Odessa Brown Children’s Clinic Leader Awarded 2022 Physician of the Year by AAIP

Shaquita L Bell, MD of Seattle Children’s Odessa Brown Children’s Clinic

Dr. Shaquita Bell, Senior Medical Director of Seattle Children’s Odessa Brown Children’s Clinic (OBCC), has been awarded 2022 Physician of the Year by the Association of American Indian Physicians (AAIP) for her longstanding commitment to the individual and collective health of Indigenous and multi-racial children and impact within her community.

The distinguished award was presented to Dr. Bell ahead of the AAIP’s Annual Meeting and National Health Conference which brings together healthcare professionals, policy makers and community tribal members to discuss the pressing health concerns of American Indian/Alaska Natives across the nation.

 

A blanket from the Association of American Indian Physicians was accepted by Dr. Bell’s Seattle Children’s colleagues

“I feel very honored to receive this recognition, especially so early in my career,” shared Dr. Bell. “Caring for children and their families is incredibly rewarding work that I’m deeply proud to be a part of everyday at OBCC.”

Odessa Brown Children’s Clinic provides babies, children and teens with medical care, dental care, behavioral health care, nutrition support, school-based care, dermatology services and adolescent medicine- all in one place, regardless of a family’s ability to pay. OBCC, which has been part of Seattle Children’s for over 50 years, focuses on whole-person care that addresses the root causes of illness including social, economic and environmental determinants, and regularly offers education programs and classes for the community.

This year, AAIP, a non-profit organization founded in 1971 with a mission to pursue excellence in Native American health care by promoting education in the medical disciplines and honoring traditional healing principles, celebrated its 50th anniversary and was pleased to select Dr. Bell as Physician of the Year due to her significant contributions to the association, mentorship to students, inspiring leadership qualities and continued dedication to the children and families she serves.

Dr. Bell is the proud daughter of a Cherokee mother and Black father and earned her medical degree at the University of Minnesota in 2006. She has been with Seattle Children’s since 2006 where she began her journey as a resident until 2009 and completed a pediatric residency at the University of Washington. Dr. Bell moved up to chief resident and acting attending in 2010 and finally joined as faculty and provider at Seattle Children’s in 2011.

Dr. Bell’s path to leadership began while in medical school as the National Membership Chair of the Student National Medical Association (SNMA), a nationally renowned training program committed to supporting current and future underrepresented minority medical students and addressing the needs of underserved communities through outreach and advocacy. As a resident, she was also chair of the Resident Diversity Committee (DCOM) in the University of Washington’s Internal Pediatric Residency Program, a student-led organization that proactively works to increase diversity among future residents and create educational opportunities to improve care for marginalized populations.

In early 2022, Dr. Bell was appointed as Senior Medical Director of Odessa Brown Children’s Clinic, joined by Dr. Kenisha Campbell who was also announced as OBCC’s new Medical Director. Dr. Bell is an active member of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and has served on the Committee on Native American Child Health (CONACH).

Seattle Children’s is thrilled to join the Association of American Indian Physicians and our greater community in acknowledging this achievement and congratulating Dr. Bell for her outstanding AAIP 2022 Physician of the Year award.

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