Honoring the Life and Legacy of Dr. Jamie Shandro
A message from Interim Department Chair, Steve Mitchell
It is with deep sadness that I share the news that longtime emergency medicine physician Dr. Jamie Shandro passed away peacefully on September 1st, surrounded by her family. Beyond being an exceptional physician, Jamie was a trailblazer, mentor, teacher, and dear friend.
Jamie's Path to Medicine
Raised in Idaho, she was a proud WWAMI medical student before earning her Doctor of Medicine at the University of Washington School of Medicine. She later earned a Master of Public Health from Harvard. After completing the Stanford-Kaiser Emergency Medicine Residency Program, she returned to the Pacific Northwest to serve the community she loved, and, importantly, to be close to the mountains once again.
In 2006, Jamie became the first board-certified emergency medicine attending to practice in the Harborview Emergency Department. Her presence marked the beginning of a new era for the department, helping set the stage for the growth and excellence that followed.
For nearly two decades, she exemplified what it means to be a Harborview physician: skilled, compassionate, collaborative, and unwaveringly dedicated to patient care.
"For me, especially in my role, I often turned to and took my cues from Jamie when difficult issues or decisions arose," shared Emergency Medicine’s founding chair, Dr. Susan Stern. "I knew I could rely on her to steer me in the right direction, to serve as a guide, a barometer, even a north star, always grounding us in our mission and values. She was courageous, unwaveringly true to herself, and deeply committed to the people and the work she loved."
Educational Accomplishments
Education was one of Jamie’s greatest passions, and she became a masterful educator. She directed the required emergency medicine student clerkship from 2010 to 2019. She received the UW School of Medicine Distinguished Teacher Award in 2016 and 2018, along with numerous bedside teaching honors.
"She was so energetic and smart. She was one of the reasons that I chose to become an ER doctor," said former UW medical student and UW EM resident Alex Lambert. "Sometimes the people who have the most influence on your life do so in indirect ways. With Jamie, it was her brightness, passion, and overwhelming empathy that made her such a great doctor and incredible mentor. Jamie led by example in a very special way."
Dr. Shandro also served as course director for the highly popular Introduction to Emergency Medicine elective from 2009 to 2022. As a UWSOM medical student a decade before becoming Course Director, the class was transformative in Jamie’s decision to choose Emergency Medicine as her specialty. Jamie was a tireless advocate for equity, diversity, and inclusion, serving as core faculty for the Emergency Medicine Scholars Program and contributing her wisdom and energy to countless committees and task forces.
"Jamie was my favorite attending to see on the schedule - I knew no matter how crazy, boring, frustrating, or sad the shift was, that I'd learn a lot and laugh some, too. Her incredible positivity and ability to give constructive feedback and confront challenging issues with grace and humor were unmatched," shared former EM resident Anna Condino. "I loved her infectious energy for medicine and the natural world, and her true joy (and complete lack of ego) in being of service to and helping others."
"What a loss for us all, but what a privilege to know her." - Anna Condino
Her scholarly work reflected her wide-ranging expertise and commitment to often underexamined areas of emergency care. She published on topics such as carbon monoxide poisoning among immigrant populations (American Journal of Public Health) and the psychological health of children following parental injury (Pediatrics). She also co-edited Practical Guide to Pediatric Emergency Medicine: Caring for Children in the Emergency Department (Cambridge University Press, 2011).
Dr. Joshua Jauregui, who worked closely with Shandro, remembers her fondly as his mentor and friend.
“Dr. Shandro proctored me on my first shift as an intrepid new attending on the trauma side of Harborview Medical Center’s storied Emergency Department. From our very first meeting, she modeled how to find joy and meaning in both the daily work of patient care and the long view of medical education,” said Jauregui. “Co-directing the EM clerkship with her has been one of the greatest privileges of my career. I learned from her every day. Jamie’s courageous kindness and sense of wonder inspired me to see our patients more fully and to care more deeply. Her spirit and example will always remain a part of how I practice, teach, and live. Jamie did everything with her whole heart; a heart that will live on in all of us who were lucky enough to know her.”
Jamie’s leadership extended beyond Harborview Medical Center. Nationally, she served for nearly 20 years on the American College of Emergency Physicians’ Public Health and Injury Prevention Committee and chaired the Council of Residency Directors in Emergency Medicine Advising Students Committee in EM (ASC-EM). Locally, she played an important role on the King County Pediatric Disaster Task Force.
And yet, for all her accomplishments, Jamie was defined most by her brilliance, humility, and heart. With her infectious smile, she often deflected attention from herself, preferring to lift up her students, colleagues, and friends. She led with kindness and grace, showing us all how to be better physicians—and better people.
"We have lost a remarkable friend, teacher, caretaker, and visionary. Yet Jamie’s impact on our department, our students and trainees, our faculty and staff, the broader healthcare team, and countless patients will always endure," Stern shared.
In Her Own Words
When Jamie was away from work, she was usually on an outdoor adventure in the mountains or spending time with her beloved family, whom she adored, always radiating her infectious smile and unwavering enthusiasm for life. Additionally, Jamie was a talented writer who contributed pieces to several publications, including the New York Times, Seattle Times, and Outside Magazine.
She wrote masterfully about her love of the outdoors, detailing the trips she would take each June with her family to Mount Rainier.
"I put my feet up on the sun-warmed rock, laughed at a fat marmot galumphing across the snowfield below me, chittered back at a bold chipmunk who came by asking for a treat, and said yes to what my body was asking me at the moment. I drank water, ate a handful of gummy bears and a cheese stick, and let myself rest as I gazed out on a field of volcanoes outlining the southward heading fault through the mountain ranges in the distance."
"What is certain to me is that each batch of 100 steps is worth it, for the beauty, the journey, and the time outdoors with the people I love. And though my journey up Mount Rainier now is markedly different than it was before my diagnosis, every step is a precious yes." - Jamie Shandro, Outside Online
Her compassion for patients with mental health needs was evident in her thoughtful columns, where she shared how a family member’s experience shaped her into a more understanding physician. Above all, her writing called for a more humane and accessible system, urging readers to remember that every patient in crisis is someone’s loved one.
Honoring Her Legacy
Jamie was a courageous, bright light in our world. She will be profoundly missed, but her influence will live on in the generations of emergency medicine physicians she trained, the patients she cared for, and the many lives she touched.
