In 2001, the International Steven Hogendijk Award for Medical Engineering was awarded for the first time. A jury consisting of prof.dr. H.A. Buller (pediatrics), prof.dr.ir. C.J. Snijders (medical technology) and prof.(em.) dr. H.K.A. Visser (KNAW) chose ultrasound in pediatrics as his subfield.

After careful consideration, three people were selected who, through their years of research and efforts, have made a special contribution to the enormous progress of this field. 1) Ir. Jan Somers for his idea to apply electronic sector scanning in medical diagnostics. 2) Prof.dr.ir. Klaas Bom for his first working array ultrasound, which made moving images of a living heart possible. 3) Prof. David Sahn PhD, MD who was the first to use 3D echocardiography to diagnose heart problems in children.