University of Vermont College of Medicine Dean Frederick Morin, M.D., and Fletcher Allen CEO John Brumsted, M.D., have announced that Steven Braff, M.D., will be stepping down from his role as UVM chair of radiology and as leader of the Radiology Health Care Service at Fletcher Allen after ten years. Kristen DeStigter, M.D., the John P. and Kathryn H. Tampas Green and Gold Professor and vice chair of radiology at UVM/Fletcher Allen, has agreed to serve as the department’s interim chair and physician leader.

“We are grateful to Dr. Braff for his role as Professor of Radiology and as a chair and physician leader of radiology since 2004,” say Morin and Brumsted. “He has built a top-notch faculty and clinical service and played an integral role in the success of the Department, the College and Fletcher Allen.”

Braff, who will continue serving as professor of radiology and as a clinical neuroradiologist, facilitated Fletcher Allen’s status as a Philips Healthcare luminary site, which not only brought some of the highest quality radiology equipment available to campus, but also established the academic medical center as a showcase site for Philips customers worldwide. In addition, he has played an important leadership role with Fletcher Allen Partners, accomplishing the first Central Vermont Medical Center-based physician integration into the University of Vermont Medical Group with the radiology group last fall.

DeStigter brings clinical expertise, a breadth of operational experience and enthusiasm to this new role. She joined the UVM/Fletcher Allen faculty in 2001 as assistant professor and attending radiologist and was named vice chair in 2004 and promoted to full professor in 2013. Inducted as a fellow in the American College of Radiology (ACR) in 2013, she has served as president of the Vermont Chapter of the ACR, serves on the ACR Council Steering Committee, and is co-founder of Imaging the World, a nonprofit organization that developed and uses a new sustainable model for ultrasound imaging, making basic life-saving diagnosis accessible in the poorest regions of the world. She holds a medical degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and completed a residency in diagnostic radiology and a body imaging fellowship at University Hospitals of Cleveland, Ohio.