From Research to Clinical Care: A GYN Mentor and Mentee’s Shared Mission

A partnership that began in residency takes shape at Sylvester to strengthen gynecologic oncology.

Dr. Sinno and Dr. Nivva Nair

Abdulrahman Sinno, M.D., and Nayva Nair, M.D., M.P.H., met as medical residents. Both were interested in women’s health, specifically gynecologic oncology. A third-generation physician, Dr. Sinno was immediately impressed by his new intern.

“We worked really well together,” he recalled. “We complemented each other. I’m a big-idea, high-energy kind of person. I think, ‘Let’s do this! Let’s do that!’ She can focus on a specific task and really drill down. Her passion is getting things done.”

Dr. Nair remembered having “an immediate connection” with the third-year resident when she was in her first year of residency.

“We understood each other,” Dr. Nair said, “and we’ve always been honest with each other from the start. We can call each other out without worrying about hurt feelings. That really helps.”

Focused on Disparities

From the outset, both were intent on delivering the best care possible to women who faced economic and social obstacles. Though they had grown up thousands of miles away from each other — Dr. Sinno in Beirut and Dr. Nair in New Orleans — both were also acutely aware that their patients needed someone in their corner. In fact, Dr. Nair switched from biomedical engineering to pre-med because of the satisfaction she derived from helping women at a critical time in their lives.

Trust is everything and it must go both ways. The mentee has to trust in your intentions and the mentor has to trust in what the mentee wants.
Dr. Abdulrahman Sinno

“My work allows for long-term, meaningful relationships with patients during the good and the bad and sometimes during the end of life,” Dr. Nair explained. “That’s important to me.”

Reunited in Miami

After working together for two years at Emory University, Drs. Sinno and Nair went their separate ways, though they kept in touch as they built their practices and families. They would meet again when Dr. Sinno recruited Dr. Nair to come to Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of UHealth – the University of Miami Health System.

“She was very happy where she was, but I told her to write a description of her perfect job, regardless of reality,” said Dr. Sinno, chief of gynecologic oncology, director of surgical research and education and associate professor of clinical obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive sciences for the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. “And what she wanted matched our vision [for the department].”

Dr. Abdulrahman Sinno  speaks with a colleague on the Miller School medical campus
Dr. Sinno recruited Dr. Nair to Miami because “what she wanted matched our vision” for the department.

Among her requirements are a collegial environment, a commitment to teamwork, mentorship and guidance and leadership possibilities. In other words, she wanted to work where she would make a difference doing what she loved.

She moved to South Florida in February, and “within six months, she had already been assigned as associate fellowship director,” Dr. Sinno added proudly. She will soon assume the role of fellowship director in addition to her work in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences.

Clinical and Research Projects

Now, the two physicians are working together again, sharing their experiences in the clinical setting and on research projects. As her mentor, Dr. Sinno “helps me with the big picture of my career. He asks me questions about where I want to be in five years and helps me figure out the steps to get there.”

It’s important to come prepared and know what you’re looking for. If you know your goals, your mentor can help you. Then it’s up to you to follow through.”
Dr. Navya Nair

They hold formal meetings quarterly but consult informally more often.

“We usually catch up on what’s going on with our families first,” she said, as both have young daughters. “Then we talk about work.”

Dr. Sinno equates mentoring with guidance, presenting options for the mentee to take the next career step. In that regard, his role with Dr. Nair is simple and straightforward, he explained.

“She’s so good at what she does,” Dr. Sinno said. “She’s a self-starter, so all I have to do is guide her and maybe tell her to look here or there for what she wants. I have no agenda other than that.”

As a mentee, Dr. Nair believes “it’s important to come prepared and know what you’re looking for. If you know your goals, your mentor can help you. Then it’s up to you to follow through.”

Listening and Trusting

In her role as associate fellowship director, Dr. Nair herself serves as a mentor to fellows at the Miller School. She also wears that hat as chair of the Diversity, Inclusion and Health Equity Committee for the Society of Gynecologic Oncology (SGO). She’s active in the committee’s Leadership, Engagement and Action in Diversity (LEAD) Program, a six-month mentoring pathway that helps underrepresented minorities land a fellowship match in gynecologic oncology. She mentored one such trainee in California last year.

Dr. Nivva Nair (right) walking through the Miller School medical campus with a colleague
Dr. Nair (left) says mentees must emphasize preparation and listening to benefit from a mentor’s advice.

“A mentor’s biggest job is to listen,” she said. “You need to know what they are looking for and then help them get there.”

Dr. Sinno said he has adapted mentoring techniques from those who mentored him along the way. He holds fast to one particular quality in the mentor-mentee relationship.

“Trust is everything,” he said, “and it must go both ways. The mentee has to trust in your intentions and the mentor has to trust in what the mentee wants. It’s not about how I see a situation or what’s best for me, but what’s best for them and their goals.”


Tags: cancer research, Department of Obstetrics Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, Dr. Abdulrahman K. Sinno, Dr. Navva Nair, gynecological oncology, mentoring, Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center