Christopher Lee Bryson MD

Chris was born in Norfolk, VA, to Jerrell and Carolyn Bryson, and raised in Irving, Texas. He graduated summa cum laude from Austin College in 1993 and, four years later, received his medical degree from the University of Texas Southwestern. In 2000, Chris moved to Seattle, Washington, where his unique gifts as an empathetic clinician and a rigorous academic led to an impressive medical career that improved the quality of care for patients across Washington state and beyond. For medical reasons, he retired in 2013. He was appointed Associate Professor Emeritus of the University of Washington Department of Medicine (General Internal Medicine) in 2018.

A core investigator in the VA Northwest Health Services Research and Development Center of Excellence, Chris pioneered early efforts to measure medication adherence, examining the relationship between how and whether patients take prescribed medications and subsequent clinical outcomes and quality of care. Conducted using large, national pharmacy databases, this research lay the foundation for thousands of future investigations. He also researched a number of other important topics in pharmacoepidemiology and strategies to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.

Chris’ research was widely recognized and highly influential; he published nearly 100 articles in peer-reviewed journals. He also received numerous grants from the VA, NIH and other institutions. From 2009-2013, Christopher served as the medical director for the Clinical Outcomes Assessment Program (COAP), a program that measures the quality of care and outcomes for patients undergoing cardiac interventions and surgeries in Washington. He was instrumental in helping hospitals use the COAP data registry, allowing them to compare results and learn from each other. His impact at COAP continues to be felt throughout the state.

In addition to his demanding research and administrative roles, Christopher was an outstanding and supremely compassionate physician. A supportive and encouraging colleague, he always made time to assist other physicians. He mentored more than a dozen students and fellows and continued to mentor early career scientists even after his retirement. He was a much sought-after second opinion when other physicians encountered a medical dilemma.

In his personal life, as in his professional, Chris’ love and compassion for others shone through. He was fiercely devoted to his family and loving and generous to his friends. Although he had lived in Washington for the last 20 years, he was still a Texan at heart. His interests were eclectic: he was fluent in ancient Greek, and over the pandemic he began translating the New Testament with his Aunt Lea; he loved hiking and camping and the mountains of the Pacific Northwest and traveling to Taiwan with his wife and in-laws; he listened to every kind of music, from jazz and classical to rock and roll. While Dr. Christopher Bryson will be missed for his many contributions to medicine, the loss of Chris Bryson, husband, son, brother, friend and colleague, will leave a gaping hole in the hearts of everyone who knew him well.

Chris is survived by his wife, Jiho Huang Bryson, of Seattle; parents Jerrell John Bryson and Carolyn Thompson Bryson, of Irving, Texas; and brother Jeffrey Brooke Bryson, of Houston. Extended family include his uncle Bernard Glenn Bryson III, with his wife Louise; uncle Paul W. Bryson, with his wife Cindy; aunt Lea Olsan Jones, with her husband Peter Jones; and uncle Dhu Charles Thompson, with his wife Mary Ellen. Chris is predeceased by his grandparents Dr. B.G. and Babs Bryson and Judge Lea S. and Eleanor “Nibby” Thompson.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in his memory can be made to the University of Washington Division of General Internal Medicine Research Fund (contact Michelle Lynch – lynchm@uw.edu).

All are welcome to sign the online guestbook below and add any messages or stories for the Bryson family.

Prayers

Rest eternal grant to him, O Lord;

And let light perpetual shine upon him.

May his soul and the souls of all the departed,

through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

Almighty God, Father of mercies and giver of comfort: Deal graciously, we pray, with all who mourn; that, casting all their care on you, they may know the consolation of your love; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.