Dr. Karen Vaniver was born in Philadelphia. She received her education at Temple University and the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. She completed her general surgery residency at Brown University, and a fellowship in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the University of Florida.

For 11 years, Dr. Vaniver maintained a private practice in St. Joseph, MO where she served as Medical Director of the Heartland Regional Medical Center Wound Care program. She is relocating to the Puget Sound Area in 2006.

Dr. Vaniver is board-certified in general and plastic surgery. She is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons, and a member of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. She is past-president of the Missouri Association of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons and the Buchanan County Medical Society. She is a member of the Kansas City Plastic Surgery Society, Missouri State Medical Association, and the Association of Women Surgeons. In 2003, she was recognized as a "Hero in Medicine" by the American Medical Association, and she was inducted into the Maliniac Circle of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.

Dr. Vaniver has served for ten years with Interplast, a non-profit organization providing free reconstructive surgery for children around the world. She has traveled to Honduras, Peru, Nepal, Kenya and Vietnam.

Her personal interests included writing, painting, photography, scuba diving, singing, cooking and traveling.