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About Me
Katie was born in raised in Nebraska, where she also attended the University of Nebraska-Lincoln for her undergraduate education and then attended the University of Nebraska Medical Center for medical school. Through volunteering during these early experiences, she discovered a passion for hospice as well as for the care of children and adolescents. She was able to combine her interests with a residency in Internal Medicine and Pediatrics and was thrilled to match to the University of Utah med-peds program. She was drawn to the culture and energy of the program and hospital systems, with focus on providing excellent patient care, work-life balance and compassion for our patients and each other. During residency Katie discovered an often unmet need for many patients- support through the transition from pediatric care to adult care for patients with chronic diseases of childhood. This area has grown into a career focus that encompasses many of her favorite parts of medicine and makes good use of her med-peds training and current training. Palliative and hospice medicine has remained a focus throughout this journey, with most patients and families with such conditions benefitting from pain and symptom management, care coordination and longitudinal supportive relationships, and end of life care appropriate for their specific needs. There is also potential for a great deal of innovation and collaboration with adult providers as more and more people with chronic conditions are experiencing longer life expectancies, which challenge our knowledge of disease processes and ability to support quality of life, and require knowledge and skills not routinely taught to categorically adult trained providers. Katie was the inaugural fellow in the Baylor Transition Medicine Clinic - Developmental Medicine fellowship in Houston, TX where she spent the year working with experienced providers in providing primary care for adults with chronic diseases of childhood, learning from various subspecialists in adult and pediatric medicine, and gaining experience with community resources and social supports for these patients. She is thrilled to be returning to SLC as a Hospice and Palliative Medicine fellow to continue expanding her knowledge and skills. She hopes to work in pediatric and adult general medicine and palliative care with a focus in transition-aged patients with medical complexity and intellectual disability.