Susan Bradford, MD

Dr. Susan Bradford grew up in Alabama and worked as a chemist in Kalamazoo, MI, prior to deciding she preferred people to test tubes. She then attended Medical School at University of Alabama at Birmingham. Dr. Bradford completed her residency at Seattle Children’s Hospital at University of Washington, where she played an active role in the WWAMI Program and spent two months at the Pocatello Children’s Clinic as part of her residency. After residency, Dr. Bradford returned back to Alabama to be close to family.  However, she missed the West and returned to Pocatello for 12 years prior to relocating to Boise to work with Meridian Pediatrics in 2010. 

Soon after arriving in Pocatello, Dr. Bradford became disheartened by the number of women who used substances during pregnancy and saddened by the fact that there was little treatment available to these women even when they wanted it.  Through an AAP CATCH grant, she was able to work with other concerned members of the community to investigate the scope of the problem. As a result of this community effort, a day treatment program for parenting women was developed in Pocatello. Many of these women shared that their drug abuse resulted from sexual abuse that occurred in their childhood or adolescence. As a result, Dr. Bradford became interested in doing what she could to break the cycle of this very pervasive problem in pediatric patients.  She was fortunate to be able to spend sabbatical time with the Safe and Healthy Families Team at Primary Children’s Medical Center in Salt Lake City, learning how to evaluate and treat children who have been victimized by sexual and physical abuse.

While she enjoys all aspects of pediatric practice, working with abused children was an arena that allowed her to feel that she made a difference by helping healing to occur in a child’s life. Dr. Bradford was Idaho Pediatrician of the Year for 2006. She currently serves as a board member for the Idaho Perinatal Project and is on the Governor’s Children At Risk Task Force and Idaho’s Child Fatality Review Team. 

Dr. Bradford enjoys hiking, cycling, cross country skiing and just being outdoors in the beautiful state of Idaho. She also enjoys gardening and when she has time she likes to read and decorate cakes and cookies.