Kimberly Astrid Orr, AuD

Krishna G. Patel, M.D., Ph.D. joined the Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery in August 2008. She is a native of Athens, Georgia and attended Columbia University in New York City for her undergraduate education. She then earned M.D. and Ph.D. degrees through the combined program at the Medical College of Georgia, where she was awarded the Excellence in Research Award. Dr. Patel completed a residency in otolaryngology &- head and neck surgery at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. Following residency, she pursued fellowship training in facial plastic and reconstructive surgery at the University of California, Davis. During both her residency and fellowship training, Dr. Patel participated in volunteer medical trips to other countries to provide care to the medically underserved. Her recent trips to Ecuador and El Salvador involved surgically repairing children with cleft lips, cleft palates, and ear deformities. She is board certified by the American Board of Otolaryngology and by the American Board of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. As a member of the MUSC faculty, Dr. Patel's focus is in the areas of aesthetic facial plastic surgery, such as rhinoplasties, Botox, and blepharoplasties. Her practice also includes facial reconstructive surgery, facial trauma surgery, and reconstruction of Mohs defects. She is the director of the Craniofacial Anomalies and Cleft Palate Center and participates in the repair of cleft lips and palates. She also serves on the Executive Board of Directors for the American Board of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery. Dr. Patel sees patients in Rutledge Tower on the main campus of MUSC, as well as at off-site locations in Mount Pleasant.

Dr. Stephen A. Thacker is a pediatric infectious disease specialist providing inpatient and outpatient consultation services. He treats rare and complex conditions such as fever of unknown origin, recurrent fevers, congenital infections, tick-borne disease, and hardware-related infections in addition to travel and adoption medicine. Dr. Thacker strives to provide the best care possible in a patient and family-centered approach. He is passionate about patient safety and quality improvement of health systems. His research interests have ranged from vaccine and pharmaceutical studies to device research to reduce the risk of infections after surgery. He takes pride in advocating for the health of children and has held leadership positions in the American Academy of Pediatrics. Prior to joining MUSC in 2022, he was faculty at Mercer University School of Medicine in the Departments of Pediatrics and Bioethics and Humanities in Savannah, GA. He received several awards from the A.A.P. and the City of Savannah for his leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Thacker received his undergraduate and medical doctorate degrees at the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill. Following his Pediatric residency training in Nashville, TN at the Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Dr. Thacker completed subspecialty training in Pediatric Infectious Diseases at Texas Children's Hospital in Houston, TX. Dr. Thacker is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics and serves as Medical Director for the Pediatric Antibiotic Stewardship Program.