Caitlin S. Brown, Pharm.D., MPH, FCCP, FCCM, BCCCP, is an associate professor of emergency medicine and pharmacy and a medication knowledge management pharmacist at Mayo Clinic. She earned her Pharm.D. degree at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia and her master’s degree in public health from the University of Minnesota. She completed a PGY1 residency at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and a PGY2 critical care residency at Maine Medical Center in Portland, Maine. After residency, she worked as a critical care and emergency medicine pharmacist at Mayo Clinic for 8 years before transitioning to a medication knowledge management pharmacist.

At present, she supports 3 academic centers and more than 10 community and critical access hospitals. In this role, she develops, maintains, and standardizes key enterprise pharmacy resources to promote safe, consistent, and evidence-based medication use across diverse practice settings. She also responds to drug information inquiries from clinicians and pharmacists across the enterprise.

Brown also remains engaged in academic work by mentoring pharmacy resident research projects and leading quality improvement/research initiatives. She has over 70 publications, with a focus on pharmacotherapy for critically/emergently ill patients and health equity. She was also recently awarded both the EM Pharmacist of the Year from the Academic Emergency Medicine Pharmacist Interest Group within the Society of Academic Emergency Medicine and the Early Career Research Achievement Award from the Academy of Geriatric Emergency Medicine.

Brown advocates consistently bringing the conversation back to the patient, especially to the needs of those who may be overlooked because of race, ethnicity, disability, health literacy, social vulnerability, or limited access to follow-up care. As chair of the Mayo Midwest Pharmacy Equity, Inclusion, and Diversity Council, she expanded the use of pronoun pins, led the development and implementation of an interview and hiring toolkit to promote equitable hiring, and organized department-wide education. Through this work and related research, she aims to elevate gaps in care and provide actionable recommendations to advance equitable, affirming care for transgender and gender-diverse patients.

Outside patient care, she creates a safe environment for team members by setting clear expectations for respect, curiosity, and shared accountability while modeling these behaviors. In addition, she encourages an equity lens by asking residents not only “Does this intervention work?” but also “for whom, under what circumstances, and how can we improve access and impact?”

Browns credits Gil Fraser, her PGY2 critical care residency director, as having the greatest influence on her career. He instilled intellectual curiosity, modeled patient-centered care grounded in respect and dignity, and promoted a commitment to lifelong learning. He encouraged her to approach complex cases with both rigor and openness, to challenge assumptions, and to learn from every member of the interprofessional team. In addition, he emphasized humility, finding purpose and joy in one’s work, and sustaining pharmacist well-being to consistently bring their best selves to patients.

With that, her advice is to get involved intentionally. Choose opportunities that align with what genuinely motivates you to contribute consistently and develop skills that translate to patient care, research, teaching, and leadership. She values ACCP as a professional “home” within clinical pharmacy and credits the organization with turning ideas into action while supporting diversity and health equity. She believes this strengthens our profession and ultimately improves the care we provide for patients and communities. So, her advice is to say yes to getting involved, stay curious, and then keep returning to the work that energizes you.