Dr. Sanford I. Finkel, senior vice president of medical affairs and research at Council for Jewish Elderly (CJE), has announced his retirement from the agency. A leader in the medical research field, Finkel has been affiliated with CJE since its inception in 1971, serving as senior vice president for the past three years.

While at CJE, Finkel was the principal investigator for the Partners in Care project, a multi-site study investigating potential for improvement in elderly geriatric care management, and the E-Care project, which places smart telephones in the houses of patients with dementia. Most recently, Finkel directed the development of an agency-wide quality assurance program, and developed joint programs between CJE and the local health care community.

Also a professor of clinical psychiatry at the University of Chicago Medical School, Finkel's clinical practice concentrates primarily on geriatric and adult psychiatry. Finkel is a frequent lecturer, and a prolific contributor of journal articles, book chapters, and abstracts.

An active member of numerous professional organizations, Finkel founded the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry and is co-founder of the International Psychogeriatric Association.

Dr. Samuel Epstein, professor emeritus of environmental and occupational medicine at the University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health, has received the Albert Schweitzer Golden Grand Medal for Humanitarianism.

The award, given by the Albert Schweitzer World Academy of Medicine, honors Epstein for his "longstanding and pioneering international contributions to cancer prevention."

Epstein is a leading authority and champion of cancer prevention issues. His lifelong work focuses on preventing exposure to environmental carcinogens in air, water, food and the workplace by informing the public of avoidable risks and influencing governmental policies.

Early testing of deafness and hearing loss along with timely intervention is vital to infant development

The first-ever Universal Newborn Hearing Screening Day was held recently at the James R. Thompson Center in Chicago. The event was sponsored by CHOICES for Parents, a coalition of parents and professionals throughout Illinois that promotes the health and development of children with newly identified hearing loss by providing their parents with immediate access to support, information and resources to help families make the best decisions they can for their children.

Photo courtesy of Bio-Logic Systems Corp.

"When parents learn their child has a hearing loss, it often is a shock," said Jill Sahakian, director, Chicago Hearing Society, a division of Anixter Center, one of the largest nonprofit organizations in Chicago that assists people with disabilities to live and work successfully in the community. "Ninety percent of deaf babies are born to hearing parents, so there usually is no family history of hearing loss." Chicago Hearing Society is a founding member organization of CHOICES for Parents.

Sharon and David Cerda, parents of Madison, who was born with severe-profound hearing loss, shared their story at the reception to mark Universal Newborn Hearing Screening Day. Madison, now 4, was tested for hearing loss the day after she was born. Early detection was vital as her parents, both hearing, coped with the news. The Cerda family now has learned sign language, and Madison is involved in developmental, occupational and physical therapy and has digital hearing aids. "The best thing was, CHOICES for Parents told us about all the resources that were available to us, but they didn’t tell us how we should feel," Sharon said. "They gave us the information we needed to make decisions."