Medical alums honored for continuing excellence at Reunion Weekend

From research into marginalized patients to spearheading health care programs, the recipients of the Brown Medical Alumni Association Awards represent the ongoing commitment of Brown physicians to equity and social justice, as alumni gathered to celebrate during Commencement-Reunion Weekend in late May.

Among this year’s recipients is Grace Farris ’04 MD’08, who was honored with the Early Achievement Award. A faculty member of the Internal Medicine Residency program at the University of Texas at Austin, Dell Seton Medical Center, and Seton Medical Center, she approaches health education from the unique perspective of a cartoonist.

Farris, who contributes to several publications, including medical journals, wrote a daily strip in the Brown Daily Herald as a student, but afterward she didn’t spend too much time thinking about cartooning. One of her supervisors, however, introduced her to the growing field of graphic medicine, which utilizes comics in medical education, and its positive influence on people’s understanding of health and research.

“I started doing comics about medicine and the culture of medicine in the Annals of Internal Medicine, which is a very serious journal,” she says. Farris would go on to author a monthly column, “Dr. Mom,” fostered an audience of her own around the globe, and wrote the book Mom Milestones: The TRUE Story of the First Seven Years.

“Comics are a great way to explore complicated topics,” Farris says. “You can make it more accessible for people and get at their emotions in interesting ways.”

Farris says she was surprised and honored to receive the Early Achievement Award.

“I feel grateful to have started this journey in Rhode Island at Brown. It’s such an interdisciplinary and empowering place to start off as a student,” she says. “I feel lucky to be part of this community and it’s a testament to what I’ve always experienced at Brown—this permission to have a creative life in addition to pursuing medicine.”

Brownsyne Tucker Edmonds ’00 MD’05 received this year’s Galen V. Henderson MD’93 Award for Excellence in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. As the vice president and chief health equity officer at Indiana University Health, and dual faculty appointments as associate professor of obstetrics & gynecology and pediatrics at Indiana University School of Medicine, Edmonds boasts expertise in public health and health policy. Her commitment to equitable care is reflected in her research, which focuses on how social and cultural influences shape patient-provider communication and medical decision-making. Edmonds also serves as the Indiana State Legislative Chair for the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, shaping health policy at state and national levels.

Tatiana M. Gellein ’10 MD’16 received the Junior Alumni Award for Excellence in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, for her work as an assistant professor of pediatrics at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and a pediatrician at Olive View-UCLA Medical Center. Gellein led the transformation of the UCLA pediatrics residency through the support of a diverse workforce committed to serving an equally diverse patient population facing unique social, economic, geographic, and racial inequities. She also co-chairs the Pediatric Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee at Olive View, with her clinical work concentrates on reducing health inequities for children in the child welfare system.

Shannon M. Thyne MD’95, P’28, director of pediatrics for the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services, received the W.W. Keen Award. During her 15-year tenure at the University of California, San Francisco, she helped establish the Pediatric Leadership for the Underserved Program, and continues teaching and carrying out clinical practice at Olive View-UCLA Medical Center. Thyne also led California’s ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences) Aware Initiative, as she focuses her clinical care, research, and leadership on advancing equitable access to health care.