Name: Dr. Kathryn Brown (she/her/hers)
Job Title: Cardiologist, Regional Director of Cardiac Diagnostics, Medical Director of Cardiology
Years of Service: 7
Worksite: Kelowna General Hospital
Community: Kelowna
Ancestral Territory: Syilx Okanagan
Advice to live by: Life is 10 per cent what happens to you, and 90 per cent how you react to it.
An adrenaline lover and avid traveller by heart, Kathryn is also a passionate and dedicated physician leader at Interior Health. She started her physician career as a cardiologist, and has now expanded her role to also serve as an administrator and leader as Regional Director of Cardiac Diagnostics and Medical Director of Cardiology.
“Being a physician is inherently a privilege,” shares Kathryn. “You care for people at their most vulnerable, frightened, hopeful and every phase in between. To immediately be trusted, confided in, and have people place their bodies, their futures and their fears in your hands is an amazing and humbling honour that I try to live up to every day.”
In this work, she helps improve and shape the future of heart health and care in our communities – yet another amazing opportunity she says she is grateful for.
Learn more about her journey with IH
One of her proudest moments comes out of the COVID-19 pandemic, watching and working with her team and colleagues.
“Although the pandemic has stretched every one of us to the point of breaking, every single day we showed up to work to problem solve and navigate how to continue to provide the best health care we could. We have seen creativity, collaboration and resilience on all fronts that I didn't previously know was possible. I am very proud of our health-care community and every member of our team who enabled us to continue caring for patients. From supply chain and housekeeping to critical care – every person was needed and we were able to move forward together.”
Kathryn adds that one of the bravest things we can do is to ask for help or admit we don't understand something.
“It is empowering, not vulnerable. We have completed incredible projects and advancements with regional cardiac diagnostics just by asking ‘how can we make this better?' without any preconceived agenda or solution. By opening up the dialogue to everyone, some amazing suggestions come from the most unlikely places.”
Before medical school, Kathryn couldn’t get enough of adrenaline sports and high-risk activities like motorcycling, sky diving, and bungee jumping.
“I tried it all! But that all came to a hard stop after my first trauma rotation as a med student. Also, my spouse literally banned me from anything faster than a pedal bike, and I am a terrible cyclist.”
Today, Kathryn’s number one passion outside of work is travel, travel, travel.
“It has been a difficult two years waiting for the opportunity to safely venture out and explore more of this amazing planet we share. Good food, drinks and hiking to see a brand new sunrise - nothing beats it!”
Kathryn hails from Victoria and in a few words describes herself as a doctor, friend, doodle owner and realistic optimist.
Kathryn nominates Kathleen McCaig, Nurse Practitioner, to keep We Are IH going:
“Kathleen is an incredible administrator, clinician and colleague. She has helped grow our transcatheter aortic valve program (TAVI) year after year while still maintaining an active clinical role and leadership role(s). Kathleen will always find time to ensure every patient is comprehensively cared for while still juggling the many roles she fills.” – Dr. Kathryn Brown
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