Lifespan and Brown University announce the appointment of Linda L. Brown, MD, MSCE, as the Chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine and physician-in-chief of emergency medicine for Rhode Island Hospital and its Hasbro Children’s Hospital, The Miriam Hospital, and Newport Hospital, effective November 1, 2023. Dr. Brown will also assume the role of president of Brown Emergency Medicine, a faculty practice group that is a member of Brown Physicians, Inc. In addition, she will hold the esteemed Frances Weeden Gibson-Edward A. Iannuccilli, MD, Professorship in Emergency Medicine.
Dr. Brown, a professor of emergency medicine and pediatrics, previously served as the Vice Chair of pediatric emergency medicine for Brown Emergency Medicine and as the Director of the Lifespan Medical Simulation Center. Since December 2022, she has been serving as the interim chair of Emergency Medicine and physician-in-chief.
"I am thrilled to have one of our own former trainees take the helm of the Department of Emergency Medicine, which plays such an important role not only in our academic medical center but in the health care of Rhode Islanders," said Lifespan President and CEO John Fernandez. "Dr. Brown is widely recognized as a national leader in pediatric emergency medicine, and is a highly accomplished researcher on pediatric resuscitation and pediatric disaster triage. She is thoroughly qualified and has earned this well-deserved appointment."
"Among Dr. Brown’s many qualities is a deep commitment to medical education and mentoring," said Brown University Senior Vice President for Health Affairs and Dean of Medicine and Biological Sciences Mukesh K. Jain, MD. "She is an outstanding educator and leader for our medical students and residents."
Throughout her tenure at The Warren Alpert Medical School and Lifespan, Dr. Brown has received numerous accolades, including the Brian J. Zink, MD Outstanding Leadership in Emergency Medicine Award, the Brown EM Foundation Award, the Libby Nestor, MD Outstanding Mentor Award, the Jacek Franaszek Exemplary Educator Award, and the Barnet Fain Quality Award, among others. Nationally, she has been honored with the Dr. Marianne Gausche-Hill Award for Teaching Mentorship and the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine Simulation Academy Distinguished Educator Award.
"I am honored to lead a department dedicated to providing the highest quality, compassionate, and equitable emergency care to the patients in our communities," said Dr. Brown. "I am eager to support and expand the strong tripartite mission of the Department of Emergency Medicine, with a focus on innovation in education and research, diversity and inclusion, community engagement, and improving the well-being of all physicians and providers."
Dr. Brown earned her undergraduate degree in biology from Colby College in 1992 and her medical degree from Pennsylvania State College of Medicine in 1997. She completed her residency in pediatrics, including a year as chief resident, at Hasbro Children’s Hospital/Brown University. Following this, she pursued a fellowship in pediatric emergency medicine at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia in 2004, during which time she also obtained a Master of Science in Clinical Epidemiology from the University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Brown returned to Brown and Hasbro Children’s Hospital in 2007 after working as an attending physician at Yale-New Haven Children’s Hospital and an assistant professor of pediatrics and emergency medicine at Yale School of Medicine.