Massachusetts Eye and Ear and the Joslin Diabetes Center announced today that they have reached agreement to form a clinical and research alliance, aimed toward providing coordinated high quality care to eye patients throughout greater Boston, especially those with or at-risk for diabetes-related eye disease.
The new collaboration brings together Boston's two most advanced clinical eye departments, Joslin's Beetham Eye Institute (BEI) and Mass. Eye and Ear's Department of Ophthalmology. The alliance will provide an expanded Longwood Ophthalmology Service for present and future patients. The combined center will be co-located at the Joslin Diabetes Center at 1 Joslin Place and Mass. Eye and Ear's new ambulatory care center at 800 Huntington Avenue.
"Mass. Eye and Ear and Joslin's Beetham Eye Institute have had a long-time collaboration as part of Harvard Medical School's Department of Ophthalmology," said Joan W. Miller, Chief of Ophthalmology at Mass. Eye and Ear and Chair of Ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School. "Combining the expertise and resources of these clinical and academic giants will strengthen this collaboration and advance our shared goal of eradicating eye disease.
The collaboration will operate under the direction of BEI's medical director Dr. Lloyd Paul Aiello. Dr. Aiello is a vice-chair in the Harvard Department of Ophthalmology, as well as an accomplished clinician-scientist and a leader in the HMS angiogenesis research group. This group first identified vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) as a key regulator of abnormal new blood vessels in eye disease. Dr. Aiello is also the founding chairperson of the Diabetic Retinopathy Clinical Research Network and he already leads Mass. Eye and Ear's ophthalmology service at Brigham and Women's Hospital.
"It is an honor to lead such a talented group of physicians," said Dr. Aiello. "This enhanced collaboration between our two world-class institutions will provide an outstanding level of clinical care based on extensive experience and cutting-edge research for all patients with eye disease."
The Beetham Eye Institute has long led the way in both clinical care and research for patients with or at-risk of developing diabetic-related eye disease. This agreement assures that BEI will remain a vital center for providing coordinated, integrated and comprehensive care in preventing, diagnosing and treating eye problems related to diabetes.
Mass. Eye and Ear's areas of specialization include: cataract surgery, glaucoma, macular degeneration, corneal disease, oculo plastics, neuro-ophthalmology, vision rehabilitation, immunology/uveitis, genetics, eye tumors including choroidal melanoma and retinoblastoma, and laser vision correction.
About Mass. Eye and Ear
Mass. Eye and Ear clinicians and scientists are driven by a mission to find cures for blindness, deafness and diseases of the head and neck. After uniting with Schepens Eye Research Institute in 2011, Mass. Eye and Ear in Boston became the world's largest vision and hearing research center, offering hope and healing to patients everywhere through discovery and innovation. Mass. Eye and Ear is a Harvard Medical School teaching hospital and trains future medical leaders in ophthalmology and otolaryngology, through residency as well as clinical and research fellowships. Internationally acclaimed since its founding in 1824, Mass. Eye and Ear employs full-time, board-certified physicians who offer high-quality and affordable specialty care that ranges from the routine to the very complex. U.S. News & World Report's "Best Hospitals Survey" has consistently ranked the Mass. Eye and Ear Departments of Otolaryngology and Ophthalmology as top five in the nation. Mass. Eye and Ear is home to the Ocular Genomics Institute which aims to translate the promise of personalized genomic medicine into clinical care for ophthalmic disorders. For more information about life-changing care and research, or to learn how you can help, please visit MassEyeAndEar.org.
About Joslin Diabetes Center and the Beetham Eye Institute
Joslin Diabetes Center is the world's preeminent diabetes research and clinical care organization. Joslin is dedicated to ensuring that people with diabetes live long, healthy lives and offers real hope and progress toward diabetes prevention and a cure. Joslin is an independent, nonprofit institution affiliated with Harvard Medical School. Joslin Diabetes Center's Beetham Eye Institute is a world leader in diabetes eye care and in research to identify the causes of diabetic eye disease and to find new therapies to lessen the risks of vision loss. The care team at the Beetham Eye Institute is dedicated to delivering the best and most personalized, compassionate care. For more information about Beetham Eye Institute services, click here. For an appointment, call (617) 732-2552. To learn more about Joslin, please visit Joslin.org.