Dr. Marwan & Dr. Hind Obid – Love At First Sight
BY VAL SCHOGER PHOTOS; BY VAL SCHOGER & HOLLY GARDNER
The two practicing physicians at the Obid Allergy, Respiratory & Internal Medicine Center in Panama City are a husband and wife team. Doctors Hind and Marwan Obid started the practice in 1986. Dr. Marwan Obid is specialized in Pulmonary, Sleep and Internal Medicine. Dr. Hind Obid is specialized in the fields of Allergy, Immunology, and Asthma.
They have three adult children. Their oldest daughter Sara studies psychology and lives in Phoenix, Arizona with her husband and two children . The younger siblings Sam and Rhanda are looking to pursue careers in the medical field and are enrolled in medical school.
PCL: How did you meet?
Dr. Marwan: We both studied at the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Damascus in Syria. We met in our last year of school.
Dr. Hind: We got married and moved to the United States to continue our medical training in 1978 at the University of Chicago. My sister, Dr. Rashda Albibi and her husband, Dr. Riyad Albibi had already relocated to Panama City a few years before. We decided to relocate to Panama City after visiting with them because we fell in love with the town.
PCL: Please describe how you work together and the advantages.
Dr. Marwan: We each have our own routines in seeing patients and are working independently from each other, each of us in their field of expertise. We operate two medical practices under one roof. The proximity to each other allows us to ask for each other’s professional opinion and sometimes we do have mutual patients. Another advantage is that we can share the same office space and expenses. Our employees work for both of us, but there are separate computers for each of our practices.
Dr. Hind: Our office manager has worked for us since we opened the practice in 1988 and some of our patients have been with us since the doors first opened. While we are both running different practices, it has big advantages and makes it very convenient to be in the same location.
PCL: What makes you successful?
Dr. Marwan: We sometimes disagree about some business issues but work together to make one sound decision. We both have our separate schedules and tasks. We don’t fight about territories and when it comes to making certain decisions, I will trust Hind and she often hears me say “Let me know what you decided”. This also makes for a great work environment for our employees. They do not get confused with two different opinions this way.
Dr. Hind: Our employees check with him on certain things and with other tasks and questions they come to me.
PCL: Can you give advice to our readers on how to best work together as a couple?
Dr. Marwan: When it comes to making decisions, someone has to be the boss. But when you are in business together, then it really does not matter who the boss is as long as the business is running smoothly. We stay flexible, we are not territorial and we don’t fight over power. We just simply love our work and focus fully on it.
PCL: Are there every any downsides to working together?
Dr. Hind: We both love what we do and it is very rewarding to have a patient walk up to you and say “Your husband saved my life”. While my patients are rarely in life threatening condition, some of his patients at the hospital are fighting for their lives. When he feels that his patients need him, then he will do anything to take care of them. He has cancelled several of our plans to visit family and friends out of town due to a patient’s condition. I had to go by myself on several trips. But I understand his concerns about leaving his patients.
Dr. Marwan: I had several patients with pneumonia last year. A number of other doctors were out of town at the time and I spent my holidays with my patients in the ICU. I could not have left them in their critical condition and am thankful that, as a doctor, my wife understands the importance of being there for a patient.
Dr. Hind: We have known some of our patients for decades. Their entire family, children and grandchildren have become our patients over the years. If a family trusts you with their health in their third generation, then that is a nice feeling. We are very happy about our family and are forever happy with our work.
[box type=”shadow” ]
Obid Allergy, Respiratory & Internal Medicine Center is located at 951 W. 23rd Street, Panama City, FL 32405
850-785-0699.
Find out more at www.allergyobid.com.
[/box]