Profile

Dr. Frank Papanikolaou is a urologist and surgeon at SickKids Hospital in Toronto, and with Trillium Health Partners, treating patients of all ages.

Along with his interest in helping people, his early interest in science led him toward medicine, and the prospect of physically taking care of patients had him pursue surgery, specifically in a specialty that offered diverse treatment options.

“Urology involves a lot of strategy, and apart from surgery there are many medications we can offer to our patients,” Dr. Papanikolaou says. “We also work with some of the most cutting-edge technology, robotics and advanced equipment within the surgical specialties.”

What he finds most rewarding in his specialty is the ability to deal with a medical problem directly. “I am able to see the outcome right away and helping patients gives me a great sense of accomplishment.”

Bedside manner is key to his approach to patients. “Everything you need to know, you learned in kindergarten: being nice, helpful, happy and friendly to those around you.”

As he meets patients, Dr. Papanikolaou believes the best strategy is to find a common denominator. “I’ll connect with a three-year-old by asking what their favourite colour is, or try to find some personal connection to an older patient. If patients aren’t comfortable, I won’t get all the data — which limits my decision-making.” When you have a trusting relationship with someone, they will be comfortable telling you what their true issues are.

As a University of Toronto assistant professor and head of Trillium’s urologic fellowship and residency programs, the importance of patient care is one of the critical teachings Dr. Papanikolaou imparts to his students. “It’s an open conversation: good rapport gets you all the data you need. Patients have a lot of the answers we need to understand the best diagnostic and treatment approach for that particular patient.”

Patient care is also about problem-solving, a process that should not be undertaken superficially as you may miss the necessary factors to make an accurate diagnosis. You need to dive deep.

“Medicine also requires you to think outside the box,” he says. “A young woman came in for a second opinion because she’d been bedwetting for 19 years. Amongst other questions, we asked if she snores, a cause of bedwetting since kidneys produce more urine in this situation. It turns out snoring was the problem and we solved it with an ENT Specialist — it turned out to be a non-urologic issue.”

Especially among his students, Dr. Papanikolaou recognizes the challenges surrounding physician wellness and burnout. Early retirement because of burnout among specialists only adds to the overall burden felt among healthcare professionals, ultimately impacting patient care.

The conversation around burnout includes looking at financial wellness, especially among younger physicians who worry about being unable to afford mortgage payments and among medical residents trying to save money. This is one reason which led Dr. Papanikolaou to join the MD Physician Council.

“In our profession, financial wellness comes up very infrequently in conversations. Residents should better understand markets, credit lines and mortgages, and we should bring more financial literacy to medical students.”

Dr. Papanikolaou’s interest in business and finance led him to take additional programs at the Rotman School of Management and Schulich School of Business, and widened his network through the MD Physician Council.

“I enjoy advocacy, networking and learning how business people think. It’s made me grow as an individual,” he adds. “I have personal values I adhere to and I want to bring ideas to fruition — for the good of my colleagues.”