For Immediate Release

5/12/2005

Estelle and George G. Rosenfield Establish Imaging and Macula Center at Bascom Palmer Eye Institute

A significant gift from Estelle and George G. Rosenfield to Bascom Palmer Eye Institute of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine led to the creation of the Estelle and George G. Rosenfield Imaging and Macula Center that celebrated its grand opening on May 12. The 6,000-square foot center houses an expanded photography and imaging center where diagnostic tests assist Bascom Palmer’s ophthalmologists in evaluating the progression of disease and determining appropriate treatment.

The new center enables ophthalmic technicians, nurses, photographers, and others to perform cutting edge diagnostic procedures including optical coherence tomography (co-invented by Carmen Puliafito, M.D., M.B.A., chairman of Bascom Palmer Eye Institute), angiography fundus photography, photographic studies, fluorescein studies, indocyanine green angiography and slit lamp photography. The tests will benefit a growing number of ophthalmology patients with all types of eye diseases and disorders including those in the areas of retina, glaucoma, cornea, and pediatric ophthalmology. Bascom Palmer Eye Institute and its photography department regularly participate in studies funded by the National Eye Institute of the National Institutes of Health. The images produced in the Estelle and George G. Rosenfield Imaging and Macula Center will play a vital role in these studies.

Longtime Coral Gables resident, George Rosenfield founded Tasco Corp. in 1954 and served as president for more than 40 years until selling the business in 1996. Tasco was the world’s largest distributor of optical products including binoculars and telescopes. Under Rosenfield’s leadership, Tasco was one of South Florida’s largest, privately owned businesses.

According to Dr. Puliafito, "George and Estelle’s lifetime interest in optics and lenses was a natural fit for the cutting edge work Bascom Palmer’s world class physicians practice everyday, with every patient they see. Thanks to the Rosenfield’s foresight and generosity, more than 34,000 patients will benefit every year."

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 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.