Dr Fong To Speak On Advances In Medicine

DANBURY — Just a few years ago, a coronary bypass was considered an alarming surgical procedure. Gall bladder removal was a major operation until laparascopy made it out-patient surgery. And a patient’s high cholesterol was life-threatening until the introduction of statin wonder drugs.

These are some of the “Remarkable Advances in Medicine” Dr Jack S.C. Fong will discuss at the Ruth A. Haas Library of Western Connecticut State University on Sunday, May 4, at 2 pm. The event is open to the public, and refreshments will be served. A donation of $3 is requested to offset costs.

“Many procedures that held a high degree of risk just a few years ago are now being performed routinely,” Dr Fong says. “Many that required long hospital stays are now performed on virtually an out-patient basis, and drugs now target problems precisely and with fewer side effects. We are looking at advances that may be termed miracles of medicine.”

A Newtown resident, Dr Fong has been chairman of the Department of Pediatrics at Danbury Hospital since 1985, in addition to serving as associate clinical professor in the Department of Pediatrics at Yale University School of Medicine since 1986, and clinical assistant professor at the School of Health Sciences & Humanities of Hahnemann University in Philadelphia. His presentation will include a look into the directions pharmaceutical researchers are taking to target medication to a patient’s unique DNA makeup.

The Ruth A. Haas Library regularly holds events for the campus community and area residents. For more information, contact the Haas Library Office of Communications and Special Events at 837-8628, or check events on the library’s website, www.wcsu.edu/library.

Dr Fong has seen first-hand how medical advances are radically improving life expectancy and patient prognoses. In addition to his appointment at Danbury Hospital, he serves as attending pediatrician of Green Chimneys Children’s Services in Brewster, is medical director of the Wellness On Wheels van service at Danbury Hospital, is on the local board of directors of Dream Come True in Danbury, is chief of the Children with Special Health Care Needs Clinic at Danbury Hospital, is school health advisor for the New Fairfield Public Schools. He is a member of the advisory council of Multidisciplinary Investigative Team for Child Abuse Prevention, Danbury Regional Commission on Child Care Rights and Abuse, in Danbury, member of the advisory board of Media Knowledge in New Fairfield, and a member of the Committee on Children with Disabilities for the Connecticut Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics in Hartford.

Until recently, he was a board member of Family Voices of Connecticut in Manchester, Conn. He has spoken widely on health and wellness issues, published professional papers, and received numerous awards for his leadership in community activities.