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Luckily, the family was spotted and picked up by a
U.S. military vessel. Dr. Huynh and her family spent
the next two years living in three refugee camps before
settling in the projects of Boston in 1982. Still in
elementary school, she often acted as an interpreter for
her family and their friends who knew little English.
“My family had a very appreciative attitude when we
came here, and my mom wanted to help others and
give back to the community we lived in,” Dr. Huynh
said. “Where we lived, very few people spoke fluent
English, so my mom took me to other families’ doctor
appointments so I could interpret for them. I think it is
because I was exposed to medicine at such a young age
that I became very interested in it. I thought, ‘What if I
was the doctor that could communicate with them, in
their own language?’”
N O T A N O B S T A C L E , B U T A M O T I V A T I O N
She did not tell her family about her dream to become a
doctor for a long time, although she was caught think-
ing out loud one day by a family friend.
“She told me it wasn’t possible for me to become a
doctor because I was a refugee,” Dr. Huynh said. “That
made me work even harder. I saw it not as an obstacle,
but as a motivation.”
Her heritage has greatly influenced the way she prac-
tices medicine, although not necessarily in the way one
would think. Dr. Huynh explained that many developing
nations are patriarchal. Physicians dictate patient care,
and not much is questioned or discussed.
“I will never practice medicine like that,” she said.
“I work with my patients and their families in order to
have better outcomes. If there’s a lack of understand-
ing, I’m doing them a disservice. It’s a team effort.”
The patient experience and care model are just a
couple of the many reasons Dr. Huynh was interested in
Kootenai Health as an option following her fellowship.
After learning more about the services and specialties
offered at Kootenai, she was most excited about col-
laborating with other area physicians and completing a
well-rounded neuroscience team.
“Dr. Ganz, a neurosurgeon with Neurosurgery and
Spine Northwest, told me about the stroke program
being built and how many patients in the area have to
be sent out of state for care,” she explained. “I want to
complement and support a neurosurgical team like the
neuroscience team at Kootenai that is working to keep
patients here. I saw that opportunity, and that’s what
drew me to the area.”
O N Y O U R T E A M
Dr. Huynh is
practicing at Kootenai’s newest specialty clinic,
Kootenai Clinic Neurosurgery, located in
Coeur d’Alene. You can learn more about her services
at
KH.org/neurosurgeryor by calling
(208) 625-6799
.
At right: This is the last
family photo taken of
Dr. Huynh (center) and
her family before they
fled Communist Vietnam
(Saigon, 1980).
At left: Katie Huynh, D.O.,
participated in a minimally
invasive spine surgery
training course at the
University of California,
San Diego, cadaver lab as
a senior resident.
KH . ORG
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