Susan Standring facts for kids

Susan Standring is a famous British scientist who studies the brain and nerves. She is the main editor of a very important book called Gray's Anatomy. This book teaches people all about the human body.

Susan Standring used to be a professor of anatomy (the study of the body's structure) at King's College London. She also taught medical and dental students for over 40 years. Besides teaching, she has done a lot of research and written more than 150 scientific papers.

Her Journey in Education

Susan Standring started studying medicine in 1964. But she soon decided to focus on science and got a special degree called a PhD. This degree helped her become an expert in studying the nervous system.

Her Amazing Career

After getting her PhD, Susan Standring became a neuroscientist. This means she studies the brain, nerves, and how they work. She wrote over 150 articles about how nerves can repair themselves after injury.

She was also the president of two important groups: the Peripheral Nerve Society and the Anatomical Society.

Working on Gray's Anatomy

Early in her career, Susan had a great idea. She suggested making a list of all the books and articles used to write Gray's Anatomy. This was for the 36th edition of the book. After doing that, she helped edit the part of the book about nerves. Later, she became the main editor for the 39th edition of Gray's Anatomy. She still holds this important job today.

She has made the book even better by adding online versions and interactive pictures. These new tools help students learn about the complex parts of the body in a fun way.

Teaching and Helping Others

For over 40 years, Susan Standring taught anatomy to students who wanted to become doctors and dentists. Her teaching was so good that she received a special award in 2015. It's called the Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE).

Susan also helped students get into medical school. She worked at King's College London to create a program called "Access to Medicine." This program helps students from schools that might not have as many resources get a chance to study healthcare. She later helped other universities start similar programs.

Current Work and Contributions

Even now, Susan Standring continues to write about anatomy and the history of how we learned about nerves. She helps check the quality of anatomy teaching at several medical schools in the UK. She is also a trustee for the Hunterian Collection, which is a famous collection of anatomical items at the Royal College of Surgeons of England.

Her Research and Discoveries

Susan Standring's research has led to over 150 scientific articles. A big part of her work was about nerves, which helped her get involved with Gray's Anatomy.

She has discovered new things about how nerves are connected and how they can be different in different people. For example, she found new variations of nerves like the hypoglossal nerve and the marginal mandibular nerve. These discoveries are very important for doctors when they perform operations on the neck and face.

Susan also helped write a book about nerve regeneration (how nerves grow back) and nerve repair. Even after retiring, she keeps writing about anatomy and the history of nerve repair.