Lessons from mom: Why personal connection is a physician’s best tool

When she was 13, Mikayla Maiuro, DO, wrote her mom a Mother’s Day letter that affectionately referred to her as the family’s best caregiver. Today, that childhood admiration has come full circle, as Mikayla officially joins her mother, Debra Lebo, DO, in the world of osteopathic medicine.

Their shared passion for the importance of the human touch is a philosophy that evolved from an “old school” lesson passed down from Debra: “As a surgeon, a surgical day can be an ordinary day for our team. For our patients, though, this may be a scary, anxiety-provoking experience,” Mikayla explained. “Mom taught me to follow up with patients after their surgery, which allows them to feel like more than a surgical case number.”

As Mikayla says, the personal touch can be lost among today’s technology. While phone call follow-ups may be more consuming than a message sent through an electronic medical record, Mikayla recognizes the importance of taking that extra step: “I don’t want to lose the personal connection I can make with patients.”

Those connections are exactly what inspired Debra to pursue osteopathic medicine.

“I loved the holistic approach to patient care that osteopathic medicine offered,” she said.

The mentor who shaped two generations

Debra’s passion was ignited early on in her education by a mentor who would eventually influence both mother and daughter. While studying at San Diego State University, Debra met Raymond Hruby, DO, who introduced her to osteopathic medicine. Dr. Hruby eventually became Debra’s professor at the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine (UNECOM), where he taught osteopathic principles and practices (OPP). The bond Debra had with Dr. Hruby was so significant that he hooded her at graduation.

Twenty-three years later, in a truly full-circle moment, Debra introduced him to Mikayla while she was applying to colleges of osteopathic medicine, effectively passing the torch to the next generation.

While Dr. Hruby’s mentorship provided the foundation, Mikayla says seeing her mother’s daily impact as a physician is what ultimately cemented her career path.

“Having a mother who was a physician provided me early insight to the field,” Mikayla says. “As my education advanced, I realized I enjoyed working with people and with my hands. I liked using my quick critical thinking skills and seeing the impact that medicine can have on a patient’s life.”

While Debra says Mikayla’s decision to follow in her footsteps was initially both exciting and scary—she cites the difficulties associated with getting into medical school and the long path before beginning a career—she also knew how determined Mikayla was to “do anything she set her mind to.”

Different paths, same calling

While their foundational “why” is identical, Mikayla and Debra’s clinical interests eventually led them to different specialties. Debra found her calling as an OB-GYN early on in her education.

“Embryology was my favorite class in undergrad, so that was my first inspiration. Learning more about the specialty, I loved all the variation in OB-GYN,” Debra says. “You can see patients in the office, do surgery and deliver babies all in the same day. There’s no other specialty where you can say ‘congratulations’ when you leave the room. And it’s so touching when dads cry after seeing their baby for the first time!”

While Debra found her inspiration early on, Mikayla says that otolaryngology wasn’t initially on her radar. She knew she enjoyed being in the operating room, and wanted to become a surgeon one day, but she didn’t know which specialty to pursue.

“I love the complexity of head and neck anatomy, which piqued my interest in the field. I shadowed an ear, nose and throat (ENT) physician in medical school, and I learned how incredible and underrated otolaryngology really is,” she says.

Like her mother, Mikayla thrives on the variety she experiences in her specialty. The opportunity to work with diverse patient populations and the technical challenge of performing everything from microsurgery to minimally invasive and complex cases are what ultimately drew her to otolaryngology.

Mikayla recently began her residency at the Detroit Medical Center, where her interest and commitment have continued to grow. She credits the variety of pathology and disease within ENT as a primary driver of that enthusiasm.

“My passion grows each day,” she said. “I’m excited to see what my future holds in otolaryngology.”

From residency to retirement

While Mikayla has just begun her residency, Debra is at the opposite end of that spectrum.

“I am planning to retire from private practice at Temecula Valley OB-GYN Medical Associates, where I have been working for 27 years,” she says. “My husband and I will travel the world, living in a different country every month. And when I come back, I will work per diem as an obstetrician hospitalist.”

As she prepares for the next chapter, Debra’s advice to the next generation of osteopathic physicians is to never lose sight of the “why.”

“Don’t forget that the reason why you went into medicine is to help people. I know it sounds cliché, but with all the pressures of the career, sometimes it’s hard to remember your basic purpose,” Debra said.

Mikayla echoes those sentiments and advises osteopathic medical students that no goal is unattainable.

“The medical journey is a difficult path, but it’s important to remember your ‘why,’ especially on those hard days,” she said. “Remember that your day may be the hardest day of your patient’s life. Show them empathy and treat them as if they are your only patient.”

A future side by side

What’s next for the Lebo-Maiuro docs? Hopefully, the opportunity to participate in a medical mission together. Mikayla shares that they’ve traveled together in the past, but being able to participate as a practicing physician alongside her mother would give those experiences a deeper meaning.

“I would love for my mother to see my surgical skills and how I have developed into a resident physician,” Mikayla said. “Watching her practice medicine firsthand has always been an experience I’ll cherish.”

While Mikayla may always think of her mom as the family’s best caregiver, she has also become something even more significant: a mentor, a guide and now, her most valued professional colleague.

Other stories in this series:

In Kirksville, Missouri, a milestone in motherhood and medicine

Full-circle care: From children to centenarians

No glamour, all heart: Why this surgeon-mom is proud her daughter chose the same path