Our team
Dr. William Caron
MD, CCFP Physician (pronouns: he/him)
Dr. Caron graduated from medical school at McMaster University in 2016 after completing his Bachelor of Science through McGill University. He also completed his family medicine residency in 2018 through McMaster, where he developed his interest in gender affirming care. Dr Caron brings nine years of experience in gender affirming hormone care and surgical assessments, and is deeply passionate about 2SLGBTQ+ health.
Dr. Caron currently has his practice at the Bruyère Health Academic Family Medicine Team, where he is deeply involved in medical education, and ensures that future family physicians feel comfortable, and confident, in gender affirming care. He is also an Assistant Professor in the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Ottawa. In his spare time, he loves to run, curl, read, and be in the company of his husband and their dog.
Tawnya Shimizu
Nurse Practitioner - PHC (pronouns: she/her)
NP Shimizu graduated from the Nursing program at Algonquin College before completing her Bachelor of Science in Nursing at the University of Ottawa and her Master of Nursing at Athabasca University. She has been a Registered Nurse for 12 years and has practiced as a Nurse Practitioner since 2008.
NP Shimizu works full-time at the Bruyère Health Academic Family Medicine Team and teaches the final two courses of the Nurse Practitioner program at the University of Ottawa. She is deeply passionate about 2SLGBTQ+ health and is committed to providing inclusive, gender-affirming, and patient-centered care. Her work in the Gender Affirming Care Clinic allows her to combine her clinical expertise with her dedication to fostering safe, affirming healthcare spaces for all.
Kathleen Burgess
Nurse Practitioner - PHC (pronouns: she/her)
NP Burgess graduated from the Master of Nursing/Nurse Practitioner Primary Health Care program at the University of Toronto in 2022 after completing her Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2017. She has 8 years of nursing experience and has been practicing as a Nurse Practitioner since 2022 when she joined the Bruyère Health Academic Family Medicine Team.
In Kathleen’s full-time clinical role, she provides comprehensive, patient-centred primary health care. She is passionate about NP education and supervises NP students in their clinical placements. Kathleen has a special interest in 2SLGBTQ+ health and gender affirming care. She has been providing gender affirming hormone care and surgical assessments since January 2023. She is committed to reducing barriers to accessing gender affirming care and supporting future primary care providers to develop competency in caring for gender diverse individuals.