Awards

Father of Modern Retinal Surgery Honored by American Academy of Ophthalmology

SAN FRANCISCO -- Charles L. Schepens, M.D., of Boston, regarded by many as the father of modern retinal surgery, was presented with the Laureate Recognition Award by the American Academy of Ophthalmology, the Eye M.D. Association. Dr. Schepens was honored at the opening session of the Academy’s Annual Meeting on November 16, 2003 in Anaheim. The Academy’s Laureate Recognition Award is presented to those individuals who have made the most significant contributions to the science of ophthalmology.

The current practice of ophthalmology owes a great deal to the brilliance and energy of Dr. Schepens. He was one of a handful of ophthalmologists who recognized many years ago that progress in clinical practice must come through the joining together of basic, applied and clinical eye research.

In addition to being a practicing physician and retinal surgeon, clinical investigator, surgical innovator, and author of more than 401 medical papers and four books, Dr. Schepens has always maintained a firm commitment to education. He has trained over 170 vitreoretinal surgeons, and has given countless lectures and courses.

Born in Belgium in 1912, Schepens studied mathematics before turning to medicine. His interest in mathematics led to subsequent interest in ophthalmic instrumentation, resulting in development of the binocular ophthalmoscope. Dr. Schepens received his medical degree from the University of Ghent, Belgium in 1935, and after graduate research work he trained in eye diseases at Morrfields Eye Hospital, London.

When Belgium was invaded in 1940, Dr. Schepens became a medical officer in the Belgian Air Force. After his country fell to Nazi Germany, he escaped to France to become a distinguished leader in the French underground Resistance.

After the war, Dr. Schepens resumed his career in ophthalmology at Moorfields. He immigrated to the United States in 1947 as a fellow in ophthalmic research at the Howe Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Harvard Medical School. In 1949, he established and became the first Director of the Retina Service at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary, the first such service of its kind. In 1950, he established the Retina Foundation, which was renamed the Schepens Eye Research Institute (SERI) in 1974. Dr. Schepens also founded the Schepens Retina Associates in 1951 which is an organization devoted to patient care, training and education of retina specialists, and clinical research.

Dr. Schepens is founder and Chairman Emeritus of SERI; senior scientist at SERI; Emeritus Clinical Professor, Harvard Medical School; Surgeon Emeritus, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary; and founder of Schepens Retina Associates Foundation.

The American Academy of Ophthalmology is the world’s largest association of eye physicians and surgeons - Eye M.D.s - with more than 27,000 members.

Award at the Annual Meeting of the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery

Dr. Charles Schepens, the founder of Schepens Retina Associates and The Schepens Eye Research Institute, received an award at the Annual Meeting of the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgery (ASCRS) in Washington on April 12, 1999.

Dr. Schepens was selected as one of The Ten Most Influential Ophthalmologists of the Twentieth Century. The physicians selected for this honor were chosen by their peers–33,000 ophthalmologists in the U.S. and abroad–in two rounds of voting. The ophthalmologists were chosen for the innovations and inventions they had made which contributed to the transformation of ophthalmology to its present standard.

The brochure created by ASCRS contained the following information about Dr. Schepens:

"The current practice of ophthalmology owes a great deal to the brilliance and energy of Charles Schepens."

–Elliot M. Perlman, M.D., New England Ophthalmological Society