The American Society of Head and Neck Radiology (ASHNR) awarded its Gold Medal for 2003 to Katherine A. Shaffer, MD, of the Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. The award was presented during the ASHNR 37th Annual Meeting, held October 1–5 at Marriott’s Rancho Las Palmas Resort and Spa, in Rancho Mirage, CA. The award is presented annually to a member who has provided dedicated service to the Society and to the science of head and neck radiology.
Dr. Shaffer was born Katherine Anne Herkner, in Detroit, and grew up in St. Joseph, Michigan. She attended DePauw University, in Indiana, where she graduated Phi Beta Kappa. She then attended the University of Michigan Medical School, in Ann Arbor. After graduating from Michigan, Dr. Shaffer completed her residency in radiology at the Medical College of Virginia, Richmond. She became board certified in radiology and joined the staff of the Medical College of Wisconsin to do head and neck, as well as breast, imaging. In 1992, Dr. Shaffer achieved the rank of full professor.
Dr. Shaffer’s academic career has been long and distinguished. She recently served as president of the Wisconsin Radiologic Society. She is a fellow of the American College of Radiology and has served on numerous committees, including the Council Steering Committee and chair of the Committee on Radiologist Resources. She represented the ASHNR and the American Association for Women Radiologists (AAWR) on the Intersociety Commission of the College. She has also chaired two committees for the Radiologic Society of North America. She is a member of the Milwaukee Roentgen Ray Society, American Roentgen Ray Society, Association of University Radiologists, Society of Breast Imaging, and the AAWR. Dr. Schaeffer has served on numerous AAWR committees and was the AAWR president in 1992. She also served for on the ACGME Residency Review Committee for Diagnostic Radiology for 6 years, chairing the committee for the last 2 years. Within the Medical College of Wisconsin community, Kay has also served as chair of the Women’s Faculty Council and the Nominating Committee.
Dr. Schaeffer has also developed a reputation in the field of breast imaging and currently serves as chief of the Section of Breast Imaging at Wisconsin.
Dr. Schaeffer was a charter member the ASHNR. She became the ASHNR president in 1987 and hosted and organized the Annual Meeting in Milwaukee that year. She has written or cowritten numerous articles and several chapters on head and neck imaging, many of which were coauthored with her close associate, June Unger. Dr. Schaeffer has been a pioneer in the use of CT for temporal bone imaging. The medical imaging establishment was slow to accept CT in this role, and many of her articles focused on the improvement in resolution provided with this technique.
For more information on the ASHNR Gold Medal Award or on the Society in general, please contact Business Manager Ken Cammarata. Phone: 630/574-0220, ext. 226; FAX: 630/574-0661, E-mail: kcammarata{at}asnr.org; Internet: www.ashnr.org.
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