring work with students and practitioners.

Casey L. Hogan, OD, FAAO, ‘97 will receive the Humanitarian Award for her service and leadership to enrich the lives of those in her community. Dr. Hogan has served on the board of Special Olympics Chicago for the past six years. She is actively involved in the development and organization of fundraising activities for both Special Olympics and the Chicago Police Memorial Fund. Dr. Hogan also founded the South Michigan Avenue Merchant’s Association and served as its president from 2005-2009.


Alcon will receive the Distinguished Friend Award in recognition of its partnership with ICO, which has helped to support and enhance educational programming and patient care services at the college. As a strategic partner of the college, Alcon has demonstrated outstanding support of continuing education programs and ICO’s Practice Opportunities Symposium, which provides professional resources and networking opportunities for students, faculty and alumni.

Illinois College of Optometry students conducted sports vision screenings for UIC athletes. The purpose of this screening is to determine if vision or eye problems are limiting athletic performance. Take a look at their experience at UIC.

The Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center is the first-of-its-kind partnership between the U. S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense. This fully-integrated federal health care facility has the mission of “Readying Warriors and Caring for Heroes.”

A combined mission of the health care center translate to active duty military, their family members, military retirees and veterans are all receiving care at the facility. The health care center and its branch clinics ensure that nearly 40,000 Navy recruits transitioning through Naval Station Great Lakes each year are medically qualified. We care for nearly 67,000 eligible military and retiree beneficiaries each year and provide first-rate care to veterans throughout Northern Illinois and Southern Wisconsin. There are two residency positions offered at the FHCC; uniquely, both a military and a civilian position are offered.

Optometry Clinic at the West Campus
The optometry clinic on the West Campus is headed by an active duty Navy optometrist, who is supported by two civilian optometrists along with one active duty Navy optometry resident. The ophthalmology clinic is supported by two full- time civilian ophthalmologists and part-time consultants. The ophthalmology specialties available are vitreo-retina, neuro-ophthalmology, oculo-plastics, cornea and glaucoma. The merger of VA and DoD provides an opportunity for optometry to work closely with ophthalmology to provide supervision and a vast patient-base to facilitate an advanced clinical training environment in primary care and ocular disease. In addition, this program meets the unique mission of the Navy, VA and the FHCC.

MISSION GOALS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE RESIDENCY

Mission:
The mission of this Residency in Primary Care and Ocular Disease at Federal Health Care Center is to provide advanced clinical competency and schol-arly development for the Navy and civilian post-graduate optometrists so that they can get the ultimate preparation to meet the mission of the Navy in all military settings.

Goals:
To provide supervised clinical education experience, resident will: 

• Examine a minimum of 1,500 patients in clinic either alone or in conjunction with optometry and/or ophthalmology supervisors during the course of the residency. 
• See all stat consults to the clinic with optometry and/or ophthalmology supervisors during the course of the residency. Mini-mum of 50 stat consults need to be seen in 12 months.
• See at least 25 cases in which nutritional deficiencies are assessed based on clinical examination. 
• Spend a minimum of 8 hours of clinical observation in each of the following clinics: neurology, cardiology (peripheral vascular lab) and primary care clinic. 
• Maintain a log of patients seen in the ICO Meditrek system. 

To advance their academic education and training, residents will: 

• Present at grand rounds to Illinois College of Optometry students and faculty. 
• Attend a national or regional optometric meeting and will be encouraged to do a clinical poster during residency.
• Produce a research paper, literature review or case report of publishable quality by the end of the program. 
• Participate in monthly journal club discussions learning to critically review current ophthalmic literature in order to promote lifetime learning. 
• Be encouraged to sit for the Advanced Competency in Medical Optometry examination. Prepare for the Academy of Optometry Fellowship oral boards to attain FAAO status. 
• Maintain a log of scholarly schedule and a didactic activity log. 
• Provide resident didactic education to support patient care he/she will attend weekly conference at ICO. Be provided a recommended reading list.