Good Samaritan Physician Leader Profile: Stephen Brown, MD

Stephen Brown, MD, is chief of the Department of General Surgery at Good Samaritan, where he’s served on the medical staff since the hospital opened in December 2004.

Stephen and his wife Shelly.

How long have you been practicing medicine and what led you to the profession?

In high school, I was really into computers. I was also interested in anatomy. Somehow programming and fixing humans went together for me, and social interactions were better than looking at a blank screen. After college, I went to medical school at University of Illinois. I completed my residency in general surgery at Indiana University School of Medicine in 1996. I worked at a practice in LaGrange, Illinois, for seven years until we moved to Colorado in 2004. 

What’s the best thing about being a member of the Good Sam medical staff?

One of the best things about being on the med staff that’s been consistent throughout the years is the percentage of patients I see who are extremely happy with their care at the hospital. And that’s with absolutely everyone they interact with – the custodians, food services, the lab, respiratory therapy, and so on – that is working with patients to make sure they have a good experience. The high patient satisfaction really helps a lot and makes my job much easier.

Can you tell us a bit about your family?

I met my wife of 32 years, Shelly, in college. She’s supported me through my entire career. During medical school and my residency, she worked two jobs to financially support us. She’s been a fantastic mother to our children, who are now grown, and is a tremendous cook. Our daughter, Alexa, is a recruiter for the National Center for Atmospheric Research and our son, Austin, is a software engineer at Google in Boulder. We also have a “Cavapoo” (Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and Poodle) named Kona.

What’s your favorite way to relax?

I like to run; it’s how I release steam. I run “casual” races and half marathons – they tend to be at places like Disney. I also like to read. As a family, we’ve spent many summers in Wisconsin, where we do a lot of hiking and water skiing.