ATA News Release 2003

Clark T. Sawin, MD, Takes Office as President
of the American Thyroid Association

(FALLS CHURCH, VA) - Clark T. Sawin, MD, of Washington, D.C., is the new president of the American Thyroid Association (ATA), the leading professional society of physicians and researchers who specialize in diseases of the thyroid gland. Dr. Sawin took office at the close of the ATA 75th Annual Meeting, Sept. 21, 2003, in Palm Beach, Fla., and will serve a one-year term.

"As ATA president, I will continue to support our efforts to raise funds for thyroid research, to expand the public's knowledge of thyroid disease, and to expand the membership, particularly focusing on efforts to bring in younger members," said Dr. Sawin. "I also will lead the organization in keeping with the goals of the ATA Strategic Plan."

Dr. Sawin is the medical inspector for the Veterans Administration’s health care system in Washington, D.C., responsible for monitoring quality of care. Prior to this position, he was chief of the Endocrine-Diabetes Section at the Boston VA Medical Center from 1966-1998. He joined the Tufts faculty in 1966 and was a professor of medicine at both Tufts and Boston University schools of medicine.

His research interests are the history of thyroid disease and the long-term epidemiology of thyroid disease in the Framingham study. Dr. Sawin received his medical degree from Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston and completed his internship at the University of Illinois Research and Educational Hospitals in Chicago. After serving in the U.S. Army Medical Corps in Korea and Massachusetts, he completed his residency in medicine at New England Medical Center Hospitals and the Boston VA Hospital. He also performed a U.S. Public Health Service Postdoctoral Research Fellowship in endocrinology at New England Medical Center Hospitals.

An ATA member since 1972, Dr. Sawin has served on and chaired the Education Committee. For the past 15 years, he has chaired the History and Archives Committee, and, for more than 10 years, he has lectured on thyroid history at ATA annual meetings.

The American Thyroid Association, www.thyroid.org, is the North American professional society for physicians and researchers specializing in diseases of the thyroid gland. The ATA promotes excellence and innovation in clinical care, research, education, and public advocacy.

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