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“Dr. Baas is well trained in the facets of eye disease as it relates to geriatric populations,” said Dr. Leonard Messner, executive director and vice president for patient care services at the Illinois Eye Institute. “Additionally, he has significant experience within the low vision arena. So he is somewhat of a unique provider in that he bridges the spectrum of primary eye care to the geriatric population with cognizance of the low vision options that are available to partially sighted individuals.” As service chief for the Rosenbloom Center, Dr. Baas will be responsible for all clinical practice activities at the Center, as well as for all of the College’s service-related educational activities. Other responsibilities of the position include developing the Center’s marketing plan, managing quality assurance and compliance issues, and creating a continuing education geriatric program. “As a fourth year student, I knew that I ultimately wanted to return to ICO in a role that allowed me to have the greatest and most influential impact on students, fellow faculty, and patients alike,” says Dr. Baas. “This exciting new position represents an ideal combination of clinical practice management and education, all the while paying tribute to, and continuing the legacy of, a true pioneer and role model in our profession.” The Rosenbloom Center will ultimately have four essential functions: to promote optometry students’ and practitioners’ increased knowledge and understanding of the inter-relatedness of aging and vision care; to provide vision care, counseling and support services for older adults and underserved communities in and around Chicago; to develop ongoing relationships with selected geriatric care facilities in the Chicago area for education and patient care services; and to sponsor vision-related geriatric research. About the Illinois College of Optometry and the Illinois Eye Institute The Illinois College of Optometry (ICO), founded in 1872 by Dr. Henry Olin, provides excellence in optometric clinical education and is one of the world’s leading optometric institutions. Located in Chicago, ICO has a long and distinguished legacy as the oldest continually operating educational facility in the world dedicated solely to the teaching of optometrists. The Illinois Eye Institute (IEI) is the clinical division of ICO. With over 95,000 annual visits, the IEI is the largest eye care provider in Chicago. For more information about the Illinois College of Optometry, visit www.ico.edu. #EricABaas #RosenbloomCenter #ServiceChief

CHICAGO ­— The Illinois College of Optometry is proud to announce the founding of the Alfred and Sarah Rosenbloom Center on Vision and Aging, a new facility devoted to the vision care needs of the aging population. The Center, located within the Illinois Eye Institute on the ICO campus, will ultimately have four essential functions: to promote optometry students’ and practitioners’ increased knowledge and understanding of the inter-relatedness of aging and vision care; to provide vision care, counseling and support services for older adults and underserved communities in and around Chicago; to develop ongoing relationships with selected geriatric care facilities in the Chicago area for education and patient care services; and to sponsor vision-related geriatric research. “The over-8o population is growing four times faster than any other segment of the population,” Dr. Rosenbloom says. “ICO’s reputation in terms of current and future education offers the opportunity to elevate standards and raise awareness for providing professional vision care to this age group. This may lead in time to the development of a Geriatric Care Patient Service Model, including care for many underserved individuals in assisted living facilities and in nursing homes.” The Center honors Dr. Alfred Rosenbloom and his wife, Sarah. Dr. Rosenbloom served as dean of ICO from 1955 to 1972, president from 1972 to 1982, and remains a distinguished professor emeritus. He was inducted into the National Optometry Hall of Fame in 2010, and continues to be a leader in the optometric profession. ICO President Arol Augsburger, OD, says the Rosenbloom Center is an exciting addition to the school. “To have a prominent ICO alumnus and his wife–and a former president of ICO–make such a significant leadership gift to ICO is transforming for the institution,” he says. “ICO will soon be the only optometric institution with a Center on Vision and Aging. This will emphasize and highlight our leadership position in optometry!” An estimated 6.5 million Americans age 65 and older have a severe visual impairment. The rate of severe vision loss will double by 2030, mirroring the increase in the number of people 65 and older. Adverse effects of vision loss include an increased risk of falls and fractures; depression; and difficulty with such daily tasks as identifying medications, bathing and dressing. About the Illinois College of Optometry The Illinois College of Optometry (ICO), founded in 1872 by Dr. Henry Olin, provides excellence in optometric clinical education and is one of the world’s leading optometric institutions. ICO offers aspiring optometrists the education and experience needed to meet the challenges of a changing health care environment and become leaders who will champion for patients and the profession alike. Located in Chicago, ICO has a long and distinguished legacy as the oldest continually operating educational facility in the world dedicated solely to the teaching of optometrists. #AlfredandSarahRosenbloomCenter

CHICAGO— The Illinois College of Optometry is proud to announce the appointment of college president Arol Augsburger, OD, to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Special Medical Advisory Group (SMAG). The Under Secretary for Health Robert Petzel, MD, made the appointment. Dr. Augsburger was nominated for the committee last fall by the Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry, in consultation with the American Optometric Association. “Dr. Augsburger is joining very elite company,” says former ICO president and past director of the VA’s Optometry Service Charles Mullen, OD.  “It’s a very prestigious and prominent position. Arol is the perfect individual for this position because of his global understanding of healthcare and because he’s so credible within the academic community.” SMAG advises the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Under Secretary for Health on matters relating to the care and treatment of veterans and other matters pertinent to the operations of the Veterans Health Administration, including research, education and training of health manpower, and contingency planning for the VA and Department of Defense. Group committee members meet twice a year. The next meeting will be this fall at the VA Central Office in Washington, DC. Dr. Augsburger was appointed president of ICO in 2002 and has spearheaded innovative educational, patient care and community programs. He has been honored with numerous awards, including the Distinguished Service Award by the American Optometric Association and state Optometrist of the Year in Illinois, Ohio and Alabama. About the Illinois College of Optometry The Illinois College of Optometry (ICO), founded in 1872 by Dr. Henry Olin, provides excellence in optometric clinical education and is one of the world’s leading optometric institutions. ICO offers aspiring optometrists the education and experience needed to meet the challenges of a changing health care environment and become leaders who will champion for patients and the profession alike. Located in Chicago, ICO has a long and distinguished legacy as the oldest continually operating educational facility in the world dedicated solely to the teaching of optometrists. #ArolAugsburger #ICO #president #SMAG

The Illinois Eye Institute has been selected as the only optometric clinic in the U.S. to investigate non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION) and potential links to PDE5 inhibitors (e.g. Cialis, Viagra). The IEI is one of 20 clinical trial centers designated to participate in the national study supported by Eli Lilly and Co. Eligible patients for the prospective case-crossover study are adult men with acute or sub-acute vision loss owing to NAION (within 45 days of onset of symptoms). The examination and related testing are free. If you have qualified patients for this study or wish to get more information, please contact Leonard Messner, OD, executive director of IEI, at lmessner@ico.edu. #IEI #NAION #nationalstudy

The ICO Residential Complex will be home to some beautiful pieces of art for the next year. Artwork from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago will hang in the RC as part of the SAIC’s Creativity in the Workplace program. The Creativity in the Workplace program – part of the department of Exhibitions & Events – affords students the opportunity to exhibit their work throughout Chicago in unconventional settings. The SAIC accepts work of all mediums from its students to exhibit as part of the program and chosen artists will receive an artists’ honorarium. There will be a reception April 10 for the student artists to showcase their work. There are only 10 companies/organizations in Chicago participating in the program. ICO is very proud to support student artists from our hometown! #CreativityintheWorkplace #ICOResidentialComplex #SAIC

Dr. Borish graduated from the Northern Illinois College of Optometry – a predecessor to ICO – in 1934. He served on the school’s faculty for eight years, including as assistant dean. He then established a private practice in Kokomo, Ind., and was instrumental in starting the Indiana University School of Optometry and the Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry. Dr. Borish’s influence has been felt at ICO and every other optometry school in the nation for decades. He authored numerous textbooks, including the much-used Clinical Refraction, and was granted five patents for contact lenses, including bifocal contacts. He was a founding member of the Indiana Chapter of the American Academy of Optometry, was a president of the Indiana Optometric Association and the editor of the Indiana Journal of Optometry. He served as adjunct faculty at several schools. When Dr. Borish retired from IU in 1982, he assumed the Benedict Professorship of Optometric Practice at the University of Houston. The school later established the Irvin M. Borish Chair in Optometric Practice, an endowed chair with more than $1 million of support. In 1995, Indiana University honored him by establishing the Borish Center for Ophthalmic Research. Dr. Borish received numerous awards during his career, including the the prestigious AOA Apollo Award for the visual betterment of mankind in 1968 and the AOA Distinguished Service Award in 1989. He was inducted into the National Optometry Hall of Fame in 1998. Dr. Borish is survived by his daughter, Fran Goldman, of Dallas, Penn. #FatherofModernOptometry #IrvinBorish #obituary

More than 5,000 Chicago Public School students benefit from Illinois College of Optometry program JANUARY 26, 2012 (CHICAGO) –  The Illinois College of Optometry is proud to announce that its partnership with the Chicago Public Schools to open a school-based eye clinic has resulted in treatment for more than 5,000 CPS students in the one year since it opened. The clinic at Princeton Elementary School on the city’s South Side was established in January 2011 as part of Chicago Vision Outreach, a program that provides charitable eye health and vision care to Chicago’s underserved populations. It is the first known model in the nation to deliver eye care services year-round to an urban school district. CPS estimates that 25 percent of its students fail vision screenings each year, have broken or lost glasses, or fail to get the eye exam mandated by law to enter an Illinois school system. “During the last year, we have seen a lot of children with significant vision problems. Some children were using friends’ or siblings’ glasses, and some kids had eye health issues that had never been identified or had been identified, but never treated,” says Sandra Block, OD, ICO professor and medical clinic director. “The clinic is part of a solution to address the unmet need of vision care for children within the city of Chicago; it is helping to eliminate one barrier to improved academic performance for many students.” The clinic is outfitted with 13 professional eye exam lanes and is open Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. ICO students provide much of the clinical care under the supervision of experienced optometrists, and the more complex cases are referred to the Illinois Eye Institute, ICO’s clinical facility, for further testing. Data gathered from the student visits this past year demonstrate the great need for the clinic. Approximately 75 percent of the treated children needed new or replacement glasses. Strabismus was present in 6.2 percent of the students, and amblyopia was identified in 8.5 percent. Previously undiagnosed glaucoma was found in two cases. Melissa Coleman, an optician at the clinic, says it has been a very rewarding experience to deliver new glasses to the students. “They’ve been going so long without being able to see properly,” she says. “Most of the time they say ‘Wow! Everything looks so big and so close to me!'” The program is currently funded through state reimbursement and private grants from the Lloyd A. Fry Foundation, the Chicago Community Trust, Alcon and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois. For a complete list of supporting organizations and individuals, visit www.ico.edu. #CPS #EyeClinic

For Wednesday, February 15, 2012 CONTACT: Jenni Gaster Sopko (312)949-7412, jsopko@ico.edu Illinois College of Optometry, Chicago Public Schools Celebrate First Year of Eye Clinic Partnership WHO & WHAT: The eye clinic at Princeton Elementary School was established in January 2011 to bring eye and vision care to CPS students identified as needing additional vision testing but who lack access to optometric services. Since then, more than 5,000 students have received much-needed care and follow-up treatment as needed. ICO and CPS invite you to an Open House to commemorate this first year of providing eye care services to CPS students. The celebration will be joined by Dr. Arol Augsburger, president of the Illinois College of Optometry, and Dr. Sandra Block, ICO professor and medical clinic director. CPS representatives also are expected to attend. There will be interview opportunities onsite, as well as guided tours through the clinic during the open house. WHEN: Wednesday, February 15, 2012, 10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. WHERE: Illinois Eye Institute at Princeton Elementary School 5125 S. Princeton Ave. Chicago, IL 60609 For more information about the school-based clinic, please visit www.ico.edu. #CPS #ICO #openhouse

FEBRUARY 1, 2012 (CHICAGO) – The Illinois Eye Institute welcomed 105 students from Dolton- Riverdale District 148 during the past two weeks for comprehensive eye exams, identifying more than 90 percent who required glasses but might otherwise not have had access to care. The visits, which took place Jan. 24 and 31, were arranged by the Illinois Eye Institute Foundation, the charitable division of the IEI that supports community outreach efforts to ensure eye and vision care for underserved populations. All of the students had failed school-based vision screenings. At the IEI, they were examined, then selected glasses that will be delivered to them at school in the coming weeks. Most patients were covered by public and private insurance; however, those children without coverage had their visit and glasses covered by the IEI Foundation and VSP Vision Care. The IEIF also provided transportation for the students to the clinic. “Our work today has enabled children to receive much-needed eye care to improve their daily lives in academics, athletics and other activities,” said Vincent Brandys, OD, executive director of the IEI Foundation. “The Illinois Eye Institute Foundation is pleased to continue its partnership with community organizations to provide eye care for those in need.” Illinois State Representative William Davis, whose district includes the Dolton Riverdale schools, accompanied the students who visited the clinic Jan. 24. During Tuesday’s visit, Mayme Buckley, director of external affairs of the Healthcare Consortium of Illinois, observed the clinic in action with Arol Augsburger, OD, president of the Illinois College of Optometry, and discussed possible future collaborations between her organization and the IEI Foundation. The Healthcare Consortium pursues collaborative ventures to improve the quality of life for all Illinois residents. About the Illinois Eye Institute Illinois Eye Institute (IEI) is the clinical division of the Illinois College of Optometry. IEI is a nonprofit, multi-specialty eye center that provides comprehensive eye care to individuals of all ages from the Chicago area and beyond, regardless of their financial status. The IEI has over 92,000 visits annually from a largely low-income, medically underserved patient population and provides charitable services and outreach programs through its foundation to assist people in need. For more information about the Illinois Eye Institute, contact Dr. Vincent Brandys at 312-949-7144. Caption for attached photo: Mayme Buckley, director of external affairs of the Healthcare Consortium of Illinois, and Arol Augsburger, OD, president of the Illinois College of Optometry, watch as a student from Dolton Riverdale School District 148 receives an eye exam during a visit to the Illinois Eye Institute in Chicago on Jan. 31. CONTACT: Jenni Gaster Sopko (312) 949-7412, jsopko@ico.edu. #DoltonRiverdale #HealthcareConsortiumofIllinois #IllinoisStateRepresentativeWilliamDavis

ICO is very proud to welcome American Optometric Association President Dori Carlson, OD, as the keynote speaker for the Class of 2012 commencement ceremony. Dr. Carlson, the first woman to serve as president of the AOA, also will be granted the doctor of science in optometry honorary degree during the May 19 event at Rockefeller Chapel on the University of Chicago campus. “The entire ICO community is very proud to have Dori Carlson as our commencement speaker this year,” said ICO President Arol Augsburger, OD. “She has spent a great deal of time meeting with optometry students around the country, and we are confident her words will  inspire our students as they leave ICO and begin their careers as optometrists.” Dr. Carlson was elected to the AOA Board of Trustees in 2004, re-elected in 2006 and became president in June 2011. Prior to taking office, she embarked on the highly popular Dori 20/20 tour in which she visited all 20 optometry schools in the nation within 20 months to talk to students and faculty and learn what matters to the next generation of optometrists. #AmericanOptometricAssociation #Commencement2012 #DoriCarlson

CHICAGO – Arol Augsburger, OD, president of the Illinois College of Optometry, was elected vice chairman for the Federation of Independent Illinois Colleges and Universities. Dr. Augsburger will serve on the Federation’s executive committee and join other leaders to represent the public policy interests of 61 Illinois nonprofit private colleges and universities. “I am honored to serve the Federation in this new capacity and be a voice not only for the Illinois College of Optometry, but for institutions like ours across Illinois,” Dr. Augsburger said. “The Federation is a dynamic advocacy organization that plays an important role in ensuring the needs of our state’s independent colleges and universities are being met.” Dr. Augsburger was appointed president of ICO in 2002 and has spearheaded innovative educational, patient care and community programs. He has been honored with numerous awards, including the Distinguished Service Award by the American Optometric Association and state Optometrist of the Year in Illinois, Ohio and Alabama. Dr. Augsburger has served as president of the Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO), including four years on the executive committee. He also has held several board offices and served as president of the National Board of Examiners in Optometry (NBEO). Prior to joining ICO, Dr. Augsburger served as interim provost at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). About the Illinois College of Optometry The Illinois College of Optometry (ICO) provides excellence in optometric clinical education and is one of the world’s leading urban optometric institutions. Since its founding in 1872 by Dr. Henry Olin, ICO has offered aspiring optometrists the education and experience needed to meet the challenges of a changing health care environment and become leaders who will advocate for patients and the profession alike. Located in Chicago, ICO has a long and distinguished legacy as the oldest continually operating educational facility in the world dedicated solely to the teaching of optometrists. For more information about the Illinois College of Optometry, visit www.ico.edu #ASCO #FederationofIndependentIllinoisCollegesandUniversities #NBEO #UAB

Good news for optometrists in Illinois: The Illinois State Plan for Medicaid has been changed to fully recognize optometrists as physicians, clearing the way for ODs in the state to be eligible for federal electronic health records reimbursement. The Illinois Eye Institute advocated for this significant change with a team of key players, led by Dr. Leonard Messner: Dr. Vince Brandys, IEI consultant Barry Maram, Rodney Peele from the American Optometric Association, and leaders from the Illinois Optometric Association. Illinois ODs already were treated as physicians for Medicaid payment purposes under the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, but they could not claim the EHR incentive without this change. Providers with a patient base of 30 percent Medicaid or more – such as the IEI – can claim $66,000 under EHR, instead of the $44,000 available as Medicare providers. The increased benefit also applies to doctors working in hospital settings, clinic settings or in qualified MD/OD settings. In addition, doctors who practice in Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) and Rural Health Clinics in Illinois will now be able to receive the encounter rate, rather than the Medicaid rate, for the facility in which they work. Illinois and Kentucky have successfully amended their state plans, and several states are working with the AOA to make this change as well. #AOA #CentersforMedicareampMedicaidServices #EHR #FQHCs