JACKSONVILLE, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 4, 2024--
Eye Health America (EHA), a leading integrated eyecare platform in the Southeastern United States, is pleased to announce its strategic partnership with Bowden Eye & Associates, a renowned ophthalmology practice in Jacksonville, Florida. This collaboration marks EHA’s 25th partnership and introduction into the Jacksonville market.
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Founded by Dr. Frank W. Bowden III, a distinguished cornea specialist and surgeon, Bowden Eye & Associates has served Northeast Florida for over two decades. With multiple Jacksonville locations, including Northside, Southside, St. Johns, and Eye Surgery Center of North Florida, the practice offers a wide range of comprehensive and specialty eye care services, including LASIK surgery, cataract surgery, glaucoma surgery, corneal transplants, dry eye treatment, general eye exams, and optical services.
“Our partnership with Eye Health America will enable continuity of cutting-edge specialty eye care services to the Northeast Florida community with the compassion and expertise which we have cultivated over the past 24 years,” said Dr. Bowden. “We are excited to work with Eye Health America as they share our commitment to organizational excellence and practice structure. “
As Eye Health America’s second partnership in Florida over the last 12 months, the alliance with Bowden Eye & Associates underscores the organization’s momentum in nurturing meaningful affiliations across the state.
“I am very proud of my team including Sarah Darbandi, M.D., Jerry Robben, O.D., Natasha Krzyanoswki, O.D., Philip Griffith, O.D., Thara Abu-Mallouh, O.D. and Patti Barkey, COE along with our supportive staff. Our practice platform should be a great addition to the Eye Health America network, and we look forward to the pending growth,” said Dr. Bowden.
“We are thrilled to bring Bowden Eye & Associates into the Eye Health America family. Dr. Bowden and his team have long been recognized for their leadership in eye care, and we are eager to work together to bring innovative, patient-centered care to even more communities across the Southeast,” said John Swencki, Co-CEO of Eye Health America. “This partnership represents an important milestone in our mission to deliver top-tier eyecare services throughout the region.”
Together, Eye Health America and Bowden Eye & Associates will leverage their commitment to clinical excellence and innovation to elevate patient care across the region.
About Eye Health America
Eye Health America partners with leading ophthalmology and optometry practices across the Southeastern United States to provide comprehensive medical and surgical eye care services. EHA's network offers a full spectrum of services including medical eye care, surgery centers, optical shops, and clinical research. The organization is led by an experienced team of healthcare veterans, including Co-CEOs Mary Lou Parisi and John Swencki; Chief Medical Officer Dr. Cathleen McCabe; Chief Financial Officer Kevin Becker; and Chief Operating Officer Jeremy Sieffert, along with a leadership team that features members from many of its partner practices.
About Bowden Eye & Associates
Bowden Eye & Associates is a Jacksonville-based ophthalmology practice known for providing a wide range of specialized eye care services. Led by Dr. Frank W. Bowden III, the practice has built a reputation for its expertise in LASIK, cataract, and glaucoma surgeries, as well as advanced corneal treatments. Bowden Eye & Associates operates across multiple locations, serving thousands of patients annually.
Eye Health America Announces Strategic Partnership with Bowden Eye & Associates, Expanding Presence into Eastern Florida. (Photo: Business Wire)
Israel said Monday that it has terminated the agreement facilitating the work of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, the main aid provider in Gaza, in what appeared to be a step to implement legislation passed last month that would sever ties with the agency and prevent it from operating in Israel.
Israel says the agency, known as UNRWA, has been infiltrated by Hamas. UNRWA denies the allegations and says it takes measures to ensure its neutrality.
On Sunday, Israel said its troops had carried out a ground raid into Syria to seize a Syrian it accuses of working with Iran. It was the first time in the current war that Israel announced its troops operated in Syrian territory.
Despite growing pressure from the United States and others in the international community for a cease-fire in Gaza and Lebanon, intensified Israeli strikes against the Hezbollah militant group are expanding beyond Lebanon’s border areas. Israel is also fighting a seemingly endless war against Hamas in northern Gaza.
Since the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah erupted last year, at least 2,900 people have been killed and 13,150 wounded in Lebanon, the Health Ministry reports, not including Friday’s toll. Health authorities say that a quarter of those killed were women and children.
More than a year of Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza has killed more than 43,000 people, Palestinian health officials say. They do not distinguish between civilians and combatants, but say more than half of those killed were women and children. The war began after Palestinian militants stormed into Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people — mostly civilians — and abducting 250 others.
Here’s the latest:
RAMALLAH, West Bank — A senior Hamas official said Monday members of the militant group held a meeting with a delegation from the rival Fatah party in Cairo to discuss the war in Gaza and the enclave’s future governance, though the meeting did not lead to any major breakthroughs.
Osama Hamdan described the talks between the two heavyweights of Palestinian politics as “positive” but “frank.” He said the two sides discussed the formation of a future government for the Palestinian territories but provided few details as to how and when that would occur.
“During this meeting, many ideas were discussed, including the formation of a body to follow up on Gaza’s affairs and needs on various issues until the conditions are ready to form a national consensus government,” Hamdan said.
In July, Hamas and Fatah agreed to form a government together, in its latest attempt at resolving a longstanding rivalry that looms over any potential vision for the rule of Gaza after the war with Israel. Israel has said it will not allow Hamas or Fatah to have any role in the future governance of Gaza
Hamdan reiterated Hamas' position on the cease-fire talks, demanding that any deal bring about a complete end to the war and full withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza.
DAMASCUS, Syria - Syria’s state news agency reported an Israeli airstrike on a southern suburb of the Syrian capital of Damascus, saying it caused material damage but not casualties.
SANA says the Monday airstrike hit near the suburb of Sayida Zeinab. Iran-backed groups are active in the area south of the capital, which is home to a holy Shiite Muslim shrine.
The Israeli military said the air force struck Hezbollah targets belonging to the group’s intelligence headquarters in Syria.
The military said in a statement that the target hit was Hezbollah’s central intelligence body, responsible for intelligence assessments, the direction of intelligence activities, and the intelligence gathering and detection capabilities.
The military said the body was led by Mahmoud Mohammed Shaheen, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in a Beirut suburb last month.
Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes on targets inside government-controlled parts of war-torn Syria in recent years, but it rarely acknowledges or discusses the operations. The strikes often target Syrian forces or Iranian-backed groups.
BEIRUT — Lebanon’s health ministry said more than 3,000 people have been killed during 13 months of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. At least 13,492 have been injured.
Hezbollah began firing rockets into northern Israel the day after Hamas’ surprise attack into Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, ignited the war in Gaza. Hezbollah and Hamas are both allied with Iran.
The conflict dramatically escalated on Sept. 23 with intense Israeli airstrikes on south and east Lebanon as well as Beirut’s southern suburbs, leaving hundreds dead and leading to the displacement of nearly 1.2 million people.
Israel began a ground invasion of south Lebanon on Oct. 1, causing wide destruction in border villages but making little advances on the ground inside Lebanon.
In Israel, 72 people have been killed from Hezbollah attacks, including 30 soldiers.
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Gaza Health Ministry says ambulances are no longer operating in the north of the enclave, where Israel has been waging a renewed offensive for nearly a month.
Eyad Zaqout, a senior ministry official, told reporters Monday that “a large number of injured people are bleeding on the roads.”
The ministry also said in a statement that Israeli forces continue to bombard Kamal Adwan Hospital with strikes on Monday, injuring some staff and patients.
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.
The Civil Defense, first responders operating under the Hamas-run government, said last week that they were no longer able to operate in the north because crews had been fired upon by Israeli forces.
Israel launched its latest offensive in northern Gaza in early October, focusing on Jabaliya, a densely populated, decades-old urban refugee camp where it says Hamas had regrouped. It has also carried out strikes in nearby Beit Lahiya.
Israel has ordered the entire population in northern Gaza to evacuate, and tens of thousands have fled to Gaza City in recent weeks.
The three hospitals serving the northern areas are barely functioning and have been largely cut off by the fighting. Israeli forces raided one of them, saying militants were sheltering there, allegations denied by Palestinian officials.
Israel has also sharply reduced the amount of aid allowed into Gaza, even after a warning from the United States that it could jeopardize American military support.
RAMALLAH, West Bank — Palestinian officials said Israeli settlers were behind an attack in which several cars were torched overnight just a few kilometers (miles) away from the Palestinian Authority’s headquarters in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
No one was wounded in the attack overnight into Monday in Al-Bireh, a city adjacent to Ramallah, where the Western-backed Palestinian Authority is headquartered. An Associated Press reporter counted 18 burned-out cars.
Settler attacks on Palestinians and their property have surged since the outbreak of the war in Gaza, which was triggered by Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack into Israel.
But attacks in and around Ramallah, home to senior Palestinian officials and international missions, are rare.
The Palestinian Authority, which administers population centers in the territory, condemned the attack. Israeli police, who handle law enforcement matters involving settlers in the West Bank, said they were investigating.
Israel captured the West Bank in the 1967 Mideast war, and the Palestinians want it to form the main part of their future state. The territory’s 3 million Palestinians live under seemingly open-ended Israeli military rule, with the Palestinian Authority exercising limited autonomy over less than half of the territory.
Over 500,000 Jewish settlers with Israeli citizenship live in scores of settlements across the West Bank, which most of the international community considers illegal.
TEL AVIV, Israel — Israel said Monday it had terminated the agreement facilitating the work of the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, the main aid provider in Gaza.
It appeared to be the first step in implementing legislation passed last month that would sever ties with the agency, which Israel says has been infiltrated by Hamas, and prevent it from operating in Israel.
The agency, known as UNRWA, denies the allegations and says it takes measures to ensure its neutrality.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it had notified the U.N. of the cancellation of an agreement dating back to 1967 that facilitates UNRWA’s work. It said UNRWA “is part of the problem in the Gaza Strip and not part of the solution.”
Aid groups have warned that the legislation could severely hamper UNRWA’s work, creating further obstacles to addressing a severe humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Israel has said other U.N. agencies and aid groups can fill the gap, but those organizations say UNRWA is essential.
The agency provides education, health and other basic services to Palestinian refugees from the 1948 war surrounding Israel’s creation and their descendants, who now number nearly 6 million. Refugee families make up the majority of Gaza’s population.
Palestinians inspect vehicles that were burnt during an early morning attack by Israeli settlers, that left at least 18 burnt vehicles, on the outskirts of the West Bank city of al-Bireh Monday, Nov. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)
Palestinians inspect vehicles that were burnt during an early morning attack by Israeli settlers, that left at least 18 burnt vehicles, on the outskirts of the West Bank city of al-Bireh Monday, Nov. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)
Mourners carry the body of Naji al-Baba,16, who the Palestinian Health Ministry said was killed by Israeli forces in the town of Halhul, West Bank, during his funeral on Monday, Nov. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)
Palestinians mourn over the body of Naji al-Baba,16, who the Palestinian Health Ministry said was killed by Israeli forces in the town of Halhul, West Bank, during his funeral on Monday, Nov. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)
Palestinians mourn over the body of Naji al-Baba,16, who the Palestinian Health Ministry said was killed by Israeli forces in the town of Halhul, West Bank, during his funeral on Monday, Nov. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)
People inspect a destroyed building hit in an Israeli airstrike, in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
A destroyed building hit in an Israeli airstrike, in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
People search for victims at a destroyed building hit in an Israeli airstrike, in Ghaziyeh town, south Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
People inspect a destroyed building hit in an Israeli airstrike, in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
Rescue workers search for victims at a destroyed building hit in an Israeli airstrike, in Ghaziyeh town, south Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
A man inspects a destroyed building hit in an Israeli airstrike, in Ghaziyeh town, south Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
People search for victims at a destroyed building hit in an Israeli airstrike, in Ghaziyeh town, south Lebanon, Sunday, Nov. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
Palestinians gather to receive bags of flour distributed by UNRWA, the U.N. agency helping Palestinian refugees, in Deir al Balah, central Gaza Strip, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Palestinians gather to receive bags of flour distributed by UNRWA, the U.N. agency helping Palestinian refugees, in Deir al Balah, central Gaza Strip, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Palestinians gather to receive bags of flour distributed by UNRWA, the U.N. agency helping Palestinian refugees, in Deir al Balah, central Gaza Strip, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
