All spring and summer, Mohanad Shukry’s luggage has been gathering dust. Like all of us, his work-related travel abruptly halted due to the pandemic. Instead, Dr. Shukry has been spending his weekends in his back yard donning a beekeeping suit—somewhat similar to the PPE needed to care for COVID-19 patients—and tending to thousands of bees.
"Just like taking a few seconds to look at a patient, you can gain a lot of information from glancing at a beehive," Dr. Shukry said. "Their mood, energy, heat inside the hive, threats from the outside, nectar and pollen gathering, diseases affecting the hive, and more."
When he got the colony in May of 2020, Dr. Shukry was still the chief of pediatric anesthesiology at Omaha’s Children’s Hospital & Medical Center, looking forward to officially transitioning to department executive vice chair on July 1. Since he was going to be home more frequently over the summer instead of traveling for academic experiences, he decided to pursue a dream of keeping bees. He cited his lifelong interest in insects, bees’ positive environmental impact and the opportunity to learn a new skill as motivators.
"I’ve learned a lot from my bees," Dr. Shukry said. "Bee colonies are very efficient. They work together in outstanding ways and communicate very effectively. Each bee is all about its individual responsibility and the survival of the colony against all odds. I hope I can help bring some of that inspiration to the department."
Dr. Shukry aims to help the department become recognized nationally with its top-tier programs, pushing the department’s outstanding reputation beyond the Midwest. His strategy includes supporting our outstanding people and programs, facilitating teamwork, recruiting top candidates, and expanding clinical and academic capabilities.
Dr. Shukry’s time will be half administrative, half clinical. He will practice both at UNMC performing general pediatric anesthesia, and at CHMC focusing on cardiac patients, taking call on both sides. His administrative role focuses on operations, coordinating and executing goals, starting with the department’s executive leadership.
"It’s very exciting," Dr. Shukry said. "I see myself as the conductor. We know where we want to go, and it’s my job to help us figure out how to get there. I very much look forward to building the relationships and processes that will make us hum."
If his accomplishments while at CHMC are any indication, great things can be expected during Dr. Shukry’s leadership. He joined CHMC in 2013 and quickly built the ACGME-approved pediatric anesthesiology fellowship, serving as its inaugural director. During his tenure, division faculty nearly doubled from 13 to 25, as did the patient volume. He helped raise $1.5 million for new facilities, helped open the Fetal Care Center and Outpatient Surgery Center, was the inaugural chair of the Physician Advisory Council, and recruited numerous outstanding faculty who have pushed the division quality and academic achievements to new heights.
Additionally, Dr. Shukry earned his PhD in science education from the University of Oklahoma while a faculty there from 2005-2013.
"I’m a learner, that is what I’ve done my whole life," Dr. Shukry said. "I don’t like stagnation. The only thing that requires no energy is going backwards. You always have to keep learning and growing."
Dr. Shukry grew up in Syria in a family of eight with a military father. War forced a move to Damascus where Dr. Shukry completed medical school. He migrated to America in 1998 for its more advanced healthcare systems and individual freedoms. He completed residency at Tulane University in New Orleans where he met his wife, Annette. The two have been married for 17 years and have two children, Lina, 16, and Omar, 13, who enjoy their weekly bee hive checks with their father.
Executive promotion, beekeeping amongst Dr. Shukry’s new ventures
