Evanston Welcomes New Pediatrician
Evanston Welcomes New Pediatrician
By: Bradie Jill Jones | Uinta County Herald
There’s a new doctor in town. Her name is Dr. Bird Gilmartin, and she is a board-certified pediatrician. She and her family are relocating to Evanston from Rock Springs. “I take caring for children very seriously,” Gilmartin said. “It’s a responsibility and honor.” She will begin working in Evanston in late October.
Gilmartin is the mother of two children — a little girl and a brand new baby boy. She and her husband, Ryan, purchased a house in Evanston and they’ve been working on making it their home. The couple married 10 years ago in Colorado, where they met in junior high. Outside of her work, Gilmartin said she takes great joy in family life. “I love, love, love being a mom,” she said. “My husband Ryan and my kids are my whole world.”
As a college student, Gilmartin majored in psychology and she had no idea that she would end up studying medicine. “I was not pre-med in college,” she said. Following her graduation from college, she went to work for the Children’s Defense Fund
and taught elementary school. Upon realizing her passion for pediatrics, she enrolled at Penn State University.
Growing up, she said one experience in particular contributed to her interest in caretaking. “I played doctor growing up,” Gilmartin said. “Our next-door neighbor adopted a Romanian orphan who needed significant care in the beginning. I got to be a part of his care pretty regularly.” She was, in her own words, “... the science dork who loved dissecting things” as a kid in Fort Collins, Colorado.
At Evanston Regional Hospital, Dr. Gilmartin will be stepping into the role of medical director of pediatrics. She brings with her a slew of experience, some of which she has garnered within the walls of her own home. “Being a mom and being a pediatrician, I feel like I have a really good understanding of the worries that come with being a mom,” she said of the two hats she wears.
Her first time in Evanston was for her interview at the hospital but Gilmartin said she has long had a fondness for Wyoming. “Growing up in Colorado, Wyoming feels like your next-door neighbor,” she said. “The people who know me best know that I am shy and that I have really, really good friendships that last my whole life long,” she said.
Practicing loyalty throughout her life, Gilmartin has had the same best friend since she was 3 years old. When she isn’t taking care of local kiddos at the hospital, Gilmartin can be found with her family riding bikes, camping or reading. One of her all time favorite books is “The Magician’s Assistant” by Ann Pratchett.
The Gilmartins are looking forward to living in the small, family-oriented community of Evanston. When asked what she would like the community to know about her as she embarks on this new portion of her career at Evanston Regional Hospital, Gilmartin said, “When I assume their care, they kind of become my kids, too, in that I worry about them and I think about them. I take caring for their children very seriously. It’s a responsibility and an honor.”