Dr. Kathie Thoms is an emergency physician and sport and exercise medicine specialist with Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services, as well as a Clinical Assistant Professor at Memorial University. Since becoming an emergency physician in 2016, she has combined expertise in emergency medicine, sports medicine, and clinical epidemiology to provide high-quality care in both hospital and athletic settings. She also serves on Memorial University’s Board of Regents and has a longstanding commitment to evidence-based medicine and health system leadership.

Dr. Thoms is best known for her leadership as Chief Medical Officer for the 2025 Canada Games in St. John’s. She designed and oversaw a comprehensive medical system that integrated hospitals, EMS, public health, physicians, nurses, and allied health professionals while protecting local emergency departments from additional strain. Under her leadership, a dedicated athlete medical clinic provided more than 4,000 visits, supported by a team of 128 staff, and she personally oversaw concussion management and athlete safety decisions throughout the Games.

Colleagues describe Dr. Thoms as a physician of exceptional competence, humility, and quiet leadership. In addition to maintaining a full-time emergency medicine practice, she dedicated thousands of hours to the Canada Games, guided medical planning during wildfire-related threats, and participated in a medical mission to Guatemala with Team Broken Earth. Nominators praise her steady judgment, collaborative approach, and ability to leave systems stronger than she found them, making her a deserving recipient of the 2026 CAEP Emergency Physician of the Year Award for Eastern Urban Canada.