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Her pioneering efforts continued with the use of cryotherapy and scleral buckling in the management of premature infants, which led to another double blind study supporting her findings. In 2000, as a highlight of her professional career and as a scientific contribution to ophthalmology, a ten million dollar endowment was established to build The McPherson Retina Research Center of the Eye Research Institute Health Sciences Learning Center and Visual Sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Medical School. The facility is currently under construction.
Dr. McPherson has trained a long succession of ophthalmology residents and fellows at Baylor College of Medicine. She has been an inspirational role model to the many post-graduate students who have benefited from her knowledge and experience during their retina fellowships. As an administrator, teacher, and researcher, Dr. McPherson demonstrates a unique spirit, a dedication to scholarship, and the highest of ethical standards.
In early recognition of the need for basic research to eradicate blindness, Dr. McPherson organized the Retina Research Foundation in 1969. RRF funds and administers research programs. Since 1973 it has administered a total of almost $20 million for retina research. The foundation has an endowment fund of approximately $39 million to help continue research grants and support six established research awards to be presented to retina scientists. The American Academy of Ophthalmology, The Retina Society, Schepens International Society, The American Society of Retina Specialists, Club Jules Gonin, Macula Society and the International Congress of Ophthalmology give these awards. Additionally, RRF funds three retina chairs, two at the University of Wisconsin Medical School and one at Baylor College of Medicine.
Dr. McPherson¹s incisive analytical ability and strong organizational skills have made her a popular choice for leadership in every organization to which she has belonged. Her involvement in organized ophthalmology has been extraordinary. She has served as founding President of the University of Wisconsin Ophthalmology Alumni Association, president of the Houston Ophthalmological Society; second vice president of the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO), vice-regent in Texas for the International College of Surgeons, trustee and vice-chair of Program Development for the Foundation of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, and member of the Planned Giving Committee of the Academy. Her service includes membership on many boards: the Ophthalmology Educational Trust Fund of the Foundation of the AAO, Highlights of Ophthalmology International; Eye Foundation of Kansas, Missouri, University of Wisconsin Foundation, and Pan-American Association of Ophthalmology Foundation.
Clinical and basic research have resulted in the publication of three classic texts in the field of vitreoretinal surgery: New and Controversial Aspects of Retinal Detachment; New and controversial Aspects of Vitreoretinal Surgery: and Retinopathy of Prematurity: Current Concepts and Controversies. Her bibliography includes 14 book chapters; 68 published articles, 136 lectures at meetings and numerous resident lectures.
Her honors include: Honor Award and Senior Honor Awards from the AAO; First Everett Veirs Lecturer at Scott and White Clinic; Award of Appreciation from the American Society of Contemporary Ophthalmology. The Alice R. McPherson, MD , Retina Research Laboratory at the Center for Biotechnology in The Woodlands, Texas was named in her honor. March 12, 1988 was designated Alice R. McPherson Day by the City of Houston. She received the Outstanding Medical Alumni Citation for 1988 from the University of Wisconsin, was honoree at the Vision of Hope Dinner for the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation in 1992; the American Journal of Ophthalmology Lecturer at the Pan-American Association of Ophthalmology Congress (PAAO) in 1993; the Doctor of Science Degree from the University of Wisconsin Medical College in 1997; the Benjamin Boyd Humanitarian Award at the PAAO Congress in 200l; and Inaugural Member Visionary Society at Gold Member Level from the AAO in 2004 . An Alice R. McPherson, MD Lectureship was established in her honor in 1994 at the University of Wisconsin. She is also a Fellow of both the American College of Surgeons and the International College of Surgeons.
Her strong support of community and arts organizations in Houston include the Museum of Natural Science, the Museum of Medical Science and the Museum of Fine Arts. She has been honored as a Houston Ballet Ambassador, Founding Member of the Houston Grand Opera President¹s Council, and a member of the Houston symphony Conductor¹s Circle.
Dr,. Alice McPherson enjoys a well-deserved international reputation as a retina specialist who has made significant contributions to her profession, her community, and humankind.
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