RSNA Names New President

Richard L. Baron, M.D., FACR, was named president of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) Board of Directors at the Society’s annual meeting this week in Chicago, Ill.

Baron is professor of radiology at the University of Chicago Medical Center, where he has been since 2002, serving as chair of the Department of Radiology from 2002 to 2011 and dean for clinical practice from 2011 to 2013. At the University of Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania), he chaired the Department of Radiology from 1992 to 1999, and was founding president and CEO of the University of Pittsburgh Physicians from 1997 to 2002.

As president, Baron will focus on fostering the development of new radiological innovations, and facilitating education into the daily practices of RSNA members. Bringing together RSNA members and participants from around the world to maximize their educational opportunities and experiences will be an important emphasis.

“My former position as board liaison for education and international affairs afforded me the opportunity to interact with a large number of members worldwide and to understand the important role these volunteers hold in ensuring that the RSNA remains an essential component of radiology science and education development and communications,” he said. “I look forward to representing the RSNA worldwide with our extensive membership and with other national and international radiology organizations. Building bridges among radiology communities, based on providing collaborative opportunities, education and resources, is an important role for the RSNA.”

In 1972, Baron graduated cum laude from Yale University and earned his medical degree in 1976 at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Mo., where he was elected to Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society. An internship in internal medicine at Yale University was followed by his radiology residency and abdominal radiology fellowship at the Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology at Washington University. Later in his career, he continued his education at the Katz Graduate School of Business at the University of Pittsburgh.

Baron has authored or co-authored 118 peer-reviewed scientific articles, one book, 53 book chapters and review articles, and numerous scientific and educational exhibits. He has presented hundreds of invited lectures. He has served on the editorial boards and as manuscript reviewer for multiple journals, including Radiology, American Journal of Roentgenology, Journal of Computer Assisted Tomography, Liver Transplantation, Gastroenterology and European Radiology. He served as an associate editor of Radiology from 1991 to 1996 and Liver Transplantation from 2004 to 2009.

During his career, Baron has been an active member of several medical societies and organizations, including the American College of Radiology and the American Roentgen Ray Society (ARRS), and he is a past president of the Society of Gastrointestinal Radiologists and the Society of Computed Body Tomography and Magnetic Resonance. Baron served on the Board of Directors of the UPMC HealthCare System from 1997 to 2002 and on The Joint Commission Professional Technical Advisory Committee from 2007 to 2011.

Over the years, Baron has been principal investigator on a dozen research projects and has earned research awards from numerous national radiology societies, especially in the area of diagnostic imaging of liver disease. The RSNA has presented Baron with two Magna Cum Laude Awards, and the ARRS awarded him gold and silver medals for educational exhibits. The European Society of Gastrointestinal and Abdominal Radiology awarded Baron an honorary fellowship in 2008. In addition, the Asian Oceanian Society of Radiology awarded Baron its gold medal in 2014.

An RSNA member since 1978, Baron has served on many committees, such as the Scientific Program Committee, Public Information Advisors Network, Finance Committee and the Education Exhibits Committee, where he served as chair from 2006 to 2009. In 2008, he was elected to the RSNA Board of Directors and served as the Board liaison for education and international activities. He served as Board chair from 2013 to 2014, and president-elect from 2014 to 2015.