Colleagues, loved ones express 'shock and disbelief' after well known B.C. doctor found dead

Tributes are pouring in for Dr. Tracy Pickett, a Vancouver doctor who was found dead on Thursday.

Pickett, 55, went missing from her home in the Dunbar area Tuesday night, according to her family.

Vancouver police launched an investigation into her disappearance on Wednesday and said they found her remains in the Southlands neighbourhood Thursday.

Pickett's brother says his family is "devastated" by the news. 

"My sister was my hero," Iain Pickett said in a Facebook message to CBC.

Pickett's death doesn't appear to be the result of a crime and there is no public safety risk, according to police. The B.C. Coroners Service will be investigating the cause of death, and officials have declined to comment further on what happened. 

Pickett was an emergency physician and a specialist in emergency and clinical forensic medicine who has testified in criminal trials.

She had testified at a high-profile sexual assault and murder trial the day she went missing. She was due to testify again Thursday, but did not show up.

"We are all grieving," said Dr. Afshin Khazei, Pickett's friend and colleague at the Vancouver General Hospital emergency department.

"When I say we, I don't just mean my emergency department, I mean people from all the hospitals in the Lower Mainland," he told CBC News, adding he was in "shock and disbelief" when he heard about her death.

Khazei has known Pickett since they attended medical school together in 1991.

"Having known her for all those years, she was somebody I considered very resilient, very strong, very positive."

'A very strong desire to have justice'

In addition to her work in the emergency department, Pickett was the medical director for the B.C. Women's Hospital Sexual Assault Service. 

She was one of a few people in Canada who combined an emergency medicine specialty with forensic medicine, according to Khazei.

"Her motivation came from a very strong desire to have justice and to be an effective advocate for victims of some of the most horrible crimes that happen in our society," Khazei said. 

Nearly 200 people on Facebook wished Pickett a safe return when she was reported missing, or have since given their condolences to her family.

Some of Pickett's past and current colleagues at St. Paul's Hospital and Vancouver General Hospital emergency department shared fond memories of working with her.

In one post on Facebook, Pickett was described as "an amazing person who somehow in the chaos that is emergency medicine brought a level head, a quick wit and a kind heart," while another said "she was one of the most delightful people you could possibly meet, smart, caring, kind, giving, funny and very generous with her smiles."

Pickett leaves behind a husband and two daughters.